Centre for Research in Autism and Education

Mobilising Specialist Autism Mentoring in UK Universities When entering higher education in the UK, students get offered a needs assessment through the Disabled Students Allowance. For autistic students, disclosure often results in the option for a Specia…

Mobilising Specialist Autism Mentoring in UK Universities

Very proud to have contributed evidence to this report which I think has real potential to drive a step change in how we provide for inclusion in UK society.

Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners: Providing support using the SCERTS framework As interactive partners, we have a responsibility to understand the lived experiences of autistic and neurodivergent learners, appreciate their neurodevelopment differences, and adapt the environment t Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners: SCERTS with Emily Rubin (4-DEC-25)

Last week's most excellent #CRAEwebinar with the fab Emily Rubin is now up on YouTube.

youtu.be/pDBSO1Ud1OU

Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners: Providing support using the SCERTS framework

Sara, a 5th-year Doctoral Researcher at the University of Birmingham's ACER, discussed her research on the experiences of autistic women and birthing people in maternity services. She also explored how maternity staff understand and support autistic individuals. Sara highlighted key findings and ref Autistic experiences of maternity services and MARG - Sara King (5-Oct-23)

From the #CRAEwebinar archives

Autistic experiences of maternity services and MARG with Sara King (5-Oct-23)

Failure to Account for Psychiatric Symptoms: Implications for the Replicability and Generalisability of Psychological Science?  Good studies in psychology are generalisabile and replicable. That means that: the group of participants really should represent the general population and the results should be able to be done aga…

New research summary - Ichijo et al. (2025)
In psychological science, when we compare people with and without formal diagnosis, the ‘not-diagnosed’ group will most likely include people who still have some traits or symptoms.

Ten questions concerning autism and auditory accessibility in buildings. Have you been distracted by the whine of an old fridge, the echo in a classroom, or the buzz of fluorescent lights? For autistic people, these sounds aren’t just small irritations, due to sensory h…

Ten questions concerning autism and auditory accessibility in buildings.

Revisiting the past, looking towards the future Back in 2013 A Future Made Together (Pellicano et al.) was collectively authored at a moment when autistic people were increasingly questioning who held the power in autism research. It showed what…

On #IDPD, and as part of #DisabilityHistoryMonth our research summary blogs have revisited a piece of autism research history that continues to shape our thinking about research today. The enduring legacy of ‘A Future Made Together’:

Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners with Emily Rubin Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners: Providing support using the SCERTS framework

If you've not already done so, do grab a place at tomorrow's (Thur) #CRAEwebinar with Emily Rubin on Appreciating Differences in Neurodivergent Learners: Providing support using the SCERTS framework
4-Dec-25 4pm gmt

5/ “There must be no more decisions about us without us consultations must actively include autistic people and their families, particularly those from underrepresented communities, to ensure that policies reflect lived experiences rather than outdated assumptions” Marsha Martin

4/ The Government must commission and evaluate mandatory, co-produced training for public-facing staff. This needs to be tailored, as @ioe.bsky.social @annaremington.bsky.social noted, as there is evidence that a one-size-fits-all approach does not always make much difference.

5/The Govt should be developing evidence-based supports for victims, witnesses, suspects, defendants, and those convicted of crime, focusing on prevention, screening, adjustments, and tailored rehabilitation.

3/ Prompt identification is key. “What we should see is a generation of autistic children who understand themselves… so that they can understand themselves, advocate for themselves and, I hope, thrive in society.” James Cusack @autisitica.org.uk

2/ There is a call that the Govt runs a campaign to
help everyone understand and accept autistic people.
This campaign needs to be co-produced and evaluated with the autistic community.

Autism Act 2009 - Reports, special reports and government responses - Committees - UK Parliament Report, special report and government response publications for Autism Act 2009.

1/ The @hlautismactcom.parliament.uk report has many recommendations as the government starts to put together an Autism Strategy for 2026.
bit.ly/HoLAutActReports
A thread…

4/ There are cracks in systems of support in the criminal justice system. Initiatives are piecemeal. A coherent approach must be developed.
“People should be supported to understand their rights more and have access to advocates.”

3/ Report witnesses spoke to differences in behaviour being misinterpreted as non-compliance; or expressions of poor mental health or distress being seen as a threat.

2/ Autistic victims are often disbelieved, overwhelmed, and can struggle to describe what happened in a ‘neat’ way. And though there is Registered Intermediary support, access is patchy across the UK.

Autism Act 2009 - Reports, special reports and government responses - Committees - UK Parliament Report, special report and government response publications for Autism Act 2009.

1/Turning to criminal justice the @HLAutismActCom asserts that autistic people are more likely to be victims of crime than perpetrate it. In particular, @FelicitySedgwick cited research that autistic people were more vulnerable to ‘mate crime’.

How do autistic college students make sense of their identities and how does being autistic shape their trajectory in college? This presentation explores some of the findings from a study that Dr. Nachman conducted with autistic community college students enrolled in an autism-specific college suppo Tracking Autistic College Students' Identity Development - Brett Ranon Nachman (2-Nov-23)

From the #CRAEwebinar archives

Tracking Autistic College Students' Identity Development with Brett Ranon Nachman (2-Nov-23)

2/Giving evidence, CRAE’s @annaremington.bsky.social proposed that the Govt could extend the apprenticeship levy (or create an additional fund) to explicitly encourage businesses to spend on initiatives that support a neurodivergent or autistic workforce.

1/ On employment, the @hlautismactcom.parliament.uk concludes that employers need incentives to enable more autistic people to find, stay, and thrive in work. Voluntary accreditation schemes like Autistica’s Neurodiversity Employers Index should be promoted by the government.

4/ Support falls away when autistic young people become adults.
Service must be (co-)created to help autistic young people through this transition by bringing education, employment, housing, and mental health support together.

3/ “Narrow accountability measures focusing on behaviour and attainment can encourage schools to adopt exclusionary practices”.
So there needs to be “an emphasis within Ofsted evaluation criteria on schools meeting the needs of neurodivergent pupils” @suereviews.bsky.social

2/ For autistic children, current education system is reactive and crisis-driven rather than needs-led.
Specialist schools should be centres of excellence to build capacity across all schools. A lifespan, co-produced strategy is essential.

Autism Act 2009 - Reports, special reports and government responses - Committees - UK Parliament Report, special report and government response publications for Autism Act 2009.

1/ The @HLAutismActCom reports that many autistic children feel unhappy at school or are out of school altogether.

6/ The Govt must be clear on how it will ensure autistic people, their families, and carers are able to raise concerns about failures of services to keep people safe, and how those services will be held to account for failures.

5/ There are not enough good care providers and social care staff to support autistic people. “Social care providers can pick and choose... the straightforward easy people to support.” - @BovellVirginia

There is not enough residential care that meets autistic people’s needs.

4/The Govt should roll out health checks for autistic people across the NHS and reinstate the target to increase the number of health checks for people with a learning disability.

3/ In general health services there are some emerging good practices, like specialist autism midwives, specialist cancer care, and specialist dentistry. But there are serious gaps in specialist workforce capacity for meeting autistic people’s healthcare needs.

2/The report suggests that mental health services “must be given backing and incentives to provide low-level, integrated support to prevent care needs from developing and from escalating into a crisis”