New legal duties for local authorities and health services as Adult Autism Strategy Statutory
What does the guidance say? The guidance is divided into 4 sections. Where the guidance says that local authorities “should” do something, this means that they have to do it unless they can show a good reason why they have not. The guidance itself states that “lack of sufficient resource would not necessarily constitute a good reason”. A. Training of staff who provide services to adults with autism - The guidance says that autism awareness training should be made available to all staff working in health and social care and that “as minimum autism awareness training should be included within all general equality and diversity training programmes” - It also says that “local areas should develop or provide specialist training for those in key roles that have a direct impact on access to services for adults with autism – such as GPs or community care assessors – and those whose career pathways focus on working with adults with autism … [so that] within each area there are some staff who have clear expertise in autism” B. Identification and diagnosis of autism in adults, leading to assessment of needs for relevant services - The guidance reiterates that “each area should put in place a clear pathway for diagnosis, from initial referral to assessment of needs”, and that “it is important that all relevant local organisations understand what the pathway to diagnosis is” - It also sets out the steps that local authorities and health services should take to make sure that adults with autism can get a community care assessment following diagnosis - It highlights that the needs assessment should not be influenced by availability of services, and that where an individual with autism would benefit from a service this should be reflected in the report, as this will help them to access the right services in the future and “also will feed into the overall picture of the needs of adults with autism in the area, and local JSNA” - It sets out the types of information that should be given to people with autism and their families post diagnosis, even if they do not qualify for publicly-funded care services following an assessment of need. C. Planning in relation to the provision of services to people with autism as they move from being children to adults - The guidance reiterates that existing duties in relation to transition apply to children with autism, and that local areas “should ensure that all professionals involved in transitions for young people with autism have received appropriate training about autism” - It also states that “NHS bodies … should ensure that protocols are in place in every local area for the transition of clinical mental health care for children with autism in receipt of CAMHS. Where individuals do not fulfil referral criteria for adult mental health teams it would be good practice … to signpost on to other sources of support and information … Commissioners should be information of gaps identified in services in these instances to support future planning.” This addresses some of the problems around transition identified in the NAS’ You Need To Know campaign. D. Local planning and leadership in relation to the provision of services for adults with autism - The guidance states that “local authorities should allocate responsibility to a named joint commissioner/senior manager to lead commissioning of community care services in the area” - It says that “local authorities, NHS bodies and NHS Foundation Trusts should develop local commissioning plans for services for adults with autism, and review them annually.” These plans should include both social care and health services, and should be based on good information about the needs of people with autism locally - It also states that “all local authorities, NHS bodies and NHS foundation trusts and organisations with whom they have contracted to provide services are expected to take account of the views of adults with autism and their families and carers in developing and commissioning services” - The guidance highlights the value of autism partnership boards, and of specialist teams in improving outcomes for adults with autism
