Hi, everyone.
I've just received a letter of invitation by the local authority to attend a course of brief virtual one-to-one appointments to complete the autism star. Does anyone have any experience of these kind of sessions and/or know what is meant by the autism star?
***Thanks to another forum member, I've found a lot of information about the Spectrum Star program. The Spectrum Star has been designed for adults of any age, to enable them to manage autism and help them make the choices that are right for them***
It's completely voluntary, so I don't have to attend. The very idea that the local authority is providing this service makes me wonder whether it will be worthwhile. If it had been a professional charity, I might feel more inspired to attend. With specialist charities and/or private companies, there's more chance of interacting with competent and motivated professionals with the latest information on autism. I am currently working with the I Am Charity in Greater Manchester, and the people who work there are brilliant.
But, the local authority? My blood runs cold at the very thought of having to interact with an autism service run by the local authority. Will be just like all the other poorly delivered adult services with the same set of mediocre social workers without specialist knowledge? They always seem more interested in ticking boxes, taking short-cuts and finding ways to avoid spending any money on service users than helping and supporting people. This may sound cynical, I admit, but I think everyone accepts that any support provided to adults with physical or learning disabilities, or physical or mental illnesses by the local authority is going to be, at worst, poor, and at best, mediocre. The very fact they are calling them brief appointments suggests this.
Recently, I supported my niece with a mental health crisis, and I got to witness first-hand the staggering incompetence and blatant dis-interest of local authority social workers; not to mention the chaos of the actual adult services department.
I'm just wondering whether it will be more harmful for me to attend these sessions than to pass them up.
I would be very grateful to hear of your experiences with adult services as autistic individuals (good and bad) and also to hear about your experiences with autism star. I have an open mind and want to hear about good experiences with social workers and adult services as well as the bad ones.
Thank you in advance!
