Funding continues for The Shirlie Project to deliver support and employability for pupils who have Autism leaving school across the Highlands.

For the past 4 years the Shirlie Project has been supporting young people with Autism in all secondary schools throughout the Highlands.  Between January and Easter the Shirlie Project will be working with pupils in their final year at school across Skye and Lochalsh, Lochaber, Inverness and Ross-shire.

Employability workshops, in partnership with local employers, will be running from May 2016.

For more information contact Neil at the Shirlie Project on 01463 716179.

In Control Scotland is a not-for-profit Company that campaigns for Self-Directed Support and promotes empowering approaches to Self-Directed Support in Scotland. They are looking to recruit new Trustees to the Board to help them implement their strategic vision over the next five years.  They are particularly keen to recruit people who have a lived experience of using social and health care services; and people with skills/experience in Social Work, Health Services, Marketing, or Media.

If you would like to contribute your skills to the development of a dynamic and growing Scottish charity please contact:

John Dalrymple (Interim Chief Executive Officer) 0141 440 5250 [email protected]

Closing Date: Friday, 5^th February, 2016

More than 250 families will be given the chance to have an adventure – or simply relax

A new £100,000 fund has launched to help parents of autistic adults to have fun, relax and take a much-needed break from their caring roles.

Over the next year, more than 250 families in Scotland will benefit from the Autism Short Breaks Project, delivered by Autism Initiatives, the National Autistic Society Scotland and Scottish Autism. The leading autism charities are encouraging families to be indulgent, adventurous and creative when planning their short break.

Richard Ibbotson, National Director at Autism Initiatives, said: “We recognise that caring for an autistic adult can be exhausting, and that’s why we want to give carers a well-deserved treat. People can use this fund to go on a trip, buy equipment for a hobby, try something for the first time or go back to something they haven’t been able to do for a long while.”

Jenny Paterson, Director of the National Autistic Society Scotland, said: “It’s not possible to look after someone else if you’re not looking after yourself, that’s why short breaks for carers are so important. The great thing about this fund is that it’s really flexible. You decide when, where and what you want to do, and we’ll make it happen!”

Gail McKeitch (57) has two sons with autism. Her eldest, Greg, requires 24-hour care. Gail’s day starts at 7am, when she washes and dresses Greg, and ends after midnight when she settles him in bed.

She said: “I tell other carers that they need time to recharge their batteries – but sometimes I need to remind myself to take my own advice!  “My husband and I had our first holiday in ten years this summer and it was wonderful to have that time together. Caring for your grown up child as if they are still a little child can be a very difficult thing to do, but we do it out of love. I’m glad this fund is specifically for the carers of adults, it will make a huge difference to families like mine.”

Carers are being encouraged to apply for the first round of funding from the fund before 22 January 2016 by visiting autismshortbreaks.org.uk. Grants of up to £300 are available.

Funding for the Autism Short Breaks Project comes from the Creative Breaks Fund and provided by the Scottish Government. In total, the programme has awarded just under £1 million to 68 projects from Orkney to the Scottish Borders, which will benefit more than 4,000 carers and their families.

Mary Hamilton, support manager at Scottish Autism, added: “We are very pleased that the Scottish Government has created this fund and asked Scotland’s three leading autism charities to manage it. We know how challenging caring for an adult with autism can be, and we are pleased to be working together on this.”

Autism Short Breaks Project funding applies to families and carers of an adult with autism (over 16 years of age). The carer may be someone under the age of 16. To find out more and make an application, please visit autismshortbreaks.org.uk

The Autism Resource Centre (ARC) is pleased to present the Autumn 2015 edition of The Inspirational – a newsletter produced by people on the Autism Spectrum. You can find the new edition of the Inspirational here: The Inspirational Newsletter - Autumn 2015.

The Autism Resource Centre hopes that you will enjoy reading the latest edition and that you will pass it on to your friends, colleagues, parents of children or adults on the spectrum and any adults with autism with whom you have contact.

The Inspirational Editorial Group would like to thank all of the contributors to this edition. They would welcome feedback from readers on the content of the newsletter, so please get in touch if you have something that you would like to tell them or a question that you would like to ask on 0141 276 7182.

You can find out more information about the Autism Resource Centre by clicking here.

The Winter 2015 issue of The Inspirational will be circulated in February 2015. If you are an adult on the autism spectrum and you would like to contribute an article for this or future newsletters, or find out more about joining our editorial group, please get in touch by email to [email protected].

The Scottish Strategy for Autism Fourth Annual Conference will take place on December 8, 2015 at the University of StrathclydeTechnology and Innovation Centre in Glasgow. This year’s theme is good autism practice at strategic, service and individual levels.

Topics and presentations for the day include:

• Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Sport, Health Improvement and Mental Health will give his perspective on the considerable progress the Scottish Strategy for Autism is making in improving quality of life for those with autism and their families
• Good practice in local authorities across Scotland
• Major initiatives that are transforming practice at key points in individuals’ lives (e.g. transitions, employment)
• Workshops that showcase good practice
• What some of the Autism Development Fund projects have achieved

This event is geared towards practitioners; however, a wide range of stakeholders have received invitations. We hope practitioners will make a special effort to come along and hear about the last year’s developments and progress on the Scottish Strategy for Autism. There will be many examples of good practice presented on the day and we hope these ideas will be taken away by those best positioned to implement them across Scotland.

If you are interested in attending the event and would like to join the waiting list, please email John Currie. We’ll notify you if there are still places available soon after the RSVP deadline of November 17.