Upcoming Autism-Related Conferences

Our branch has received details of two upcoming events which we felt might interest those we support ...

Cambridge NAS Branch invites you to a presentation by Ian Jordan entitled: "The very different visual world of your autistic child"

Date: November 23rd 2010

Time: 7.30pm

Venue: Impington Village College, New Road, Impington, Cambridge CB24 9LX

Parking: available at the Village College

About the presentation:

Sensory processing difficulties are found in virtually all cases of autism. Ian will use video, demonstration and animation to enable parents to become aware of the range and effect of visual processing problems encountered – know how to recognise them – and what they can do to reduce their impact – and what professionals can and should do.

Facial recognition, expression recognition, problems with objects morphing into other shapes, visual images persisting, hearing in colour, why children cannot hear properly if they cannot process what they see, visio-spatial awareness, strobing, how images may be out of synch with sound, hand eye coordination and much more will be addressed.

It is often very funny, disturbing and thought provoking. Ian restricts his public lectures – and they are always sell outs! He has been described as “the best lecturer in optics” and ‘charismatic’ – and in lecture evaluations he averages over 9 out of 10!

Lecture credits include many world / international conferences – 5 books – 1 DVD in association with UK university – 1CD Rom – many awards for R&D – TV credits include BBC documentary “My family and Autism”, Teachers TV……..

You can sign-up for the talk on Cambridge Branch’s website http://www.cambridge-autism.org.uk or email them at Cambridge@nas.org.uk or phone 07920 150407

Thank you to Autism Suffolk for the details about this talk.

The second of these events is a conference on PDA, run by the NAS, in association with NORSACA and the Elizabeth Newson Centre ...

Pathological Demand Avoidance Syndrome (PDA) is increasingly recognised as part of the autism spectrum. It is a lifelong disability which affects boys and girls equally. People with PDA need different amounts of support depending on how their condition affects them. The main difficulty for people with PDA is their avoidance of the everyday demands made by other people, due to their high anxiety levels when they feel that they are not in control. However, because they tend to have much better social communication and interaction skills than other people on the spectrum, they can use those skills to disguise their resistance through common avoidance behaviour.

As a result, people with PDA usually experience increased difficulty throughout their lives. They often imitate inappropriate behaviour or come across as overbearing, and may exhibit an obsessive desire to dominate socially. This behaviour can be extremely disruptive within classroom settings and may make for a chaotic and distressing home life.

Date: Wednesday 26 January 2011

Venue: Kensington Conference and Events Centre, London

This conference will give you a greater understanding of PDA and an opportunity to discuss strategies and techniques that will help you support people with the disorder, both at school and at home. You’ll be able to hear the latest research on changing diagnostic understandings, as well as an in-depth discussion of educational strategies for teachers. There will also be presentations on approaches to managing behaviour and issues with communication. The conference is running in association with NORSACA and the Elizabeth Newson Centre. PDA was first identified by Elizabeth Newson over 20 years ago and the Elizabeth Newson Centre is leading the way in diagnosis and support for people with PDA. The centre’s expertise means that you’ll be hearing the most up-to-date information and advice from authorities in the field.

Information on PDA is extremely limited and there are very few forums for learning about the disorder. This conference is an extremely rare opportunity to hear experts in the field discussing the latest strategies and best practice.

For more information, such as the contents of the conference, registration details and cost of attending, please click here to visit the NAS event details page. Please note that there will be a special rate available to NAS members and individuals on a low income.

My Rights, Your Responsibility

A little while ago, our branch received some information from Autism Suffolk about My Rights, Your Responsibility. (click the link to visit the website)

To quote from the website:

"My Rights, Your Responsibility is a set of information written primarily for parents of disabled children. It provides information to parents on their child's rights to access activities, community facilities and other services.

So often disabled children and young people are told they cannot join in for reasons relating to health and safety and their impairment. This information tries to address those issues and details what needs to be done to ensure that children and young people can safely join in and that the organisation providing the activity meets its responsibilities in terms of health and safety.

Health and safety should not be used as an excuse to prevent services becoming more inclusive but should be used to ensure that risks are minimised and that we move towards a situation where all children and young people are given the opportunities to join in activities that they would like to do."

The website gives links to web based information on:

• behaviour management
• epilepsy
• invasive care
• sensory impairments
• personal care
• moving and handling
• communication
• transport

as well as providing printed leaflets (which you can download or order) on:

• The Disability Discrimination Act
• What is risk?
• What can parents expect from services?
• What can services expect from parents?
• Children's rights to communicate their views and be listened to

Our branch feels that this information could be very useful for families caring for people with Autism Spectrum Disorders, and we hope that you agree! Feel free to access this information for yourselves, or to pass it on to those who may find it useful!