Brighton & Hove Adult Autism Strategy in easy read

An easy read version of the Adult Autism Strategy.

A drawing of a child looking at a mirror. The chid on the outside has long hair and a shirt with stripy arms. The drawing of the child on the inside of the mirror has short hair and a lanyard around their neck. The mirror child is wearing a hoodie. Around the mirror are quotations including: "Why are you so sensitive?", "Why don't you show more emotion?" and "Why do you find it so hard to communicate?". The mirror image of the child is saying "now I understand".

About autism

Autistic people and people who are not autistic experience the world in different ways. 

In the past, autism was seen as a bad thing. Now many autistic people say that autism is not bad, just different. 

Picture 1 - Two black squares which each have a drawing of a person inside. The first person looks overwhelmed with eyes that are circles inside of circles. The second person looks happy and has a speech bubble next to them. Picture 2 - A black and white drawing of a though bubble cloud with arrows going in and out. The bubble is surrounded by symbols such as smiley and confused faces and swirls.

Autistic people can be very passionate about things.

Autistic people can be very focused on one thing at a time and find it hard to move onto a new thing. 

A drawing of a blue figure sitting on the ground on top of a black circle. There are blue and purple sharp lines and shapes coming out of their body in an abstract style.

Autistic people can be very sensitive to things like noises, lights and smells. 

Too much noise, lights and smells can make autistic people very upset and overwhelmed. 

Picture 1 - A cartoon of a person who looks confused. There is a speech bubble from someone of screen with squiggles and hash tags inside it. The person has a thought bubble coming from them with speech bubbles inside it and a question mark. Picture 2 - 2 people in conversation.

Autistic people can communicate with other people in different ways to people who are not autistic. 

For example, autistic people might say exactly what they mean. 

Another example is that people who are not autistic like to look at people’s eyes when they are talking to them. 

A comic style drawing with three different scenes. In one, there is a person who is rocking and looking scared of black arms with talons that are coming towards them. In the second scene, a person sits at their desk in front of a drawing of a rainbow. They appear happy and are waving their hands. In the third scene a feminine person wearing a pink dress is twirling. Above them is a thought bubble of a feminine warrior with long blond hair in front of an archer and a second figure with long blond hair.

Stimming

Some autistic people find it helpful to do stimming. 

Stimming means doing the same movements or noises over and over again. 

Hand flapping or rocking is an example of stimming.  

A drawing of a person sitting in a tunnel with many eyes and blank figures looking at them. The person has their hands to their chest and is sitting on the floor. They do not have a face and there is a broken mask on the floor in front of them.

Masking

Sometimes autistic people do masking. Masking means when autistic people try to act more like non-autistic people. 

Masking can: 

  • make autistic people exhausted
  • be bad for autistic people’s mental health
Picture 1 - A cartoon of a child holding an umbrella. It is raining. The child has a blank expression on their face. Picture 2 - a person showing many worries.

Autistic burnout

Masking and feeling overwhelmed all the time can lead to autistic burnout. 

Autistic burnout is when autistic people feel:

  • exhausted
  • stressed
  • and not able to do things that they were able to do before they were in autistic burnout

Autistic people can recover from autistic burnout by:

  • knowing that they are in autistic burnout
  • having lots of rest
  • telling other people what they need or want
  • trying to do less masking
A person holding a sign in front of Royal Pavilion. The sign states 'there is the perception amongst local autistic people that there is likely to be a significantly larger autistic community in Brighton & Hove'.

How we made the Brighton & Hove Adult Autism Strategy

We do not know how many autistic people live in Brighton & Hove.

Autistic people think that lots of autistic people live in Brighton & Hove. 

3 people working on a data chart.

We will try and find out how many autistic people live in Brighton & Hove.

Pile of books with text 'Plans' on the cover.

The UK government says that each local area needs a plan for how they support autistic people. 

The Brighton & Hove Autism Strategy is the plan for Brighton & Hove. 

Picture 1 - A group of people building a bridge together. There is black text above the bridge stating 'we all want to work together to make things better for autistic people'. Picture 2 - 6 people in a group working together.

