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Post 16 help for my PDA son.

PDA_Parent

Hi - seeking advice on resources to help my PDA Autistic /Dysgraphia son find a job at 16. He is heading into Yr 11 next year at a mainstream school in Stoke. 

Upon reading .gov it looks likely he will have to do option 3: the 20hrs job + one day education (https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/careers-advice/career-choices-at-16) - does anyone have experience in what this looks like practically? types of jobs that make sense and can be accommodating - are there services that can help. I remember on a trip to Bristol last year seeing an organization there advertised that helped Autistic people get jobs although i forgot the name sadly.

We have an EHC application underway at the moment so we can perhaps get extra help for the final year at school , but i am prepared he will come away from school with minimal qualifications at this point due to lack of effort/engagement (but not intelligence) 

I am trying to understand if there are organizations ideally in the west midlands (in person)  that can help with job placement any guidance , support etc. from the community. 

thanks

  • in reply to Deleted User

    thanks for the encouragement - we only determined my son had PDA in January last year - so its been a roller coaster - discovering this plus teenager - quite the combo.

  • in reply to Bunny

    thanks so much for the resources 

  • Hi and welcome to the community.

    PDA_Parent said:
    I am trying to understand if there are organizations ideally in the west midlands (in person)  that can help with job placement any guidance , support etc. from the community. 

    You might be able to find some local options by searching the NAS's directory:

    NAS - Autism Services Directory

    Otherwise, this article offers some great advice and suggestions, along with links to various resources such as apprenticeships, employment support programmes, recruitment agencies that work with neurodivergent candidates, and more:

    NAS - Support to get work experience and find a job

    Also, the British Association for Supported Employment has a directory of member organisations, some of which might be local to you:

    BASE member organisations

  • Good morning.

    PDA children grow up to be PDA adults.  Trust me, I know!!

    Accordingly,  I would strongly recommend continuing to work with your son to find personal strategies to mitigate the impact of the PDA on his (and inevitably your) life.  Whilst there is some support for under 18's with PDA out there, once you become an adult, there is VERY VERY little help available......so preparing for that "cliff-edge" of support is really important!

    I do wish you and your son well with the unimaginably frustrating (but VERY real) PDA conundrum......and rest assured that "functionality" can be achieved for a sufferer....given time, and their desire to address it despite the constraints (and generalised disbelief) of the current way the world is working.

    I think harnessing his AUD and using it to battle against the PDA is the best approach.  The key is finding the appropriate "harness"......and although ONLY your son will be able to put that harness on himself.... he will need a lot of help to find it in the first place!  Intelligence is a blessing and curse in that endeavour!

    Sometimes, (because PDA is often belittled or lessened in its "reality,") autistic folk speak of PDA in terms of "inertia".....so again, I would look in that direction (for that term) on autistic orientated sites.

    If you haven't discovered the PDA society, then I suggest you look them up because I would imagine that they are the best resource to seek the type of information you are looking for......but primarily, I have responded to you to show solidarity, reassure you that it is possible to tame PDA to enable functionality and remind you that some adults REALLY do believe the reality of PDA and its challenges.  It is still a 'Cinderella' term that most adults (whether AUD or NT) just struggle to grasp its reality.  Not me!

    All the best.

    Number.