Get updates about our work, our talks and our trainings. From game afternoons and support groups to from community gardening, this is where we share our Reading community projects.
Our groups are welcoming spaces where you can meet other autistic adults in a supportive, autism-positive setting. We run a variety of groups depending on the resources we have available and the interests of our members. We currently run weekly mixed and women’s peer support groups, a craft group, an LGBTQ+ group, a weekly yoga session, and we have an allotment.
All our groups except the allotment group currently meet online on Zoom. Please note that because of the way we are funded, we are currently only able to offer these groups to people who live in and around Reading.
After initially joining AutAngel you can decide which groups you’d like to attend. Currently most of the groups are run on a drop in basis, so you can come as often or as infrequently as you like. Most of our members participate in our “Exploring Being Autistic” programme, which does require the commitment to come to 10 sessions, and also means that participants get to know others in the programme, and in AutAngel, quite well.
Mixed peer support group – this currently runs weekly on Zoom at 7 – 8 pm on Thursdays. Open to all members of AutAngel.
Women’s peer support group – currently runs weekly on Zoom at 7-8pm on Tuesdays. Open to all women in the AutAngel community.
Craft group – currently runs weekly on Zoom at 11am-12.30pm on Tuesdays.
LGBTQ+ support group – a safe space for members who are LGBTQ+, this group currently runs on Zoom on the first Tuesday of the month from 7-8pm. We are planning a new weekly LGBTQ+ group, on Sundays at 5pm, which is also open to people beyond our local area. Please contact us if you are interested in joining this group.
NEW: Yoga – weekly on Zoom, Thursdays from 11.15 to 12.15.
Allotment group – a weekly group, currently running with social distancing in place. Individual members of the group are also welcome to visit the allotment and do a spot of gardening, harvesting and watering!
Below you can see a slideshow of our allotment’s progress:
This ten week programme offers autistic adults the opportunity to explore how autism affects them, together with a group of peers. An important element of the programme is the chance for participants to share their responses to knowing or discovering they are autistic with peers, and have the space and support offered to process these responses.
You can see a detailed outline of the programme, read some FAQs and/or listen to and read feedback from some previous participants.
We are currently running our first online Exploring Being Autistic programme, facilitated by Caroline Hearst. This programme is funded by the Lottery Community Fund, so free to join, however we do accept donations from participants so we can expand our work. You can sign up to be on the list to join a future course.
We are delighted that the research paper about our Exploring Being Autistic programme has been published; it can be found online here. It was led by Dr Laura Crane, Associate Professor at UCL Institute of Education and Deputy Director of the Centre for Research in Autism and Education (CRAE).
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