Legislation introduced in 2009 under the Autism Act has led to the Government to set out five-year plans for autism. The latest - ‘The national strategy for autistic children, young people and adults: 2021 to 2026’ - was unveiled in July 2021.18
One of the aims of the current strategy is for “many more organisations, businesses and public sector services to become autism-inclusive, so that autistic people can engage in their communities, just like everyone else”. There will also be training on learning disability and autism for all health and adult social care staff across England, drawing on the Skills for Health’s ‘Core Capabilities Framework for Supporting Autistic People’.18,19
Since 2017 the National Autistic Society has been encouraging businesses to introduce an ‘autism hour’. This scheme aims to make retailers and other service providers aware of how overwhelming public spaces can be for autistic people having to deal with so many stimuli while processing information, potentially causing sensory overload.1
Many autistic people and their families give up trying to use the shops and services that most people use every day. One reason for this is that over a quarter of autistic people have been asked to leave a public space because of behaviour associated with their autism. Other reasons include overwhelming noise or lighting (particularly fluorescent strip-lighting) being a barrier to accessing the shop or space.