Enabling children on the Autism Spectrum to have an effective voice in their own educational provision.

Current legislation embeds a desire to strengthen the ‘voice’ of children to express their views and be part of decision-making processes around their own provision. My professional and personal experiences have highlighted inconsistencies and challenges in these processes in schools. For the specific group of learners on the Autism Spectrum this challenge is intensified by shared core characteristics which can make it challenging for children to communicate reflectively about personal experiences and their aspirations for the future within the rigid structures of review meetings that many schools present. Whilst the United Nations Convention for Rights of the Child (1989) assures that children who are capable of forming their views should be given the right to express these freely, there are complexities around adults’ views of competency in relation to age and verbal communication skills. Younger children may be less likely to participate in decision making processes and differences in communication styles can be a barrier to active participation. Whilst professionals may feel they already understand the voice of the child, this belief carries neurotypical pre-conceptions and places the child in a potentially passive role. The breadth and complexity of the Autism spectrum demands individualised approaches which fully enable children to provide their own unique insights and expert testimony about their own educational experiences.