Establishing a Capacity Building Approach to Whole School Autism Provision

Background: Education plays a pivotal role in every child’s life. For students with autism, school can both compound and intensify the difficulties they already have with social communication, understanding the world around them and managing their emotions and responses.

In Northern Ireland, the majority of children and young people with a diagnosis of autism attend a mainstream school (62%) (NAS, 2012). Despite the notable increase in mainstream placements over the past decade (Lindsay et al., 2013), inclusion of students with autism within the mainstream school setting is still a poorly understood area of education (Humphrey & Lewis, 2008). Both teachers and principals have reported that they feel ill equipped and need more training to fully support the learning needs of students with autism within a mainstream setting (Enam & Farrell, 2009; Horrocks et al., 2008).

Additionally, it has been reported that a third of parents of children and young people with autism in Northern Ireland feel that the education their child receives is not adequate to their specific needs (NAS, 2012). Subsequently, many young people with autism do not achieve their academic potential (O’Brien & Daggett, 2006; Howlin et al., 2004) which has negative repercussions for their successful transition into adulthood (Gerhardt & Lainer, 2011).

Considering the discrepancy between what is currently acknowledged as best practice and the expertise schools have the capacity to provide, Middletown Centre for Autism (MCA) devised a flexible model designed to build capacity within the school and incorporate best evidenced based autism practice.

Objectives: The primary aim of the pilot project was to investigate the effectiveness of implementing the MCA PACS model to build the capacity of a school to meet the needs of students with autism.

Methods: The PACS model (which focuses on Policy and Procedures; Autism Awareness; Capacity Building; and School Environments) has been refined through whole school projects MCA has introduced to 6 school across Northern Ireland since 2014. In 2017, MCA began a ten-month project with Taughmonagh Primary School, Belfast. Using the PACS model, the school’s awareness of autism was rated pre and post MCA intervention using the Autism Competency Framework (Autism Education Trust, 2012) which informed the development of a school autism policy. Additionally, staff and members of the school community took part in training and capacity building sessions and completed evaluations and interviews.

Results: Overall, the PACS model had a positive impact on the school. This presentation will discuss the flexibility of the PACS model and how it was implemented in this school. The effect the capacity building PACS model had on the staff, children and families of the school will be discussed.

Conclusions: The MCA PACS model offers a flexible solution to developing appropriate learning pathways for students with autism within mainstream educational facilities. This capacity building model encourages flexibility and offers ‘opportunity’ to students with autism by focusing on making change throughout the school environment and forging relationships within the local community.