Service Description

Autsim Support Ayrshire provides impartial, confidential information and advice for autistic children/young people or adults, their families and carers and professionals.

 

Autsim Support Ayrshire can

• Answer general questions about autism and Asperger syndrome – for example, we can talk through what the condition is, how it might affect someone, and suggest strategies to help
• Offer you access to social activity groups both as a child and/or adult
• Access to Prospects Moving Forward. Our Moving Forward project can help if you have autism or Asperger syndrome, are aged 16-25 and interested in looking for work, volunteering, or going to college or university. The project aims to help you develop your social confidence, employability and independent living skills.
• Talk through options available to people with autism and Asperger syndrome
• Talk through support options available to family members.
• Help you to access information in relation to education and to understand your rights as a parent and as someone with autism
• Tell you about local services.
• Tell you about training that is offered by the National Autistic Society
• Refer you on to other organisations that may be able to help you.
• Send you information in the post or by email about all of these things.

Some of the things we are most frequently asked about are:

• how to get a diagnosis for a child or adult
• how to help with a child’s behaviour
• how to access respite
• how to get extra help at school
• how to get help with employment?

 

What to do if you think your son or daughter has autism – listen to this short clip

http://www.autism.org.uk/our-services/advice-and-information-services/autism-helpline/podcasts.aspx

Is there anything Autsim Support Ayrshire can not do?

• Autsim Support Ayrshire can not advise you on legal issues. None of our staff are legally trained. However, we can give you details of solicitors and law societies that may be able to help you.
• We can not advise you on medical issues. None of the staff are medically trained. However where possible we will give you details of specialists who may be able to help.
• The staff can not take on your case or act as your advocate. However, where this is needed we will try to refer you on to an organisation that can help you.
• We can not offer a counselling service. None of the staff are qualified counsellors. We do however maintain a database of counsellors with knowledge of autism and Asperger syndrome who may be able to help you.
• We can not advise you about conditions which are not part of the autism spectrum such as ADHD or schizophrenia. We can however refer you on to organisations that specialise in these conditions.

 

Signpost

Signpost presents personally relevant information about autism), services and entitlements for people in the UK. It is designed for: people with an ASD parents or carers of a child or adult with an ASD professionals assisting either of the above. Some of the information is written specially for Signpost. The other information is drawn from The Autism Services Directory or from information pages on the website to match your profile. To use Signpost, please click on the link below and answer the 5 short questions. Your answers are stored only for the duration of this visit.

Are you a professional? If so, please complete the profile details of the person who needs information, whether a person with ASD or their parent/carer.   You can access signpost by clicking the link below                                     q – http://www.autism.org.uk/signpost.aspx

Confidentiality

Autsim Support Ayrshire is a confidential service which means that usually anything you tell us will be kept private and we won’t tell anyone outside Autsim Support Ayrshire, unless agreed by you. However, there are times when we have to break confidentiality. This would be if someone tells us about something very serious that we cannot keep private, for example if we feel someone is at risk.
Referring you on to other organisations

Whilst we are able to offer information and advice on a wide range of topics, we are not able to do so on every topic.

When we are unable to provide information or advice ourselves we may refer you on to other organisations. However, we cannot guarantee the service of other organisations we refer you to. Comments, compliments and complaints

If you have any comments, compliments or complaints about the One stop shop please write to:

Jenny Paterson

The National Autistic Society

Director for Scotland

Central Chambers

109 Hope Street

Glasgow

G2 6LL

 

Costs

There is no cost to access our service for information or support, on occasion we may run workshops which have a nominal fee (please contact Autsim Support Ayrshire directly for more information)

We run Social Groups for children, young people and adults, these groups are costed individually at this point (please contact Autsim Support Ayrshire directly for more information)

Duration

If you have never been to Autsim Support Ayrshire before it is most likely we will meet you for approximately one hour in order to find out more about your circumstances.

The duration of our social groups vary dependent on the activity but generally run for between one and three hours.

Accessibility

 

 

 

Areas Covered

Opening Times

• Monday - Friday | 10am to 4:30pm
• By appointment |