hi i have just been reading your posts... a few as to which i am mentioned in...
although i never called NAS it was nice to know at some low times i was being thought of and the support was there if i had indeed followed up with a phone call!
i know to some of you that merely was not enough, to me it meant so much as i was not getting any support from anywhere else including local authorities or groups...
all i wish to say is thank you to those that took the time and made the effort to make my life a little better...
so here is to everyone that got involved in one way or another....
Our Autism Helpline dealt with 19,300 enquiries in 2012-13. During the same time we supported 343 children in our schools, and 232 people in our residential adults’ services. Our community-based outreach and supported living schemes delivered nearly 800,000 hours of support to 529 people.
£91 of every £1 we raise goes towards helping people with autism. That said, we operate with limited resources. There will always be organisations that can provide better, more tailored support than we can. We know that gaps exist and that the NAS cannot tackle every issue that people on the spectrum face, so instead, we're working towards improving the support system, from GP's, to local authorities. We have provided autism awareness training to organisations and charities we refer on to. We know there's a lot more to be done, and we're working hard to increase the amount of support and awareness out there.
...just thought some of you might be interested in this, as there have been comments about where NAS funding goes.
The N. A. S. Trustees' Annual Report and Accounts (year ended 31 March 2013) is quite interesting, especially section 3 - Financial Review - Still searching for a breakdown of staff costs that "represent 72% of total expenditure"....
Hi Longman - I believe the notification was for Paull's response above. You've made some very good points, which go beyond my ability to answer. I'm speaking to our teams to get you a response, most likely tomorrow.
I was alerted by email to a reply quoting Anil but asking what NAS could do to help, but this reply seems to have been withdrawn - or has been entered as a new thread.
But I did feel I needed to follow up, not with respect to what NAS can do directly, but to further emphasise the need for action on the homeless, by looking at the charities that do.
I couldn't find anything on autism searching through the websites for Samaritans and Shelter. The knowledge may exist but information about it is not in the public domain. Samaritans say they train employers and other organisations, but who trains Samaritans about people with autism?
I searched autism on Salvation Army, and got one statement dated18th June 2013. They have a list of disabilities which includes autism. But their explanation is a little strange, and proves my point.
It says "they do not obey the unwritten rules of society" - maybe, but isn't that because they don't pick up on these unwritten rules, not that they are being intentionally disobedient.....
"Common features are repetitive behaviour, obsessive interest and resistance (often accompanied by distress) to changes in routine."
"There is a tendency to need to focus on only one thing at a time (either looking or listening, rather than doing both at once). This is one reason for finding eye contact difficult."
"Clear service order sheets or service booklets may help autistic people to follow what is going on"
"Many autistic people dislike being touched. Be aware of this if your welcomers usually greet people by shaking their hand and, similarly, if your church practises sharing the peace"
Well I'm glad we've got these little inconveniences out of the way, but to what extent does the Salvation Army REALLY understand autism?
Someone needs to offer some (free?) autism awareness training to the help and homeless charities, pronto pronto.
Whatever help we can provide that particular user needs to start with him picking up the phone to us. All we have for him is an email address. It's very difficult without him making further contact.
At the same time, there may be other organisations who can help him with specific problems better than we can, or have 24/7 availability.
what help can NAS provide ? do NAS provide any direct help ?
for example can NAS book him an emergency hotel ? Can NAS send someone to visit him ? Can NAS contact his local authority to make sure he is assessed under the autism act and given help ? Can NAS follow up and be a safety blanket ?
Yes Anil, but what do these organisations know about autism or Asperger's?
Paull refers to Davek, I think he may be the one I saw on here recently that caused me much concern, as he is self harming and desperate, and only managed to get on a public library computer to contact this forum.
It is all very well saying other people are there to help - but they're not. Autism is one of the most sadly misunderstood conditions - whether health services, social services, education services, police etc., no-one seems to have much grasp. Yes NAS has made some headway but it is too little too late for many.
What understanding of autism is there in care homes, hostels, sheltered housing, soup kitchens, the police (nothing anyone tries to do seems to get through to the police!) etc? NAS has flagged up Autism and involvement with the law, but an equally important area is autism and the homeless. A surprising number of people living on the streets have some form of autism.
Both alcoholism and drug abuse show correlation with autism - both contribute to crime and homelessness.
We supposedly have had an Autism Act and an Autism Strategy and an initiative called "Leading Rewarding and Fufilling Lives" - well let's be blunt for once, where in the blue blazes are any significant outcomes!?!!
The initiatives have given comfort to a few politicians and policy makers. But in real terms it is just downright pathetic .... and a national shame!
Yes there "may be other organisations who can help him with specific problems IF they know how to help (and have the resources with all the national government and local authority cuts).
£500,000 was allocated to 8 autism awareness projects. NAS has lately announced some. Where are all the rest? Getting these awareness resources out into the community, to organisations tackling homesness on the streets, should be a number one priority. I've been trying very hard to find out what happened to those awareness products and I'm just encountering the usual "I'm all right jack" excuses.
Whatever help we can provide that particular user needs to start with him picking up the phone to us. All we have for him is an email address. It's very difficult without him making further contact.
At the same time, there may be other organisations who can help him with specific problems better than we can, or have 24/7 availability.
Mencap uses 90% of the funds they get to DIRECTLY help those they gather the funds for, NAS hardly does anything to directly help those they gather the funds for - they just tell people to go elsewhere - look at the posting from davek - he is homeless, desperate and vulnerable but NAS just tell him to call them/samartitans/shelter - why oh why oh why can they not help him directly ???
