Welcome to our 12th AGM
Another year passes and thishas been an eventful one for autism with the launch of the Scottish Strategy for Autism last November. This 10-year plan will have an impact at personal, local and national levels, but before going into details on the strategy I will update you on what Autism Argyll has achieved this year.
Membership:
The database currently has 175 members. This is made up of 117 family members or individuals on the spectrum with the remaining 52 interested individuals such as teachers, social workers or speech and language therapists. We also have six organizations that are members. The database is updated annually, is password protected and is never shared.
Library:
A recent update from Argyll and Bute library systems shows that our’ stand alone’ library usage is increasing year on year with approximately 150 titles borrowed over the last 12 months. It is important to ensure that the books are current and useful and to that end we recently removed a numberthat were of out of date. Last month we spent £500 on new titles on topics such as autism and sleep, genetics,mental health,education, transitions, employment andemotional resilience. We have also added a number of DVD’s including popular films with a positive autism element.
This is a good use of donated funds as anyone with a library card can access this resource
Newsletter:
The newsletter continues to be produced quarterly and certainly the most cost effective and efficient method of distribution is electronically. We continue to note the number of ‘first contacts’ to the group and this averages around eight each month.The reasons for contact range from simple information requests which can be dealt with immediately to more complex queries requiring follow-up calls or perhaps a meeting.
Website:
The website is updated monthly and attracts anaverage 880 visits per month.
We have seen an increase in contacts through the website from researchers, events promoters, product developers, and those focused on particular approaches. Sometimes we circulate thisinformation electronically to members, sometimes we don’t, as we remain committed to promoting an eclectic approach.
Activities:
We organised nine events which attracted attendance from 130 people. Events included Chris White, a speech and language therapist from Lincolnshire NHS Trust discussingthe importance of social play and its role in developing communicationskills. Dave Rex, a specialist dietitian from NHS Highland discussed the importance of diet onphysical andmental wellbeing of children with ASD.
Recently we held our first event for adults on the spectrum where Debi Brown and David Breslin, both adults on the autism spectrum, talked about their experiences of life and employment. Here is a quote from a person who attended-
“Hearing how other peoples stories/backgrounds are similar to my own proves that I can do anything.”
Evaluations were positive and all agreed a similar event should be held in the future.
Autism Argyll also delivered awareness raising presentations to a variety of groups including childcare students, a preschool provision and mental health staff.
There has been a significant reduction in requests for such presentations - is this due to the recession where training budgets and funding to back fill staff has been cut? Have we saturated the market on ASD awareness raising across the authority? I think this is doubtful.
Since February 2012, Autism Argyll has supported Achievement Bute’s Autism Project by providing autism awareness talks and attending Project Board meetings.
Fundraising:
Autism Argyll is very grateful for those who fundraise on our behalf.
Thanks to The Macinnes family from Oban who donated £659 from a memorial collection and Fiona Bennet for organizing a Halloween Celidh raising £240. We have also continued to receive donations from Peninver Caravan Park, Ardrishaig Craft Club, Cowal Community Hospital and the Victoria Hotel and Comm Bar in Lochgilphead.
This month we received £500 from the Kintyre Club which has enabled us to update our laptop.
Special thanks go to Liam Mc Callum who took part in the Mull of Kintyre 10km and raised £ 572. Well-done Liam! We are very proud of your achievements.
Grant funding to enable the group to continue has been given from Bailly Thomas Charitable Trust and the Robertson Trust and more recently, the Moffat Trust.
Thank you one and all.
Meetings:
Autism Argyll continues to attend a number of local and national meetings including the Scottish Government ASD Reference Group and related subgroups: Getting it Right for Children with a Disability: Achievement Bute Autism Project Reference Group and the Learning Disability Locality Forum:
I am Vice-Chair of Scottish Autism and attend regular Board meetings and we are pleased to announce earlier this year Autism Argyll became affiliated to Scottish Autism.
The Scottish Government Strategy for Autism is providing a real opportunity to make a difference to the lives of individuals and families living with autism. Through its Development Fund a number of initiatives are underway across Scotland and you will hear about one such project shortly – Achievement Bute’s Transition project. Scottish Government is also funding a number of larger research projects in Scotland, the results of which should enable a more strategic, informed (and improved!) way of working with this population.
This leads nicely to an exciting development in Argyll and Bute. A multi disciplinary and multi professional group has recently been set up with the remit “to develop and implement the Argyll and Bute Strategy for Autism, based on the recommendations from the Scottish Autism Strategy”. It is still at an early stage with only two meetings held to date however I do sense a real commitment to take this forward. I am Vice-Chair and look forward to being part of the group.
It is quite clear there will be considerable expectations raised by the formation of such a group which can sometimes be difficult to manage – change will not happen overnight. It is really important however that those living and working with autism continue to aim for higher expectations with regard to positive outcomes and improved quality of life. This applies across the age range and across the whole spectrum of autism.
Thanks:
As always I thank all the committee for their attendance and input at meetings. Thanks to Lorna our Treasurer and Eleanor Bell our accountant for their financial acumen. As always, special thanks to Maureen, for all her hard work and enthusiasm for Autism Argyll. It is not easy being a sole employee!
For a number of years parent education and support programmes have been mentioned as one of our wishes – this year we are delighted to have Charlene Tait, Scottish Autism Director of Development here to launch the Right Click programme for parents. This on-line resource is particularly relevant for remote/ rural Argyll and Bute and we are pleased to see it coming to fruition.
Autism Argyll are delighted to announce for this year we will offer to pay the Scottish Autism membership fee for our members (for whom the course is applicable) to access the course.
As we look to the forthcoming year and beyond the new committee will be involved in a review of Autism Argyll, including the constitution, to ensure the group is placed well for the future.
Thank you
Alison Leask
Chairperson. Autism Argyll. 19th September 2012