Leeds Autism AIM Monthly Update: April 2022
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Hello and welcome to our latest monthly newsletter! In this update from Leeds Autism AIM, part of The Advonet Group, we have news on:
- Our monthly timetable of groups
- Our in-person services
- A sensory needs survey for autistic adults in inpatient wards
- Online resources for our Health Access Project
- A booklet about our autistic-led groups
- Resources for Autism Acceptance Month
- A Trustee vacancy at The Advonet Group
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Online Groups timetable: April 2022
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We're holding Peer Support Group sessions on the 5th and 19th from 6pm-7pm. Our monthly Women-Aligned Group is on the 12th from 5:30pm-6:30pm.
Our Gaming Group will be on our Discord community on the 26thfrom 6pm-7pm. We're also holding a Coproduction Group session on the 28th from 5:30pm-7pm.
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Online Groups mailing list
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If you are interested in joining any of our groups, we have a mailing list with information on how to join. If you would like to sign up, please click on the link below.
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Happy Autism Acceptance Month from the Leeds Autism AIM team!
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We in the Leeds Autism AIM team wish everyone a happy Autism Acceptance Month for 2022.
The month runs throughout April and we will have plenty of useful content to share on our website and social media accounts over the next few weeks.
Further down this edition of our e-newsletter, we have a list of useful links to blog posts, videos and slideshows explaining what autism acceptance is all about.
Some of the links cover issues such as accessibility and are from ourselves and other autistic-led or co-led organisations;
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How we can help you in-person
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For the last two years, we have delivered most of our services remotely by phone, email, text chat and video call. In recent months, we have been using the Lovell Park Hub for booked appointments again.
At the moment, we are offering services including information and signposting, post-diagnostic support and one-to-one peer support through our Health Access Project.
We will also be reintroducing our mentoring and one-to-one peer support services this spring, although there are waiting lists for both.
To find out more about how we can help you, please click on the link below.
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Autistic-led groups booklet
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We have produced a PDF guide to how all our autistic-led groups work for anyone new to them. Inside, you will find:
- Descriptions of each group and what to expect
- Information about how our community on the Discord app works
- Profiles for our group facilitators and Discord admins
- Guidance for what to do and what not to do in our groups
To download a copy of the guide, please click on the link below.
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Survey: Sensory needs of autistic adults in inpatient wards
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The Yorkshire Autism AIM team have published a survey. It asks autistic adults who have or are currently in inpatient wards in Leeds about whether their sensory needs have been met.
The survey's responses will be used to help produce a video for staff working in inpatient wards about how to make the wards less overloading for autistic patients. To take the survey, please click below.
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Health Access Project resources update
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Three resources made for our Health Access Project are set to go live later this month. A pain scale, spoons scale and fatigue scale will be there to help you communicate how much or little pain or fatigue you are experiencing. They can be downloaded as PDFs after ticking the option relevant to you, for printing or displaying on your phone/tablet.
Big thanks to members of our Coproduction Group for giving useful feedback on changes made to the draft versions.
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Out Spoken LGBTQI+ project:
Get involved!
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The Out Spoken project was created by autistic people and/or people with a learning disability, who are LGBTQI+ and CHANGE are working in partnership on it with Yorkshire MESMAC.
So far, Out Spoken have developed and delivered self-advocacy workshops and peer support sessions for people with lived experience, run training to be delivered to Health and Social Care professionals to make sure services are inclusive, and developed a pronoun working group.
Earlier in the project, a non-binary event was held, to celebrate International Non-Binary Day. There's lots that people can get involved with:
- Becoming a steering group member
- Joining the pronoun working group
- Taking part in a self-advocacy course
- Joining peer support sessions
- Attending training for Health and Social Care Professionals
If you want to get involved or find out more information, please contact Project Coordinator Dom:
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Advocacy Focus Group to talk about new ‘Bill of Rights’
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The Advonet Group's next Focus Group meeting will be in person and focus on the Human Rights Act. The Act could potentially be replaced by a new 'Bill of Rights' in the coming months. For this meeting, they have a couple of guest speakers to talk about how it could affect migrant communities.
The meeting is on Monday 25th April from 2pm-3pm at the Unity Business Centre. If you would like to attend, please register by clicking the link below.
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Farewell, Emily...
Emily Elsworth, one of our project workers with our Health Access Project, is leaving our team this month. She will be focusing more on her work as an autism trainer. In her role, she made major contributions to resources made for the project and to other areas including training.
Emily was a positive presence in the wider AIM team and brought plenty to the AIM service. Best of luck for the future, Emily; we’ll miss you!
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Autism Acceptance Month: Useful links
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We have compiled a list of resources below, from ourselves and other sources, to read during this Autism Acceptance Month:
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Join The Advonet Group's Board of Trustees!
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The Advonet Group are looking for people to join their Board of Trustees. They are particularly keen on hearing from anyone who has lived experience of autism and having a new trustee link closely with the Leeds Autism AIM team.
If you are interested in applying for this exciting voluntary role, please click below to read more about what it involves.
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Sign up for The Advonet Group's quarterly
e-newsletter here:
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COVID-19
spring booster vaccine
From March 2022 onwards, some people will be offered a booster COVID-19 vaccine by the NHS. The spring booster vaccine will be offered to over-75s, people who live in care homes for older people, or people aged 12 and over with a weakened immune system.
If you are eligible, you will be contacted by the NHS. They will send you an invite to book your spring booster when it’s due. More info on vaccines is available at the link below.
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Online maps for Blue Badge holders
Two new online maps have been launched to help Blue Badge holders travelling to and from Leeds City Centre. The first shows which roads have restricted access and at what times of the day.
Map two shows where you can park if you have a blue badge, showing 111 spaces across 21 different locations. Both maps are there to help navigate the city centre during major roadworks. To see them, please click on the link below.
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Quiet shopping hours at Trinity and White Rose
Two major shopping centres in Leeds have launched quiet hours for autistic shoppers. Starting this month, Trinity Leeds in the city centre will run them every Tuesday from 10am-11am, with support from Leeds Autism Services.
The White Rose Centre in the south of the city will run a weekly quiet time from 10am-Midday. This will be every Tuesday.
For more info on theirs, please click the link below.
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