Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi
My son is leaving university this summer and wants to stay in the city where the university is, and doesn't particularly want to move back home.
He has had mentors and a helpful 'team' to go to, and extra help funded by his student finance and DLA, but that will all stop of course. Is there anything or any mentoring type of system for adults, some go to place if he gets into bother like filling in forms or health issues in the great 'out there'? At the moment he doesn't have a job to go to, so he may well have to come home, but at 24 he wants to be as independent as possible. Is there assistance for young adults?
when i left uni at 23, first place i went was jobcentre plus to see a disability employment advisor, back when they still had them, but it depends on the area whether or not there are DEA staff still working at the jobcentre. in my one they stopped hiring because cuts to services etc. back when I was signing on JSA, autism or hfa to be more specific on its own was and still is not enough to satisfy criteria for PIP or ESA, i was recommended to an agency like remploy, did a course with them for 6 months then was released out into the wild as it were. I think the jobcentre slowly realised I couldn't fit in anywhere, that charity work suited me best because I wasn't on anyones payroll or responsibility because socially i'm non-existent, and the longer i spend out of real work, the less my chances of getting a paid job.
Thanks for your answer Blueray - lots to look into.
Yeah, loads, but you have to be proactive and you will have to help secure the help. You can start by noting down all the areas where he would benefit from help. Remember, you want to set him up to succeed and not fail, so it’s ok to start with more support and narrow it down as necessary as time goes on. Also, discover, through talking to your son, what type of living set up will be best suited to him, e.g. shared house or single accommodation etc. and what local services etc would be ideal.
Get in touch with the local authority where he would like to live. If he’s out of work, he will be entitled to housing benefit, up to a certain amount, if necessary. There are lots of different schemes out there. It might also do you well to do some googling and research different organisations. I know several situations where a move to independence has been successful for autistic adults and their families, so there definitely is support out there. He is also entitled to advocacy support, to help navigate the whole system and may, according to his needs, be entitled to a personal budget from the local social services team.
You have several options and information gathering could get a bit overwhelming so having a good idea of what you are wanting to achieve, can help with that as it can help you filter out what information is relevant right now. It will probably be helpful to involve his current support team as well, as they may be able to provide some good insights as to what support would be most helpful. Sometimes, the help we need is minimal and so long as it’s the right help, it can make a huge difference in a person’s life. This is my experience right now. Focus on his needs and the desired outcomes rather than what category of help he might fall into. The provisions are there for thinking outside the box. Best of luck to you.