Duncan Baker’s Ten Minute Rule Bill Roundtable

On Monday this week, several different charities and organisations came together to discuss the potential life changing implications of Duncan Baker’s “Early autism assessment and mandatory teacher training Bill’. This 10 Minute Rule Bill will look to deliver support to reduce autism assessment and diagnosis waiting times, introduce mandatory autism training for all education staff, and create a duty to publish a SEND workforce strategy.

As part of his opening statement Mr Baker referred to the evidence that over 90% of children waited longer than the specified NHS deadline for an autism diagnosis, commenting that: “The lack of an autism diagnosis means for young people seriously impacts their ability to get the support structures in place that they need to be able to move forward in their lives. It is therefore no surprise that only 22% of autistic people are in work, though it is still shocking in this day and age.  This needs to change and by ensuring a diagnosis is in place, this will mean that young people can get the help they need to get a job and have a fulfilling life.”

The group, which included FullSpektrum, Ambitious about Autism, Autism Education Trust, Autistica and the National Autistic Society all agreed that it was important that the Department of Education realise that the sector is coming together to support this Bill and fight this battle on behalf of autistic young people.

Andre Skepple, Founder of FullSpektrum, an end-to-end solution that provides a simple way for documenting the educational pathways of those with special educational needs to ensure that educational professionals responsible can tailor education plans for these young people based on what works for that child commented that: “Neurodivergent children deserve an education that helps them succeed in life.  Neurodiversity just means that these children learn differently and the onus is on our education system to ensure that our teachers are trained so they can get the best out of all our students. This Bill would help ensure this happens and I am keen to help in any way I can to ensure it works in the real world.”