Autism is a lifelong, social communication condition.
Autism affects the way a person relates to people, social situations, and the immediate environment, including their day to day routines. Many autistic people experience differences in processing everyday sensory information like sight, smells, touch, tastes and sounds.
In Northern Ireland, there are over 35,000 autistic people. As autism is a spectrum condition, it will affect people in different ways depending on the individual.
Autism is a different way of processing, not the wrong way. This can result in both strengths and challenges for autistic people. Many of the challenges that autistic people experience is due to people not understanding autism and services not being accessible to autistic people’s needs.
Autism NI supports autistic people and their families throughout their life and campaigns to build autism acceptance throughout society. We want to build an inclusive society where autistic people can reach their full potential.
In this section, you can find out more about a range of topics related to autism, which may answer questions like:
- What is the autism spectrum?
- How do you get an autism diagnosis in NI?
- What mental health support is available for autistic people?
- How do I get education support for my autistic child?
- What employment support is available for autistic adults?
- Why are autistic girls and women under-diagnosed?
Have a look below at our key topics related to autism below to find out more information.
