Seventeen organisations across SA will receive grants to improve autism awareness in the state. Image: World Autism Awareness.
The South Australian Government has announced it will provide grants totalling $250,000 to 17 organisations in a bid to increase knowledge, understanding and belonging for people living with autism.
The new ‘Autism Works in the Community’ grants program is designed to champion those living with autism and delivers on the government’s commitment in its newly released State Autism Strategy to partner with organisations to support inclusive initiatives for people with autism, covering a variety of important life domains.
Some of the grant recipients include:
- Adelaide Oval – to construct a sensory space which will be ready in time for next year’s Gather Round, supporting its status as a world-class venue.
- Spectrum Writing – to produce and publish a printed anthology featuring writers who live with autism
- Beach Road Wines – to collaborate with Autism SA to expand their offerings of inclusive tourism experiences for neurodivergent communities
- KIK Innovation – to deliver the ‘SEE ME’ project, supporting students with autism to work in a peer learning environment with direct links to employers who can promote autism inclusion in their organisation or industry and pave the way for meaningful employment.
SA Assistant Minister to the Premier and Assistant Minister for Autism Emily Bourke said the government had made a commitment to listen to the voices of those living with autism and their communities and to invest in inclusion and delivering on much needed change.
“Building knowledge, understanding and belonging – these are the core principles that underpin these new grants and all of the Malinauskas Labor Government’s autism initiatives,” she said.
“From establishing and investing over $4 million in the autistic led Office for Autism, launching the state’s first autism strategy, creating an Autism Inclusion Charter which is being rolled out across government, creating the ‘AUTISM WORKS’ employment campaign, to bringing autism assessments onto school sites, we are leading the nation in making SA the autism inclusive state.”
Adelaide Oval CEO Nick Addison said ensuring Adelaide Oval was a welcoming place for all guests was a constant priority, and the grant would enable it to take the next important step in creating a permanent sensory space.
“We know from our experience offering temporary spaces during recent major events such as P!nk and the Matildas game that these facilities are very well received by those with sensory needs and the ability to make this a permanent part of the Adelaide Oval experience is something our team has been working hard to achieve,” he said.
“Our thanks to the State Government and Office for Autism Grants Program for supporting us in making Adelaide Oval as inclusive as possible.”
CEO and Founder of Spectrum Writing Jason Fischer said his company guided writers with autism towards a creative profession, and with their grant they were now able to fund the publication and launch of its participants’ first ever volume of work.
“Hyperfocus is a book that will weaponise their special interests and hyperfixations, and it promises to unleash their staggering imaginations upon the public,” he said.
“Not only will this book launch their careers as writers, but we hope it will give them and their families great pride and a sense of achievement.”
