West Midlands ADASS (Association of Directors of Adult Social Care) commissioned a research project in 2023 exploring the family and practitioner perspectives of autism and more specifically parental blame experienced by parents of autistic children and young people.
The context for the project explored the social context where autism diagnoses increased by 787% between 1998 and 2018. This overwhelming increase brought changes in diagnostic criteria and increased awareness, along with increased numbers of referrals and long waits for assessments.
The high stakes parents find themselves operating in, often lead to desperate times, seeking explanations and help.
Practitioners, are balancing limited resources with increasing demand which may intensify how a child's presentation and/or behaviour is perceived and how parenting approaches may be misunderstood.
This insightful research led by thorough academic research, parental and practitioners perspectives and experiences, challenges us to consider how parents of autistic children report being blamed rather than helped and where practitioners can reflect on ways to improve the support and help we can offer parents and children.

Target audience: SENCO’s / Leaders, Practitioners / Support staff, Parents & Carers, Local Authority Staff

Target Key Stage: All Key Stages

Settings Targeted: Nursery / pre-school / childminder, School, Alternative provision, FE / Higher education, Health settings such as clinics etc.
SEND Focus: Autism
Related Policy: Teacher's standards, SEND Code of Practice, All Age Autism Strategy
Audience Stage: Level 1-3
Learning outcomes:

• In designing support for parents before and after autism diagnosis, delegates will be able to identify what good looks like.
• Avoiding some common misunderstandings in early identification of autism.
• Increased awareness about the risk and harm of parental blame.