Derry hosted one of five family events that took place throughout Northern Ireland working towards 'Making Sense of Autism'.
Autism NI in partnership with the Children and Young People’s Strategic Partnership (CYPSP) hosted the series of family fun days this month to raise awareness of Autism in the classroom, workplace and local community during World Autism Awareness Month, April 2018.
The five ‘Making Sense of Autism’ family events were organised by local Autism NI volunteer support groups.
The events took place in Derry, Belfast, Ballymena, Enniskillen and Lisburn and provided an opportunity for local families to come together and enjoy a day of interactive activities along with a health and information fair.
Autism NI CEO Kerry Boyd said: “These events have been in the planning stages for months and it has been absolutely wonderful to see so many families coming together to help us raise awareness for Autism.
"As a charity I am delighted that we have been able to support our families through a fun, interactive and informative day. The health fairs gave so many parents an opportunity to gain vital information about support services available within their local area and it was great to see our children playing together and enjoying all the fun interactive activities on offer.
"I would also like to thank all the dignitaries that attended showing their support of Autism NI and the Autism community in Northern Ireland.”
Maurice Leeson, Professional Advisor for CYPSP said “Events such as this are a great opportunity for family support services to engage with families and other agencies to provide information and signpost children and families to early intervention services when they are in need. We had over 20 service providers supporting each of the five family fun days."
Feedback from parents who attended was positive too with many saying they particularly enjoyed the supportive atmosphere and meeting parents like them on a similar journey.
Autism NI supports individuals and their families living with the daily challenges of Autism to become integrated and valued members of the community, and to celebrate World Autism Awareness Month in April, the charity hosted these events to help local communities across Northern Ireland understand Autism and enjoy a fun free interactive kids zone and health fair.
The Children and Young People’s Strategic Partnership (CYPSP) coordinated the health and information zones at each of the events and a range of community, voluntary and statutory agencies attended each event to offer advice and information on health and wellbeing; promote family support services and programmes available to parents, carers, children, young people and families in local communities and across Northern Ireland.
For further information about the ‘Making Sense of Autism’ campaign or for further information on the support groups contact 028 9040 1729 or visit www.autismni.org.
For further information about the work of CYPSP please visit www.cypsp.org.
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