WHAT IS AUTISM?
- Autism is a life-long brain disorder that is normally diagnosed in early childhood.
- People with autism have difficulties communicating, forming relationships with others and find it hard to make sense of the world around them.
- Autism is a spectrum disorder varying in symptoms, severity and impact from person to person and ranging from those with no speech and limited cognitive ability to those of high IQ and typically highly-focused interests and abilities. Repetitive behaviours are common across the spectrum, which includes Asperger Syndrome. This is a form of autism in which speech development and IQ are normal, but in which social disability can be compounded by depression or other mental health problems.
- Some people with autism demonstrate significantly challenging behaviours; most need specialist support and care.
- A distinction is made in assessing the needs of people with autism between those who have an IQ of less than 70, who are described as low functioning and classified as learning disabled, and those who have an IQ above 70 who are often described as high functioning.
- Boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls.
- In total more than half a million people in the UK have an autism spectrum disorder.
- Autism affects people of all racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds.
- There are estimated to be around 540,000 people with an autistic spectrum disorder in the UK.