Know your normal: Young people with autism’s experience of mental health

In October 2016, 18 young people with autism sat in a room discussing what they thought was the biggest issue for autistic young people at that moment – and unanimously agreed that it was mental health.

Together with UCL’s Centre for Research in Autism and Education, we (Ambitious about Autism Youth Patrons) designed and undertook research about young people with autism to gain an insight into their experience of mental health.

The findings were upsetting to say the least, with four out of five saying they have experienced mental health issues, but only 4% being extremely confident in knowing who to ask for help.

Over two thirds of young people said that if they did ask for help they had little or no confidence they would get what they need.

We believe that the findings above are shocking and something a developed nation like the UK should be ashamed of. We believe that the best people to come up with solutions are those closest to the problem. As young people with autism it’s our opinion that it is possible to make a significant difference, if:

• young people with autism are given the support they need to identify and communicate their problems,
• the stigma around mental health and autism is reduced and the links and differences between the two are recognised,
• services are easy to find, accessible and most importantly able to meet the needs of each individual.

This report outlines the extent of the problem and how we intend to make a difference. We hope we can count on your support to improve thousands of young people’s lives.