March 1, 2015 Julia May

Federal government delays a 40 per cent funding cut to the disability sector amid allegations it was in breach of United Nations convention.

The federal government has made a partial backflip on its cuts to disability groups, granting a temporary reprieve to eight bodies whose funding was due to run out on Saturday.

A LONG-running legal battle between the Education Department and a former student who blames it for his illiteracy could be resolved as early as tomorrow.

Twenty-one-year-old Beau Abela wants $300,000 from the department, claiming they failed to teach him properly and that he should have never been able to progress from primary school.

Mr Abela launched the action in 2007 when he was just 14, but failed and is now appealing to the full bench of the Federal Court.

One of the hottest topics in autism is the notion that some children outgrow their diagnosis, achieving a distinction dubbed the ‘optimal outcome.’ This small group has captured the imagination of researchers and parents alike, sparking a slew of studies into the factors that might set ch

Police are looking for a 32-year-old autistic man who went missing in Gungahlin on Friday.

Zac De Jonge from Kaleen is highly autistic and has limited speech.

Mr De Jong has been missing since noon and was last spotted at the Gungahlin bus interchange.

He is described as tall with blonde hair.

Police are asking anyone who has seen him to call 131 444.Police said he was wearing a red Levi-brand T-shirt.

Zac turned up later that day, safe and well.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD; which now includes former diagnostic labels such as Autistic Disorder and Asperger syndrome) is a life-long neuro-developmental disorder. It first shows itself early in life, emerging across toddlerhood and into the preschool years.

It’s what’s on the outside that counts

There is no genetic or blood test for ASD; diagnosis is based on behaviour.

AUTHOR: Luke Beardon, Senior Lecturer in Autism at Sheffield Hallam University

Decades ago I found myself working with a young woman with autism. I had done my reading of the autism texts of the time, and was singularly surprised when nothing I had read matched up to the person I was sat next to. There was no flapping, she had no interest in my earrings or buttons, and she certainly wasn’t even lining anything up.

MARKY Roberts cannot speak but he has a growing voice in his Victor Harbor community, which is speaking out to protect him.

The 38-year-old, who has severe Down syndrome, is at the centre of a battle affecting hundreds of South Australia’s intellectually disabled adults who face being chemically or physically restrained for even the most basic medical care.

ASA 3rd National Conference for

people on the Autism Spectrum

Conference Dinner 18 February ( International Asperger Day)

19 to 21 February 2015

Anna Remington, UCL Institute of Education

Microsoft has announced its intention to hire more autistic people – not as a charitable enterprise but because, as corporate vice-president Mary Ellen Smith said: “People with autism bring strengths that we need at Microsoft.” Employing autistic people makes good business sense.