He works at a fast food place within walking distance of home, mostly cleaning, tidying up etc. He has a list and works through it. He does a very good job as he is very focussed and doesn't stand around chatting etc like some of the younger workers do. He has a zero hours contract and it's really flexible so he works the hours he wants to and he can have space and time to decompress when needed.
So he works in McDonalds or similar. He might do mostly cleaning and tidying, but he’ll have been to an interview, attended training. There’s a reasonable expectation that he’ll be asked something by a customer or have to engage with other staff (new staff, people he doesn’t know).
He lives away in halls at university but we arranged for him to be in private halls where there is more support. He lives next to a massive building that can be seen for miles so he can't possibly get lost.
That shows a reasonable level of cognition, insight and understanding. The private halls reference doesn’t mean much as you’d still need to be adequately capable to be there at all.
He gets support from DSA (which he has said he couldn't manage without) and he also messages me regularly for advice. He can cook really simple stuff like putting a pizza in the oven, ready meals or pasta with sauce from a jar.
DSA input holds a bit of weight, but messaging you for advice is standard and expected for people his age who’ve moved away from home. In relation to cooking, he’s using the oven and boiling pasta. Whilst those aren’t fresh meals, he can safely use appliances. You might counteract by saying that he can’t sequence the tasks for a fresh meal or can’t tell when raw meat is cooked (for example), but he’s studying at university, living away from home and is working. Overall, the weight of the big picture doesn’t indicate a significant restriction.
He struggles with social skills and doesn't really speak with his housemates but he met another autistic student near the beginning and he will sometimes talk to people on his course.
This would be added to the first point I made RE him working in a fast food place and being expected to be able to interact with others. He’s met new people on his course (their diagnosis doesn’t matter) and is engaging with them. That’s a huge indication of adequate social engagement ability.
He has strategies to cope that I have taught him. He has a lot of dvd's of a tv programme aimed at under 5's that he watches a lot when he feels overwhelmed.
Out of the norm pastimes aren’t really relevant most of the time. In fact, it’s a coping strategy so it’s actually showing his ability to manage.
He is fairly hopeless with money and will prioritise fun over essentials. We have said his student loan is for food, laundry etc and his wages is for fun stuff. We still end up with an inevitable phone call saying he has run out of money and can we send him some.
Not unusual at his age, with new freedom and learning the way of the world. Without significant debt, CCJs, repossessions etc, it’s unlikely to hold much weight.
I’ve looked at the above through the PIP lens, so to speak. We go on the weight of evidence, not just one thing. It’s really important that any claimant remembers that the bar for PIP is fairly high. If you’re managing an adequate (not necessarily good) standard of living, you’re not going to get it.
You mention he can’t manage a bus but can manage a train - that’s good enough for PIP. You don’t need to manage every aspect of life; just enough of it.
From what you’ve written, OP, I wouldn’t have awarded benefit in this case. Obviously this is a brief insight I’m getting, but you/he has a lot to indicate he can manage that adequate standard of living.