Launched on World Autism Day on 2 April, South Australia’s first Autism Inclusion Charter is a whole-of-government commitment to becoming a more knowledgeable and inclusive state, where the Autistic and autism communities can thrive with opportunity, support, connection and belonging.
The Charter was developed by the Office for Autism, through extensive engagement across government and with the Autistic and autism communities.
It identifies four principles the state government will use to guide our development toward autism inclusivity:
- Knowledge and understanding: we will build our knowledge and understanding of autism to inform the way we work.
- Wellbeing: we will work toward neurodivergent and culturally affirming practices.
- Connection and belonging: we will build welcoming and connected communities to support authentic autism inclusion.
- Employment and opportunity: we will work to remove barriers to education and training, employment and volunteering opportunities for Autistic individuals.
We know that when we welcome neurodiversity and different ways of thinking and contributing, we maximise opportunity for innovation and progress. Reflecting this, all state government agencies will now sign up to the charter and receive support and training to be autism inclusive.
The training program was piloted with Department for Education, DHS, DPC and the Environmental Protection Authority. More than 80% of participants found it ‘highly/totally useful’ and participant groups felt up to 42% more knowledgeable about autism.
Training sessions are planned to run to November 2024.