Brighton & Hove Autism Partnership Board

This plan was made by Brighton & Hove Autism Partnership Board. 

Brighton & Hove Autism Partnership Board are:

  • a group of autistic people
  • parents and carers
  • staff from charities
  • the council
  • the police 
  • the National Health Service (NHS)

They all work together to try and make things better for autistic people.   

Report file.

The Brighton & Hove Partnership Board agreed that the Brighton &  Hove Adult Autism Strategy should be about making things better for autistic adults without a learning disability. 

This is because there are other plans that are supposed to make things better for autistic children and people with a learning disability. 

Person at a computer filling out a survey.

We held an online survey. 

In this survey we asked people what was going well for autistic people in Brighton & Hove and what needed to be better. 

Lots of autistic people answered the questions in the online survey. 

Group of people sat around a table looking at a laptop.

We asked local charities to speak to a diverse range of autistic people and their parents and unpaid carers. 

This is because we wanted to find out how autistic people and their parents and unpaid carers might have different experiences depending on their identity. 

Progress pride flag. Woman in wheelchair on ramp. Group of 5 BME people.

This included:

  • Black and racially minoritized autistic people
  • disabled autistic people
  • autistic people who might find it difficult to complete the online survey
  • lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer autistic people
  • autistic parents
  • parents and carers of autistic people
  • autistic women and people who were told that they were a girl when they were born
A photo of a person in a wheelchair pointing at themselves. Next to the person is a document with the British coat of arms which states "Equality Act".

We used this information to write a report called an Equality Impact Assessment. 

An Equality Impact Assessment is a report which explores how we can promote equality and reduce discrimination.  

Picture 1 - A cartoon of two figures with short hair on a purple background. One figure has their hand next to their ear as if they are listening. The other figure has a speech bubble from them stating 'I am listened to and believed as an autistic person'. Picture 2 - Two figures holding a sign. One person has a beard and is wearing a turban and the other has a cap. The sign they are holding states 'Nothing about me without me - led by autistic people'. Picture 3 - mother and daughter

What values are important to the Brighton & Hove Adult Autism Strategy

We will:

  • believe autistic people and the people who support them
  • challenge the belief that autism is bad or shameful
  • celebrate the way that autistic people communicate and the way they live their lives
  • think about how autistic people from different backgrounds have different experiences
  • see the carers and family members of autistic people as important. We will work with them to understand the autistic person they support if the autistic person says this is ok
  • change the way we do things to meet the needs of autistic people

Our work to make Brighton & Hove better for autistic people will be led by autistic people.

The number 6.

What we'll do

The Brighton & Hove Adult Autism Strategy is based on 6 different areas. 

These are:

  • Relationships, feeling safe and part of the community
  • Housing
  • Mental Health
  • Physical Health
  • Social Care
  • Neurodevelopmental assessment and support
A drawing of a white person with long dark hair sitting down with their arms crossed and their knees held against their chest. They look sad and have their head rested on their arms.

Relationships, feeling safe and part of the community - what autistic people told us about their experience

Autistic people told us:

  • about bad experiences of other members of the public
  • the police did not understand their needs
A cartoon of different images. The first image is a person on the beach looking overwhelmed next to some musical notes. The second image is a person drinking a drink at a table in the lanes. They are sighing. The third image has writing saying 'parade' and has someone looking stressed.

Autistic people can be more likely to experience abuse. 

Autistic people told us they want more support with understanding when relationships and friendships are abusive and unhealthy.

Autistic people told us Brighton & Hove is very overwhelming due to bright lights, lots of people and noise.

 

Man pointing to empty pocket.

Some autistic people told us they:

  • felt lonely
  • have very little money at the moment and this means they cannot go out and see people
House and garden.

Housing - what autistic people told us about their experience

Having a safe and stable home is really important for autistic people. 

Housing in Brighton & Hove is very expensive. Many autistic people are not able to live with other people. 

Living with other people can:

  • be very overwhelming to the senses
  • disrupt peoples’ routines
Two people arguing.

