anglican focus

The news site of the Anglican Church Southern Queensland: nourishing and connecting our faith community

Neurodivergence

Resources & Research

Welcoming and including autistic people in our churches

Two Australian Anglicans – a young woman with autism and the parent of a child with autism – share their stories of inclusion and respect in parishes: “The overwhelming impression I got was that the parish community members were there for the common good rather than for their individual needs. As a result of their experience, both my primary-aged children understand church and want to go to church”

Features

How to create a safe and welcoming space for autistic people to worship and serve

“As an autistic person, I experience many sensory sensitivities on a daily basis. Difficulties with sensory processing are a common occurrence for autistic people. Every autistic person I’ve met has sensory processing difficulties. And, as a speech pathologist working with autistic clients, I’ve met a lot of autistic people,” says Parish of Freshwater member, Mel Maddox, while offering tips for creating a safe space for autistic people to worship and serve