2021 Annual Report

Support for Parents and Families Support to parents and families is an important part of what we do.This includes a wide array of initiatives from peer-to-peer support, chat groups, seminars, developing networks and assisting families in a variety of ways. Our parent supports include consultancy services, practical assistance to understand Autism and diagnosis, a wide range of information services including workshops, seminars and webinars, and parent support groups. To ensure that families had the support and training they needed to transition to the NDIS, the Autism Advisor Team ran the Getting to Know the NDIS workshops. This included understanding the new funding model, the eligibility criteria, and preparation for the NDIS Planning meeting. Our Parent MyTime Coffee Groups provided parents and carers with some much-needed time to themselves. These groups remain popular and beneficial in building local community connections and development of new friendships, with 320 MyTime sessions delivered this year. Throughout the year, 48 Early Days parent training sessions were also run. Due to the large amount of interest, we worked with interpreters to host sessions for culturally and linguistically diverse families. In addition, sessions specifically for Dads were hosted during MyTime sessions.

“I love my son and his awesome unique Autism superpowers!" Despite the fact it is sometimes quite overwhelming for him in many ways, I love taking him to the footy and he really enjoys coming along and cheering on our Fremantle Dockers. He’s been coming since he was a baby… it has been an up and down sensory journey at times, with him slowly growing over the years into a wonderful young

man who enjoys coming with his dad. What a privilege to father such a unique, gifted child.” Chris Spencer, Father

Autism Association of Western Australia - Annual Report 2021 45