A
Adulthood
Ambitious about Autism have information and advice for autistic young people, including information on employment and work experience.
Preparing for adulthood (ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk)
Advocacy
The National Autistic Society offer support services to families with autistic adults or children.
Parent to Parent (autism.org.uk)
Anxiety
The 5-point scale for emotional regulation is a visual system that can help to organize a person’s thinking when working through difficult moments, particularly those that require social understanding. See the article below for more information.
The 5-Point Scale and Emotional Regulation (Kari Dunn Buron)
Autism
The National Autistic Society provide information about what autism is and how it affects people.
What is autism (autism.org.uk)
Autism Alert card
The National Autistic Society produce Autism Alert cards to let people know that someone is autistic and that they may need extra help or understanding in certain situations. You can buy the cards through their online shop or download the cards for free: I am Autistic Card (download)
Products: Autism alert cards (autism.org.uk)
Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)
North East and North Cumbria (NENC) Provider Collaborative have produced information with Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation for those experiencing ARFID:
Support for Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder: ARFID (cntw.nhs.uk)
They have also published tips in their Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) Simple Suggestions Series:
- How can schools support a child with ARFID? (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Strategies for planning and managing a holiday away from home (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Creating supportive mealtimes (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Helping your child add new foods (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Strategies to aid you in adding new foods (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Changing your eating environment (cntw.nhs.uk)
- Strategies to support you in challenging a fear (aversive consequences)(cntw.nhs.uk)
- Creating your own ideal supportive mealtime (cntw.nhs.uk)
B
Behaviour
The STAR analysis model is a helpful way of assessing what happens before, during and after an episode of unacceptable behaviour. You can use this chart to monitor and assess behaviour: STAR Approach – behaviour analysis chart
The National Autistic Society has advice on what causes distressed behaviour and offers tips on developing ways of dealing with it. They include information on
- Anger management
- Dealing with change
- Demand avoidance
- Distressed behaviour
- Eating
- Masking
- Meltdowns
- Obsessions and repetitive behaviour
- Organising and prioritising
- Self injurious behaviour
- Smearing
- Stimming
- Toileting
Bereavement
The National Autistic Society Has advice on bereavement and how it can affect autistitc people.
C
Comic Strip conversations
The National Autistic Society has information about how social stories and comic strip conversations can help autistic people develop greater social understanding and help them stay safe.
Social stories and comic strip conversations (autism.org.uk)
Communication
The National Autistic Society has advice, tips and visual tools to support autistic people with communication.
Counselling
Rotherham Parent Carers Forum offer counselling services to their members. For general information about their counselling services, click below.
Counselling for parents and carers (rpcf.co.uk)
For information about their counselling service for children and young people aged between 10 and 25 year old with SEND, and siblings of SEND children aged between 10-17 years old, click below.
10-25 Counselling service (rpcf.co.uk)
For information about their counselling service for all their Parent Carer members aged 18 years old and over, click below.
18+ Counselling service (rpcf.co.uk)
D
Daily schedules
The National Autistic Society has information about visual supports which can be used to help autistic people manage daily schedules.
Visual supports (autism.org.uk)
E
Eating
The National Autistic Society has a guide to explain what may be causing eating issues for an autistic person and offer practical strategies to help.
Eating – a guide for all audiences (autism.org.uk)
The Association of UK Dieticians, the BDA, have produced a fact sheet on the most common dietary problems affecting autistic people and how dieticians can help:
Energy Accounting
Sheffield Children’s NHS has produced a leaflet about energy management. This is a tool to manage the day-to-day stress experienced by a person with autism.
Energy management (Sheffield Children’s NHS)
F
Family
The National Autistic Society has support programmes for parents and carers which offer advice and guidance on strategies and approaches to working with autistic children.
Family support (autism.org.uk)
They also have guides for navigating family relationships, and advice for parents, siblings and children on how to support their autistic family member.
Family relationships (autism.org.uk)
Daisy Chain have an Autism Central service that provides parents/carers of autistic children/young people and adults with support, advice and learning. They offer 1:1 appointments, online learning workshops and virtual support sessions. This service is available to all parents/carers living in the North East and Yorkshire region.
Autism Central (daisychainproject.co.uk)
Friendships
The National Autistic Society has an article about friendship and relationship experiences of autistic girls and women:
Autistic female friendships (autism.org.uk)
They also have a guide for autistic adults on making friends and socialising
Making friends – a guide for autistic adults (autism.org.uk)
G
Girls and hidden presentation
Yellow Ladybugs together with the Department of Education & Training in Victoria, Australia have produced a comprehensive guide to greater visibility, better understanding and improving support for autistic girls.
Spotlight on girls with autism (Yellow Ladybugs/Victoria State Government)
Grandparents support and extended family
Autism Speaks offer advice to grandparents of children with autism.
Five Tips for Grandparents of a Child with Autism (autismspeaks.org)
H
Holidays
The National Autistic Society has advice and guidance which aims to make going on holiday an easier and less stressful experience for autistic people.
Going on holiday (autism.org.uk)
I
Interoception
Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership have produced some information on interoception. Interoception is how we sense our internal state – the feelings we have inside our bodies and it is a sensory area that can be challenging for some autistic people.
Interoception: A guide for parents
J
K
L
M
Masking
The National Autistic Society has advice and guidance on masking and its effect on autistic people and those around them.
Autistic people and masking (autism.org.uk)
You can see and download further resources on masking by clicking the links below:
Masking and the impact on mental health and identity
N
O
P
Periods
Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership have produced a leaflet about menstruation and periods with advice to support autistic children approaching puberty.
Periods and girls with sensory processing difficulties
Q
R
S
Sensory needs
There is a section on sensory needs under health and wellbeing.
Health and Wellbeing – Sensory Needs
Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership have produced several packs about supporting children and young people with sensory processing difficulties
Sensory Strategies: Parent Information Pack
Sensory Strategies: Teenager Information Pack
Sensory Strategies: School Information Pack
Sleep
See the sleep advice on the Health and Wellbeing section of the Local Offer.
Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership have produced some information on how sensory processing difficulties can affect sleep:
Social Stories and Comic Strip conversations
The National Autistic Society has information about how social stories and comic strip conversations can help autistic people develop greater social understanding and help them stay safe.
Social stories and comic strip conversations (autism.org.uk)
T
Toileting
The National Autistic Society have a guide to toilet training for families with autistic children.
Toileting – a guide for parents and carers (autism.org.uk)
The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust have also produced guides to support with toileting issues:
There is additional advice on supporting autistic children and young people around toileting such as social stories and how to manage the practicalities of toileting:
A story about me using the toilet – an editable social story which can be personalised.
Tips for bottom wiping – by the Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership
You can also get advice on difficult issues such as faecal smearing:
Faecal Smearing – by the Rotherham Integrated Care Partnership
Practical advice for smearing – by SCS (Specialist Children’s Services and Kids Scotland
U
Unstructured time – Playtimes
The National Autistic Society has advice on helping autistic children deal with unstructured periods of time at school
Difficulties at lunch and break times (autism.org.uk)
V
Visual supports
The National Autistic Society has information about visual supports which can be used to help autistic people manage daily schedules.
Visual supports (autism.org.uk)