Abstract

One element at the heart of effective service provision is an understanding of the service user's needs. This book unravels some of the common misunderstandings between people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and providers of support services, and offers practical advice on how to ensure that the needs of people with ASD are catered for effectively.

Denise Edwards writes directly from her own experiences of finding appropriate support for her adopted son, John Paul, who has Asperger's syndrome, but also draws on the experiences of a broad range of service users. She emphasises the importance of understanding and conveying the nature of ASD so that support services can meet a person's needs effectively. She discusses common areas in which difficulties arise, including communication, social situations and the organisation of information, examines the implications of support in wider society - education, employment, the legal system - and makes practical suggestions for changes that can improve access to benefits and services for people with ASD.

Informative and down-to-earth, this book is essential reading for the providers of services for people with ASD for service users themselves as well as formal or informal carers, friends, family, related professionals and policy makers.

Denise Edwards is a qualified counsellor and teacher of students with special educational needs, both in mainstream and special schools. She is currently a tutor for degree students with disabilities and she has an adopted son, now 25 years old, who has Asperger's syndrome.
By explaing what ASD is and the effect it has on a person's life, this book provides formal and informal carers with an insight into what it means to live with autism spectrum disorder.
BILD information Service
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to parents and professionals and students alike. It is practical and highly readable. The personal and professional experience illuminates and makes the subject 'real'. This book's strength lies in its holistic approach and broad reach. Through individual case studies and support profiles, Edwards emphasises the individual and offers a truly person-centred approach. She highlights the importance of really listening to the person with autism, and puts the reader in the person with autism's shoes.
NAS