New mini poll shows 94% of families feel their autistic child is not accepted

In our mini-poll on social to mark the week, 94% of families raising an autistic child say they feel people don’t accept, or understand, their child when they are out and about.

Of the 200 families who responded, the top three things parents say people don’t understand are:

• their child’s behaviour – 86% of respondents told us people lack understanding of their child not playing or following instructions in the same way as others.
• their child having meltdowns or getting very distressed – 79% of families told us this was a concern to them.
• their child’s communication. 70% of parents felt people didn’t understand why their child didn’t speak or communicate as they might expect.

Three simple ways to support families with an autistic child

This Autism Awareness Week you can be a force for change. Families raising an autistic child told us the simple things that make a positive difference to their daily lives:

Thirty-nine per cent of people said making small allowances helps. This means things like allowing their child extra time, or another turn, on a swing or a ride.

A third of parents and carers (33%) said that not staring at them, or their child, makes a big difference.

Families also said that chatting to them and giving them a smile also makes a really positive difference

Lily and Olly’s story

Lily, mum to five-year-old son Olly, who is autistic and pre-verbal, said: “Parents of disabled children are like everyone else, we just want to take our kids out swimming or to the park. But what people don’t see is that kids with additional needs don’t behave like other children. They may not ‘look’ disabled, but attitudes need to change about the way disabled children behave.”

“My son Olly is autistic and he does things all the time that someone might consider unusual or naughty.

“He throws his toys or digital devices down the stairs, chews his bedding, lies down on the floor when we go to the shops. But all of those things are just sensory processing needs and they’re normal for an autistic child.”

You can help us support even more families like Lily’s

Family Fund is the UK’s largest grant making charity supporting families on low incomes raising disabled and seriously ill children, many of whom are on the autism spectrum (nationally the figure is more than 1 in 100 people).

With your help we can provide even more essential grants to families with autistic children.

Mum Lily applied for a trampoline for Olly, so he now has a safe space to play at home: 

“Sometimes people make faces if he pushes in at the playground, or he stands in the tunnel and won’t move. People say things to you and stare at him. We were at the shops a while ago and someone tried to grab hold of him and pull him up to his feet. It’s so upsetting when these things happen. 

“Family Fund can give you grants for your own home so you can create a play environment that works for your child. So maybe there isn’t a swing for my son at the park, but now, there’s a trampoline in his garden.” 

“I never would have imagined this is how my life would be. But once you let go of what could have been, you learn to focus on what your child can do – what makes them funny, how long and tight they want to cuddle you, all the things that make them special.” 

Could you help us fund a grant for a family raising an autistic child?