Daile Cross

An alarming world-first study into the cognitive abilities of young people in detention in Australia has found evidence of severe neurodevelopmental impairment in almost every child assessed.

Researchers from the Telethon Kids Institute assessed 99 children aged 10 to 17 incarcerated at the Banksia Hill Detention Centre in Western Australia. The findings uncovered an unprecedented prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and severe neurodevelopmental impairment.

Saskia Adysti

Albany will be the first town in Australia to trial an autism alert card.

The card will help authorities and emergency service providers to better understand people with autistic behaviour, as most patients find it difficult to communicate with others about their disability, particularly during an emergency.

The card will also have two emergency contact numbers of the card holder.

Great Southern Police District Superintendent Dominic Wood said the card would provide better security to those with autism.

The children’s writer Michael Morpurgo has written a new novel inspired by his autistic grandson, which is set to be published later this year. Flamingo Boy is set in the Camargue in the south of France during World War II and features a boy who “sees the world differently”.

Sarah Collard

Eleven-year-old Charlotte Dainton and her nine-year-old brother Joseph are obsessed with iPads, miniature golf and cartwheels.

They also have speech and developmental problems stemming from autism and both struggled in mainstream education.

Their mother, Sonya Dainton, is now among a growing number of parents who are choosing to homeschool their children, because they say the education system is failing them and not providing the support their children need.

Luke Michael

Disability advocates remain frustrated with the implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme in South Australia, despite the federal government making an “extremely overdue” announcement that $72 million would be provided for frontline NDIS services across the state.

Students with autism, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and other neurodiverse needs will soon have greater access to employment opportunities through a new Queensland hub.

The University of Queensland and DXC Technology have partnered to form the Queensland Neurodiversity Hub, which will help students gain work experience with DXC and its partnership organisations.