18th March 2025 The Importance of Friendship and Belonging for Neurodiverse Adults
April at the train station with her support worker Sam
“April is social and likes being in a group. She needs stimulation and wants friends. We can’t give her all of that, but Rose Road does, and she bonds so well to her Support Workers and is always so excited to go to Rose Road".
This #NeurodiversityWeek we're #CelebratingDifferentMinds
April, 23, has Autism and has been having respite breaks at Rose Road since she was 6 years old. She requires 24-hour one-to-one personal care and support to help her manage day to day life, but she has the same needs as everyone - a need to belong, have friends and have fun!
Karl and Kim, April’s parents, say:
“April loves going out. She can get really excited about going on trips but can also struggle with extreme anxiety and doesn’t always cope well with taking on new activities. But Rose Road are excellent at managing these situations. They get to know her, plan activities around her interests, like going on the train which she loves, and work so patiently with her”.
“She struggles to express how she feels and can become very distressed. And naturally as a young woman, she doesn’t really want to be with her parents anyway, so she has some independence from us, and she can be herself at Rose Road”.
"They give her the fun days out that we can’t manage and it gives my wife Kim and I that vital rest we need, to get things done and have time with each other".
"We’d be on our own and feel very isolated without Rose Road.”
“Vitally, Rose Road offer consistency. Change is very distressing for April; it's so important for her that she can continue to access Rose Road's services for a long time while we look into her ongoing options as a young adult.
