An event for disability practitioners, other student services practitioners, academics, and anyone with an interest in supporting autistic students on their Higher Education journey.
Friday 18 March 2016, 9.45am – 4.30pm at Old Broadcasting House, Leeds Beckett University, 148 Woodhouse Lane, Leeds LS2 9EN, United Kingdom
Leeds Beckett University welcomes you to attend our Transition Pathways event on 18 March 2016 to mark World Autism Awareness Day on 2 April 2016.
An emerging interest in Autistic Spectrum Conditions has been evident across our University and institutional statistics show a 20% year on year increase in the number of students declaring autism. In order to enable fair access, retention and attainment for students, we must ensure transition and progression pathways are clear, and remove unnecessary barriers to study.
Much work has been taking place at Leeds Beckett University to explore barriers to transition into University with the European funded project, Autism&Uni led by Dr Marc Fabri. As the project nears its conclusion we welcome you to share in the findings of this research, what this reveals and how we can work to remove barriers as we move towards more inclusive and socially-just approaches within Higher Education. Each attendee will receive a complimentary copy of the Autism&Uni ‘Guide to Best Practice in supporting Higher Education Students on the Autism Spectrum’.
Leeds Beckett University Disability Assessment Centre, led by Kate Dean, has also been working in partnership with the National Autistic Society to review all aspects of the Centre’s provision to ensure the service we offered is as meaningful as possible for autistic students. The next stage of the project is to create a network of Autism Champions across our University to raise awareness and disseminate best practice across all Services and Faculties. We hope to offer a day of insight and to enable the exchange of information and ideas with sector colleagues.
Programme
| 09:45 | ARRIVAL – Tea, coffee and biscuits |
| 10:15 – 10:30 | Welcome and Introduction – Marc Fabri and Kate Dean |
| 10:30 – 11:15 | Marc Fabri: The Autism&Uni project: Transition into Higher Education |
| 11:15 – 12:00 | Matt Tucker: Transition throughout studies |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | LUNCH – Cold buffet |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Sharing good practice – small group discussions |
| 14:00 – 14:30 | Report back from small groups |
| 14:30 – 15:15 | Penny Andrews: A student’s perspective: from undergraduate to PhD |
| 15:15 – 15:30 | BREAK – Tea, coffee and cakes |
| 15:30 – 16:15 | Emma Jones: Transition out into employment |
| 16:15 – 16:30 | Summing up of the day – Marc Fabri, Kate Dean and Kate Myers |
Book your place now
There is a fee of £15 for this event which includes lunch and refreshments, and a copy of the Autism&Uni Best Practice Guide. Please let us know should you have any access or dietary requirements or if there is anything else we can do to enable your engagement and enjoyment on the day.
About the speakers
Dr Marc Fabri is based in Leeds Beckett University’s Arts, Environment and Technology Faculty and is the lead researcher in the European funded Autism&Uni project. He will talk about the findings from the research and introduce colleagues to the project outputs: an online toolkit for autistic students to navigate the transition into university, and a set of Best Practice Guides for HE managers, academics and disability support services.
Matt Tucker is an autism specialist mentor at Birmingham City University and has written, developed and delivers the university’s autism awareness training for staff, as well as providing pre diagnostic screening for students without a diagnosis. Matt has Asperger Syndrome and advocates both for himself and his students.
Penny Andrews is, until the end of March, a Research Assistant on the Autism&Uni project at Leeds Beckett, and was diagnosed with autism in 2011. Penny is also a PhD student at the University of Sheffield, investigating academic social networking services versus institutional systems for research information and outputs. In what spare time remains, Penny is an artist, writer and athlete who enjoys Doctor Who, epic haircuts and retina-burning trainers.
Emma Jones is the Partnerships and Employment Training Coordinator at the National Autistic Society and supports autistic students in their successful transition into the workplace. Emma and her team have also been working with Leeds Beckett University’s Disability Assessment Centre in their recent project.
Kate Dean is the Disability Assessment Centre Manager at Leeds Beckett University. Kate is co-leading their project with Kate Myers, Disability Advice, working with the National Autistic Society but also involving autistic students and their parents as part of the process. The project has primarily focused on improving services for autistic students, with the belief that the improvements made will be beneficial for all and will inform our inclusive agenda.
Kate Myers is based within the Disability Advice Team at Leeds Beckett University and is co-leading the project with Kate Dean and the National Autistic Society.
How to get to the venue
Old Broadcasting House is on 148 Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, LS2 9EN
For detailed directions please download our guide
Hi there,
Looking at travel arrangements – how far is the nearest train station by foot, or as an alternative, is there any nearby parking?
Many thanks,
Karl.
Hi Karl,
the nearest train station is Leeds City Station and it’s about a 15 minute walk to Old Broadcasting House. Most of it is slightly uphill I should say! There is no parking at the venue itself, but there is a City Council multi-storey car park close by – see http://www.leeds.gov.uk/residents/Pages/Leeds-City-Centre-shopper-and-visitors-car-park-at-Woodhouse-Lane–.aspx
Hope this helps
Marc