World Autism Awareness Week: Rainbow Provision raises over £1,000 for National Autistic Society

Shawclough Community Primary School’s autism resource-based group, Rainbow Provision has celebrated World Autism Awareness Week by taking part in a ‘Super 7’ challenge, raising over £1,000 for the National Autistic Society.

During the week beginning 29 March, the children took part in Super 7 challenges, encouraged by the charity ambassador for the National Autistic Society, Christine McGuinness. Christine has been encouraged people to take part in a seven-themed challenge.

The children in Rainbow Provision spent the week running and walking. The older children ran/walked a distance of 7km over the week while the younger children did seven daily laps of the playground. 

In total they covered 74km and raised a total of £934. In addition to this, the whole school also took part in a ‘wear it blue’ day, adding another £145 to the total

The final total raised for the National Autistic Society was £1,079.

Charlotte Keegan, Rainbow Provision Manager, said: “This week we have been raising awareness of autism and how we celebrate our differences.

“The children have been amazing, sharing personal experiences and how to over-come difficulties they face on a day to day basis. We have such a supportive group of parents and amazing staff who are very keen to raise awareness too.

“Well done to Ines Freitas- Pereira, Paddy Gallagher, Nathan Olufisible, Omar Miah, Daniel Bacys, Logan Reilly-Quest, George Marsden, Ahmad Rehman, Cole Noble, Vincent Walczak, Oliver Kean, Kiara Whitehead, George Greenwood, Sakina Duffy, Oliver England and Daniel Humphreys.”
 

Read more: Shawclough Primary School celebrate the opening of new Rainbow ProvisionPublished: 26 February 2020

The coronavirus pandemic has been particularly tough for many autistic people and their families. Services have closed and many people have been left stranded. The ever-changing guidelines and restrictions can be confusing to understand and extremely difficult to implement for autistic people with high support needs. The National Autistic Society campaigns to ensure autistic people’s needs are taken into account by governments across the UK in these challenging times.

World Autism Awareness Week 2021 (29 March – 4 April) aims to bring attention to the 700,000 people in the UK who are autistic, whilst educating people about the condition.

Autism is a lifelong developmental condition – it is not an illness or disease – which affects how people communicate and interact with the world.

If you’re autistic, you may find it difficult to understand how other people think or feel, find it hard to communicate with other people, find unfamiliar or social situations overwhelming or stressful, amongst many other signs.

One in 100 people are on the autism spectrum, meaning everyone with the condition has different needs or may require extra help with some things, such as making friends or getting a job.

You can read more about autism, including symptoms, here.