Where are all the autistic/neurodivergent employers/employees?

Lets talk Economy.

Now obviously I'm not an economy expert but there are oodles and oodles of disabled autistic/neurodivergent people in the UK who are extremely talented, creative and skilled human beings that are not employed or given the opportunities to employ others therefore contributing to the economy. Instead I would say a large cohort of this group have been placed in the position of relaying on state benifits.

This in my opinion is false economy and is the creation of the government viewing us as a "drain on society" not worth investing in.

I feel this, due to the lack of evidence showing me otherwise and based on our own lived experince.

Based on our own lived experince

How many of this cohort are in employment or how may of this cohort are employers paving the way for others?

This raises the question and in line with a focus on year 9 EHCP(Preparation for adulthood ) What are we preparing ND children/young person for and what support is there transitioning from childhood to adulthood

Well my role as Joes mum and advocate is this.....

-To love every autistic inch of his being.

-To give him all of the autisitc led empowering information he needs to truly know hiself and his autisitc culture

To educate him on the importance of language and to use neurodivergent affirming language

To understand his sensory experiences/differences and to meet those needs.

To educate him to listen to what his body needs in terms of sensory regulation

To listen to him always and enable him to teach me.

To encourage him to stim as and when he chooses

To educate others on his neurodivergence and autisitc identity

To educate others on sensory regulation.

To enable him to be his authentic autistic self.

• To love every autistic inch of his being

My role as a fellow autistic is this......

To fly the flag for autisitc identity

To share my skills and knowledge

To be part of the neurodiversity movement

To forever question and support a better way of doing things

To research and take my education from the autistic/neurdivergent community

To raise neurodivergent voices

My role as a human being is this.....

To advocate for the neurodiversity paradigm.

There have been a lot of misquoting of the term "Neurodiversity"

What it doesnt mean?

You cant "have" neurodiversity.

It doesnt mean everyone who is autistic or neurodivergent.

It is not something you can have. You cant "have" neurodiversity. It is not exclusive to the disabled community.

Neurodiversity is all of mankind. Its every one, all of us.

The term "neurodiversity paradigm" first coined by Nick Walker and the inspiration for our blogs simply means that as part of humanity's biological makeup we are all uniquely different to one another and that biologically there is in fact, no "normal."

The #NEURODIVERSITY Paradigm(ideology) believes that this should be celebrated, explored and valued to enhance validation, empowerment, identiy, creativity and inclusivity.

That there should be no dominant way of being who should have power or superiority over the other or dictate how one should, think, feel, behave, or function.

That marginalisation and oppression should not exist.

What is your role?

The reader?

The Community

The Employer

The Teacher

The Carer

The Doctor

The Nurse

The social worker

The LA officer

The Entrepreneur

The Department of Education

Ofstead

The Government

To welcome and embrace Neurodivergent identity and culture in the same way you would embrace, cultural, gender, sexual identity.

Be an allay and champion of autistic people by providing autistic led employment

To educate yourself through neurodivergent educators.

Access autistic led training delivered by autistic people

Completely avoid ABA or anything similiar.

Completely avoid ABA or anything similiar. This is training children not to be autistic. This is a fast track approach to a mental health crisis.

To provide a curriculam which encourages and embraces difference

To harness Neurodivergent children and young peoples passions and hobbies and creativity into transferable skills.

To educate your self on the neurodiversity paradigm and make the shift from the pathology paradigm.

Why are we sending children to school to expose them to an outdate curriculam which will have no relevance, meaning or value to them during the school day or when they leave.

All that stress for what?

What is there out there for Neurodivergent children and young people?

What kind of employment is it?

How are schools preparing ND children for employment . What kind of employment is it?

Schools have to work against a model which is designed for Neurotypical people Preparing ND young people to work along side Neurotypical people and neurotypical employers.

The truth is, the sytem will fail them. It wont be their fault. It is an outdated system designed for neurotypicals.

If they are not trained in sensory intergration.It will fail

All those years in school preparing ND children for inappropriate parentships and work experince leading to no relevant ND affirming employment opportunities and another group of people on benifits.

Its a bleak blog but this is the reality.

So how can we work together to enable ND children and young people to really thrive long term.

We need to stop disabling

We need to stop expecting ND children to be the ones to change

We need to be the change

We need to work together in the true style and meaning of the neurodiversity paradigm.

We need to educate ourselves and really and truly listen to neurodivergent led education.

We need to teach the neurodiversity paradigm in schools so this becomes engrained and embedded as apposed to the current model (Pathology paradigm)

If you've managed to read to the end. Thankyou for sticking with me and I hope this has contributed to the neurodiversity movement.

Love Jenny and Joe.