When Ashleigh Keating worked as a primary school teachers’ aide, she would very rarely tell the teachers she supported she was autistic, even though her students often had the same disability.

Her reluctance was based on widespread ignorance and stigma around autism. She observed teachers did not have high expectations of autistic students, bad behaviour was blamed on autism and if a staff member was a “little bit of an interesting character”, it was assumed they must be autistic.

Children with autism should have their neurodiversity embraced rather than it being seen as something that must be cured, new national guidelines say.

The federal government on Thursday released Australia's first national practice guidelines to promote the education, participation and wellbeing of autistic children and their families.

The guidelines feature 84 recommendations for practitioners to ensure there is effective and consistent support available to children up to the age of 12.

Bruce Tonge’s ground-breaking work in child psychiatry over five decades has focused on autism spectrum disorders and behavioural and emotional disturbance in children with intellectual disability.

The Woodend-based Emeritus Professor has been named an Officer of the Order of Australia in this year’s Australia Day Honours in acknowledgement of his service to research and education in this field.

Prof Tonge’s career began in 1970 as a young graduate of medicine at Monash University, when he first developed a keen interest in both paediatrics and psychiatry.

A Perth mother says she has been pushed to the edge of despair after being told she will have to wait at least two years to get an autism assessment for her 10-year-old son.

"When I got the letter telling me about the wait time I just burst into tears," Tanya Wheat said.

"It is absolutely disgraceful, we can't wait two years, my son needs support now."

La Trobe University autism researcher, Professor Cheryl Dissanayake AM has been elected as a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA).

Steven Morris

Mandatory programme named after Oliver McGowan, whose mother led a campaign after his death in 2016

Mandatory training for health and care staff in England to support people with a learning disability and autistic people has been launched following a grieving mother’s four-year campaign.