Rebecca Wood, University of Birmingham

It’s not hard to find representations in films or on the television of fictional autistic people with poor social skills and who struggle to form relationships.

Warning: these are very distressing stories.

Liz Little

In an exclusive interview with 60 Minutes reporter Liz Hayes, set to air this Sunday, a Melbourne woman charged over the attempted murder of her son blames the disability support system for her harrowing behaviour.

After spending more than three decades caring for her autistic and epileptic son, in May last year that Yvette Nichol finally “reached breaking point” and attempted to end his life.

Phoebe Roth, The Conversation

Children with autism and their younger siblings are less likely to be fully vaccinated than neurotypical children and their siblings, new research from the US has found.

Molly Redden @mtredden

The director and star of a new low-budget film discuss their hopes of changing the narrative of how autism is represented in media

Brandon Polansky and Samantha Elisofon in Keep the Change. Photograph: Kino Lorber

Multiple studies have found links between vitamin D and autism, but nothing is conclusive yet. Unsplash

A business which promotes ­a widely discredited sound-­stimulation service that plays ­Mozart and Gregorian chants for autistic children, and a woman who reads palms and tarot cards at Hobart’s Salamanca markets, are among providers registered for the National Disability ­Insurance Scheme.

Renay knew exactly what autism was by the time she had her first child, Anthony, because she'd been living with it most of her life.

"My brother was diagnosed with autism when he was two and I was 11," she told 9Honey. "It was always my worst fear that one of my children would be born with autism because I saw what happened to my brother."

The 36-year-old became very involved in his care, but still failed to recognise the disorder in her own son Anthony, now two-and-a-half.

By Adam Cooper

Ryan was destined for a life of disadvantage. Mum's drinking while pregnant caused fetal alcohol syndrome, and he was born with an intellectual disability into a dysfunctional family in a rural town.

Well behind from the first seconds of life, Ryan was exposed to physical and possibly sexual abuse as a child, was in state care from 11 and using alcohol and drugs in his teens. Now 21, he has been diagnosed with ADHD and has the literacy skills of a prep.

Decades of research shows that children on the autism spectrum make far greater progress in mainstream classrooms than in specialist settings.

In the wake of World Autism awareness day, a campaign has been launched by Amaze called Spectrospective; a short film that will play in cinemas.

Sky News' Ahron Young had a chance to speak with Amaze CEO Fiona Sharkie.

Follow the link below to see the video ...