Many autistic people stay living with family for longer which can be very difficult for some people. 

Autistic people may be more likely to be homeless. 

Autistic people told us:

  • that it is very difficult to find a home that does not make them feel sensory overwhelm. 
  • emergency and temporary accommodation was not accessible  - emergency and temporary accommodation is housing for homeless people to live in whilst they wait for long term housing
  • it is very difficult when they have disagreements with neighbours and landlords
Picture 1 - A black and white drawing of hands holding a piece of paper. The paper says 'not neurodivergent enough' and has a sad face and three crosses. Picture 2 - A cartoon of a person talking on a phone. The person looks distressed and is crying.

Mental health - what autistic people told us about their experience

Many autistic people told us they could not get support for their mental health. 

This was worrying as autistic people are more likely to need help with their mental health.

Team of professionals.

Autistic people told us that mental health staff did not change the way they worked to include autistic people. 

Autistic people told us they could not get help when they were in mental health crisis. 

GP sitting at their desk.

Physical health  - what autistic people told us about their experience

Some autistic people said their GP or local doctor:

  • was very good
  • was very bad
A picture of a long corridor with red and blue doors on either side. There are a pair of brown hands which are overlaying the image of the corridor.

Many autistic people said that their doctor was not good at including autistic people.

Doctors offices and hospitals can be noisy and have lots of bright lights. 

3 people standing. One person is holding their thumbs down looking sad.

It can be very hard for autistic people to use online forms or the phone to arrange a meeting with their doctor. 

Autistic people said:

  • that lots of doctors and health staff do not listen to autistic people
  • that lots of doctors and health staff do not believe autistic people
  • many health staff do not understand autism
Folder with the word support plan written on.

Social care  - what autistic people told us about their experience

Social care is support for children or adults. 

Social care support can be things like:

  • having a social worker
  • having a support worker
  • living in a care home

People get social care support to help them:

  • from harm or abuse
  • live their life well if they are disabled, older or struggle with drugs or alcohol.
Person holding a checklist titled Needs.

Autistic people told us that finding out if they could get help from adult social care was very difficult. 

Autistic people said:

  • that some social workers were good at working with autistic people 
  • that some social workers did not understand autism
  • some social workers still used out of date words like ‘high functioning’
A group of people next to a red cross showing they're not working together

Autistic people said that:

  • it was difficult to know how to get help
  • staff in different teams did not work together well

Autistic parents and carers said that children social workers do not understand autism. 

Autistic parents said that they were worried about telling children social workers that they are autistic. 

A person in a white shirt wearing a lanyard sitting at a table. They are showing a piece of paper to a white person with short hair in the foreground.

Neurodevelopmental assessment and support - what autistic people told us about their experience 

Neurodevelopmental assessment:

  • means the help that autistic people get to understand that they are autistic
  • can also mean getting an autism diagnosis - an autism diagnosis is when a health professional meets with you and says if they think you are autistic

Neurodevelopmental support means the support that autistic people get to understand how they might need to live their life in a different way because they are autistic. 

A person in a white shirt and tie with a stethoscope sitting at a table with a book and a pen. In front of the person is a person in a dark hoodie.

Many autistic people told us that it was very hard to get their GP or local doctor to agree that they needed an autism diagnosis. 

Autistic people in Brighton & Hove have to wait a very long time to get a diagnosis.

An autism diagnosis can help autistic people to:

  • feel better about themselves
  • meet other autistic people
  • get support and help
6 people working together.

Some autistic people do not want an autism diagnosis and this is ok.           

Autistic people told us that services:

  • do not work together well
  • should be better at speaking to each other and working together
A black background with white text. There is a circle with a tick inside. Text next to the circle states 'made with photosymbols'.

Made with Photosymbols and other artists.

Special thanks to the artists: The Artist Edie, Kirsty Pentecost, Elijah, Ben, Theo Hickman and Jessica Littleproud.

Laptop with text 'click' on screen.

For more information

To read the long version of the strategy you can go to the Brighton & Hove adult autism strategy and action plan.