Skip to main content

New service to support adults with autism and their families launched

Adults with autism, their families, and health and social care services within Plymouth will now have access to a new specialist support service.

The Plymouth Autism Spectrum Service (P.A.S.S), run by Livewell Southwest and Plymouth City Council, will offer an advice for adults with autism and their families, and a consultation service for professionals working with adults with autism.

The Advice Service is for adults with autism and their families to discuss their challenges as well as their abilities and strengths.

P.A.S.S. Advice Service is for those aged 18 or over, registered with a Plymouth GP, and have a diagnosis of autism but do not meet criteria to access support from the learning disability service. Adults with autism can self-refer to the Advice Service and be referred by anyone with consent.

Currently the Advice Service appointments and groups will be virtual using the Livewell Connect App.

You can download the referral form from the P.A.S.S. Livewell website page here.

Dr Sarah Williams, Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist at Livewell Southwest, said:

“This is one of a few services across the country dedicated to delivering post-diagnostic autism support. This service has been set up to help people with autism and their families get the most out of their lives and their communities.

“The team is here and ready to support the people that need us, including practitioners who want to learn more about how to better support people with autism. We are a committed and passionate team, dedicated to helping the autism community, their families, and society as a whole.

“Our community support offer is varied and ranges from employment support, housing advice, help to take up or expand on interests, as well as mental health support, social care support and help with benefits.

“We also offer groups designed to help support people with autism like the Navigating Autism group and mindfulness practice group.”

The other service offered by the team is the Specialist Autism Training and Consultation Service, which is dedicated to supporting practitioners within adult Livewell Southwest services and relevant adult Plymouth City Council services to develop their understanding of autism, to enhance their knowledge and skills.

Councillor Kate Taylor, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care said: “I could not be more pleased to see this service come to fruition. Supporting adults with autism, their families and carers is hugely important to us, and making sure that there is a service which is able to do this well has been in my sights since I first took on the Health and Adult Social Care portfolio.

Being able to help people live more independently, with better support and more of their needs met will have a great impact on quality of life to adults with autism in Plymouth. Thank you to the hardworking staff who make services like this so fantastic.”

Teams and practitioners can access the Specialist Training and Consultation Service by emailing livewell.pass@nhs.net.