Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether all staff in the Department of Health have access to autism training, as laid out in their adult autism strategy <i>Think Autism</i>.

Think Autism, the April 2014 update to the Adult Autism Strategy has over 30 actions for Government departments and other organisations and is overseen by the Autism Programme Board. A summary of progress will be published in August 2015.

Work is underway to look at how staff in the Department of Health and arm’s length bodies have access to autism training, such as the Hidden Impairment Toolkit developed by the Department for Work and Pensions and the National Hidden Impairment National Group. The needs of older people with autism, the appropriate and timely diagnosis of adult autism, and the provision of care and support services for adults with autism are also identified in Think Autism and are part of the consultation on the revised statutory guidance for local authorities and the National Health Service which runs until 19 December.

Local authority areas will also report back on progress they are making on implementing these and other issues in Public Health England’s forthcoming national autism self-assessment exercise on implementing the Adult Autism Strategy. 42 Autism Innovation Fund projects totalling £1 million to help support people with autism and share learning for wider replication in other areas were also recently announced.