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A mental health programme created to empower autistic young people to take control of their mental health before reaching a crisis point has received further three-year funding.
Launched by Ambitious about Autism, Zurich UK and the Z Zurich Foundation in 2024, the educational toolkit is a free, downloadable resource available for every single secondary school in the UK. To date, the programme has been downloaded by 1,000 schools, potentially reaching over 20,000 autistic young people.
The Autistic and OK programme also provides free resources for older autistic pupils to run peer-led wellbeing sessions for their younger autistic peers. Additionally, there is an assembly pack and training module designed for school staff to help foster acceptance throughout the entire school community.
Over the next three years, new resources will be added to the programme, and there will be a focus on improving school-wide understanding of autism. There will also be deeper engagement with specific UK regions to increase programme take-up.
Co-designed by autistic youth advisors
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Autistic and OK was developed with the support of a group of autistic youth advisors from the charity’s Ambitious Youth Network, who helped design the programme’s resources, which focus on conditions such as depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, as well as the associated topic of bullying. Autistic youth advisors will continue to play a key role in the next phase of the programme’s development.
Rebecca, aged 21, an autistic youth advisor who will continue to develop the programme, said: “The Autistic and OK programme has been invaluable for everyone involved. It has helped autistic pupils feel more empowered to look after their own mental health, given older autistic pupils confidence and transferable skills for the future, and created more autism-friendly school environments.
“But our work to make schools a more inclusive place for autistic pupils isn’t done yet. Too many autistic young people are still missing out on learning and struggling with their mental health. Thanks to the extension of this programme, we hope to enable every autistic young person to feel safe and accepted in school.”
