Hillingdon Autistic Care and Support

22/05/2026

Delivered By Citizens Advice Hillingdon
Following the success of our first Connected Community Day, we are pleased to invite you to our second event — Your Rights When Life Gets Difficult: Housing and Employment Empowerment. This session is jointly delivered by Citizens Advice Hillingdon and the Brunel Legal Advice Centre, bringing expert guidance directly into the community.

This event focuses on helping residents understand their rights, access early support, and feel more confident when facing challenges related to housing or employment.

Event Details

📅 Date: Tuesday 9 June 2026

⏰ Time: 10:00–14:00

📍 Venue: Brunel Legal Centre, Elliott Jaques Building, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, UB8 3PH

Programme:

10:00–11:00 – Housing Problems & the Renters Rights Act (Informative session)
11:00–13:00 – Drop‑in advice and guidance
13:00–14:00 – Employment Problems & the Employment Rights Act 2026 (Informative session)

About the Connected Community Project
Connected Community Days are themed events, designed to bring support, advice, and practical resources directly into local spaces.

This second event focuses on housing and employment rights, offering residents clear, accessible information at a time when many are navigating complex challenges.

We would kindly ask you to share details of this event to the Hillingdon community. By sharing, you are ensuring residents can access help early, strengthening community resilience and helping us reducing some of the barriers our community faces.

What’s on Offer
Residents will be able to access free, drop‑in support throughout the day, including:

✔ Understanding rights under the Renters Rights Act

✔ Guidance on housing problems and early‑action steps

✔ Information on the Employment Rights Act 2026

✔ Support with workplace issues and employment challenges

✔ Access to local services and referral pathways

✔ One‑to‑one advice from Citizens Advice Hillingdon during the drop-in session

Our aim is to create a welcoming, supportive environment where residents can gain clarity, feel empowered, and leave with practical next steps.

We look forward to welcoming our Hillingdon residents to our second Connected Community Day and continuing to work with you to support residents across Hillingdon.

19/05/2026

Dear Hillingdon Community,
We are pleased to share that Citizens Advice Hillingdon will be joining Akash Radio for a live segment on Kamal in Konversation to discuss employment rights, workplace challenges, and accessing support.
📅 Thursday 21st May 2026
⏰ 13:35 – 14:00pm
🌐 Listen live at: www.akashradio.co.uk
This session forms part of our ongoing commitment to ensuring communities have access to clear, accessible information and understand where to turn for help when facing difficulties at work. During the discussion, we will cover:
• Understanding your rights in the workplace
• Accessing support and advice services
• Reducing barriers to help
• Information about our current project and how communities can engage with support available
Akash Radio is a growing community-led station reaching South Asian communities across West London, including Hillingdon, Ealing, Harrow and Hounslow. We are excited about this partnership and the opportunity to share essential information through trusted community platforms led by and for the communities they serve.
Thanks to support from the National Lottery Community Fund, we are able to continue delivering accessible information and support to our communities.
We hope you are able to tune in live and would be grateful if you could also share the attached flyer across your networks and with the communities you support.

18/05/2026

🚨 Spaces are still available! 🚨
Ready to explore your future? Join us at our next Insight Day on 24th June 2026 and find out how you can gain skills, confidence and real workplace experience.
✨ Register now before all places are filled!

17/05/2026

Mental Health Awareness Is Just the Start
As Mental Health Awareness Week comes to a close, one thing is clear:
Awareness matters — but sustained action matters more.
For neurodivergent people, this means:
✔ long‑term inclusion
✔ meaningful adjustments
✔ listening to lived experience
✔ systems that flex — not people
Let’s keep taking action, this week and beyond 💚

16/05/2026

Belonging Is Protective for Mental Health
One of the strongest protective factors for mental health is belonging.
For neurodivergent people, finding understanding communities can be life‑changing:
• reduced isolation
• increased confidence
• better wellbeing
Action doesn’t always mean big programmes — sometimes it’s simply making space for people to be fully themselves.
Everyone deserves to belong.

15/05/2026

Mental Health Support Must Be Inclusive
Mental health support doesn’t always work for neurodivergent people.
Standard approaches can fail when they:
✖ rely on verbal processing
✖ ignore sensory needs
✖ expect “one size fits all” coping strategies
Taking action means designing support with, not just for, neurodivergent people — in workplaces, education and communities.
Nothing about us without us.

14/05/2026

Wear It Green Day 💚
Today is Wear It Green Day, a national moment to show support for mental health.
Green means:
💚 visibility
💚 solidarity
💚 action
If you’re wearing green today, take one extra step:
👉 learn one thing about neurodivergent mental health
👉 challenge one unhelpful assumption
👉 support one inclusive change
Let’s turn awareness into action.

14/05/2026

💚 Mental Health Awareness Week
Today I’m wearing green to show my support for mental health awareness. 💚
It’s so important that we keep talking about mental health—openly, honestly, and without judgement. Everyone has mental health, and at times we all need support, understanding, or simply someone to listen.
Let’s continue to break the stigma, check in on each other, and remind ourselves that it’s okay not to be okay.
If you’re struggling, please know you’re not alone. 💚

13/05/2026

The Mental Health Cost of Masking
Many neurodivergent people spend years masking — hiding their true selves to fit in.
This constant effort can lead to:
• chronic stress
• anxiety and depression
• autistic burnout
Taking action means creating spaces where people don’t have to mask to belong.
✅ Clear communication
✅ Flexible expectations
✅ Psychological safety
Acceptance is mental health support.

12/05/2026

📣 Research Opportunity for Parents & Carers of Autistic Children (Aged 9–14)
Have you supported an autistic child who has struggled to access education?
We’d really value your voice.
My name is Rosie Watts, and I’m a trainee Clinical Psychologist at the University of Bath. As part of my training, I am conducting a research study exploring sensory needs, anxiety, and experiences of accessing education for autistic children and young people.
This study has been co-designed with parents and carers, and has been fully reviewed and approved by the University of Bath Research Ethics Committee
(Ethics Ref: 11627-15960).

👨‍👩‍👧 Who can take part?
You may be eligible if you are a parent or carer of a child aged 9–14 years who:

Is formally diagnosed as autistic, or
Is currently on a waiting list for an autism assessment

📝 What does participation involve?

Completing an anonymous online survey
Questions cover:

Your child’s sensory needs
Anxiety and emotional experiences
How they experience and interact with the world
How often they have been unable to access education in the past 20 school days

The survey is completely voluntary, and participants can optionally enter a prize draw as a small thank-you for their time.

💡 Why does this research matter?
Many autistic children and young people face barriers to accessing education, but their experiences are often underrepresented in research.
This study aims to help:

Improve understanding of these challenges
Inform more inclusive educational environments
Support better systems for autistic children, young people, and their families

🔗 Interested in taking part?
You can find out more and access the survey here:
👉 https://uniofbath.questionpro.eu/access-to-education
If you have any questions or would like more information, feel free to contact me at:
📧 [email protected]

Thank you very much for your time and support in sharing this opportunity 💙
Please feel free to like, comment, or share so this reaches families who may wish to take part.

Exploring sensory needs, anxiety, and experiences of accessing education for autistic children and young people