Why are accommodations for autistic people often seen as unfair?

[YourPoisedFinch]

In my last job, I received some accommodations and explained them to colleagues when they asked why I was coming in late. Instead of understanding, they accused me of fraud and faking my condition to get special treatment. This isn’t just my experience—many people with mental health conditions and other invisible disabilities face similar challenges. They’re either not believed and resented for receiving accommodations or believed but then negatively stereotyped.

Most people with profound autism do have social services intervention. They have to if they recieve any form of funding/ pa's/ budgets and in most cases to access day services when school ends or supported living.

Yes, they do eg people with profound autism. That's my point.

And the massive in between gets totally ignored. We need support too

Yes they receive "help" to access funding for carers.
Yes there are day services run by private companies or charities that you have to meet the assessment by Social Services to attend. Lots of the activities on offer are not suitable for someone with profound autism e.g. employment support.

That is what PIP is to pay for

I think the numbers are too high now for this to be realistic. Unfortunately we just don’t have the resources to give every citizen tailored, personalised support in many forms for many different issues. I think almost everyone has a diagnosis of some kind now (whether that be mental or physical health) so we just have to cobble it together and keep going, practising self care and healthy living.

Good luck trying to get pip in the first place

And it's not an unlimited pot of money like some seem to think it is

If you do nit get PIP for autism, then you are not in the in betweens. You are at the mildly affected level.
And yes I have completed a PIP form. The form is written far more geared towards neurodiversity than physical illnesses.

Utter bollocks

I know that I'm in that huge in between. But I have very little evidence because there's no help for adults and social services are useless

It’s finding someone to provide the support that is the issue.

Lots of support around here for pensioners, but nobody willing to expand their remit.

There are lots of carers who do not want to provide physical care. Advertise for so many hours at set times and you will get someone interested if what you are asking for is reasonable.
I see in my area the adverts for elderly people needing personal care being ignored, and the ones saying no personal care duties getting lots of interest.

Why would Social Services help someone who is not even entitled to PIP?

Your logic is very flawed - I was entitled to DLA partly because of my Autism. But according to you because the criteria changed, I'm suddenly not disabled?

Believe it or not I seemed a diagnosis because I was struggling. Not for shits and giggles

I do get pip. But the flawed assessment means they claim I don't need social support or the other support I need because of my Autism

DLA had three tiers, the lower tier is abolished under PIP. So someone could be entitled to DLA and not PIP.
I was responding to your comment saying you do not get PIP for autism. I stand by the fact that if you do not meet the criteria, your autism is at the milder end.

Are you seriously suggesting my Autism is the same as friends who hold down full time jobs, manage bills without help, etc?

If I wasn't disabled by my Autism I wouldn't need the help I get from my parents. I also wouldn't have needed my younger sister to advocate for me

You can't base how someone is affected by their Autism by a flawed benefits system

@cockywoof meant to tag you in this. Especially interested in your view on how using the sunflower lanyard to get throught the airport when you admit you don't need it but makes it easier, isn't abusing accomodations meant for others who do need them. Can you not see this is why accomodations for those with autism are ridiculed.

This is bollocks, as the vast number of people turned down for PIP and then successful at tribunal shows. So many people are found ineligible for PIP and just don't have the strength to fight the system for what they need. It's an incredibly flawed, not fit for purpose system and shouldn't be the basis of any kind of "functioning" label.

Then how do you separate out who needs disability benefits and who doesn’t? If not by how well they function?

I can't speak for cockywoof but my thoughts on reading that is sure, everyone would like to get through the airport easier and quicker, but for most people it's because waiting in an airport is boring (waiting anywhere is boring) and you just want to be on the plane because the whole boarding process can be a bit stressful.

For someone who is autistic, "easier" means escaping from the overwhelm of the sights and sounds and smells, avoiding the crush of people trying to get through boarding, getting the anxiety of documents etc over and done with before it becomes meltdown-inducing.

Yes, they could probably cope without it if they had to, but it doesn't mean "easier" in the sense that it does to neurotypical people, i.e. more convenient.

I get priority boarding because I have a peanut allergy. Yes I could board at the same time as everyone else and wipe down my seat while getting in the way of people who need to move up and down the aisle and speaking to the flight attendants about my allergy while they're trying to help everyone else board, I could do that - but priority boarding means that I don't have to, and I don't think anyone should apologise for using an accommodation offered that makes life with a medical condition or neurodivergence easier to navigate.

You misunderstand me; I'm saying you can't assume how well someone functions based on their PIP outcome.

PIP should be based on how well someone functions day to day, but the number of outright lies in PIP reports - people have had reports that say "you reported difficulty getting dressed, I have decided that you can do this unaided" - so many reports chock full of lies, and the decisions are then overturned at tribunal but often a couple of years down the line.

You can't say "you don't get PIP so you aren't that badly affected" while the system remains so flawed and so abused by the assessors.

"I've never skipped a queue in a theme park btw. I have used my sunflower lanyard to get priority boarding at the airport. I can cope without it but it makes the whole experience fat far easier for me and it doesn't seem to harm anyone. I mainly wear the lanyard because I can react badly to changes that seem insignificant to many people, and it helps if the person dealing with me has the context that there might be something going on apart from me just being a complete arse"

By cockywoof's own admission it isn't for any of the reason's you detailed and yes they say they can cope without it. It is abuse of an accomodation they say they don't need.

I'm fully aware of why people with autism may want to get through the airport easily or have priority boarding. Both as I have a son with profound autism and I'm ex cabin crew. There are very few people who prefer boarding after everyone else and tbh most people can come up with a reason any old reason why they need that accomodation and will gladly take if they can. It doesn't mean they acrually need it.

That's not quite what she said. A Pip award is good evidence that someone has a disability that impacts on the specific care, mobility and communication needs outlined in the pip form to a mid/high level as that's the award.

But absence of a pip award isn't evidence the person doesn't have those needs at that level (as many give up without appealing, mistakes are made, carers dont know to apply) or that they don't have needs that can be seen as high that are not relevant to pip.

Just to say, we use accessible boarding in airports. It surprises me that anyone would prefer to go through the airport with accessibility support staff because it is not a calm experience. Lots of sitting about, then a frantic rush to get you through security, then sitting about, and a rush to get you on the plane. Yes you skip queues, but it is not a calm experience as staff are so rushed themselves.

@JoyousGreyOrca and anyone else who is interested. There are different ways of accessing airport assistance. The two main ones are the sunflower scheme if the airport uses it and pre-arranged assistance via the airline. You can ofcourse pay for quick access through security or pref boarding with some airlines/ depending on class booked.

Not all airports recognised the sunflower lanyard and not all airlines. It's usually most helpful with getting through security and doesn't always require prebooking, just a lanyard.

If you have severe needs where you really couldn't cope it is best to prebook assistance via the airline, they should also arrange it for you on the return sector also. This is especially important for those with mobility aids or where wheelchair assistance is required as an ambi lift maybe needed for you to board the aircraft. This does mean that you have to wait for the staff to board you and wait onboard the aircraft for everyone else to leave before you can get off.

In addition if you have to carry incontinence pads or other items related to a disability the airline should give you extra luggage allowance for this.

There is also strict rules around the carriage of electric wheelchairs due to the batteries and airlines like to know that you'll be bringing a wheelchair in advance as if there are a lot (flights such as to Lordes) it can make a big difference to the weight carried.