Inspire’s specialised autism programmes have again been awarded accreditation status by the UK National Autism Society’s Autism Accreditation Programme.

STEP Early Years has been accredited since 2002 and was the first service outside of the UK to have achieved this status of excellence. This was followed by the accreditation of the STEP Middle Years programme in 2006 and then in July 2011, the STYLE programme which was also successfully accredited.

The accreditation is revisited in three-year cycles which allows new staff and developments to be integrated into the programmes on a rolling basis. Inspire’s accreditation is now valid through to 2020.

In July 2013 Inspire’s Multisensory Therapy & Therapeutic Horseback Riding Services became the first of their kind to ever be accredited by the NAS.

In July 2016 the services were re-accredited by the NAS together with Inspire’s Therapeutic & Creative Arts and Pool services which were successfully accredited for the first time.

The NAS supports Inspire in the interpretation of the Autism Accreditation standards and advises the Foundation on creating quality action groups to assist the process. Inspire carries out a self-audit process against NAS standards, using set criteria, and then undergo a formal review that consists of verification of the audit, observations of practice and discussions with key stakeholders by a team of professional peers.

Inspire carries out a self-audit process against NAS standards, using set criteria, and then undergo a formal review that consists of verification of the audit, observations of practice and discussions with key stakeholders by a team of professional peers.

Autism is a spectrum condition, which means that while all people with autism share certain difficulties, the condition will affect them in different ways. Statistics show that around 1% of the child population are on the Autism Spectrum, and 4 out of 5 children diagnosed, are boys. Whilst there is no existing cure for autism, research has shown that early diagnosis is important as this allows intervention to commence at a young age, giving children the best chance to reach their full potential.