It’s time to deliver an ambitious Autism Strategy

The Autism Act 2009 was a landmark piece of legislation that raised the profile of autism and established a statutory requirement for a national strategy. Sixteen years on, the House of Lords Special Inquiry Committee has published its report, ‘Time to deliver: The Autism Act 2009 and the new autism strategy’ - and it makes for difficult but important reading.  

Outcomes have not improved

Despite successive Government strategies and many commitments, autistic children and young people’s outcomes have not improved in the ways intended - across education, health and social care or their prospects for employment.

While awareness of autism has grown, most autistic people still do not feel accepted or understood. Public discourse about autism has taken an alarming turn as misinformation; disinformation and discriminatory views have been shared in the media and promoted by politicians.  

Thousands of autistic pupils are struggling to have their needs met and understood at school, resulting in absences and poor outcomes. The impact is life-long. Only a third of autistic adults are in work and they face unacceptable inequalities.  

Longstanding systemic issues 

While the Autism Act 2009 contributed to greater visibility of the needs of autistic people, its impact has been limited by longstanding systemic issues. Critically, children and young people were excluded from the original Act, and although the latest strategy acknowledged their needs, it has not been matched by the policies or resources needed to implement it.

More importantly, policy has not addressed the significant societal shift in increased understanding and identification of autism, and the deep concurrent barriers in the system, including culture, accountability, and funding. It has failed to invest in children’s lives early and to join up policy across government, systems and services to achieve better lifelong outcomes.  

A lack of long-term thinking 

This has resulted in dysfunction across all public services, with long assessment and support waiting times, poor results, and increased cost. There has been a failure of successive regimes to have a long-term vision, and to think progressively and strategically about investment in new and better approaches.  

This failure is not a sign, as some would have us believe, that there has been a mistake made in evolving societal attitudes to be more positive towards autistic people, in developing our capability to identify and support their needs, or in raising their expectations and those of their families to live an ordinary life. Rather, it’s a sign that governments have failed to join the dots, get ahead of the curve and care enough.  

We must act now 

We’re now at a crossroads. If we’re to provide future generations of autistic children and young people with better life opportunities, we have to act now - for their sake, their families and our wider society. Autistic children are not a burden. They are children like any others with talents, ambitions and needs. They just need a helping hand.

The Government needs to work with autistic young people, their families and the organisations that support them, to create a new autism strategy that is visionary, ambitious, joined up and laser focused on positive and measurable outcomes.  

About the author  

Jolanta Lasota is Chief Executive of Ambitious about Autism and Chair of the Autism Alliance.