Financial Independence with Autism

Aim

We aim to deliver a service for our autistic community by offering support, guidance & training with opportunities to encourage independence

Sunbeams is a standalone charity that supports children and young people with autism and other related conditions including ADHD, mental health, learning disabilities and so much more.  Our team is made up of people who either have autism themselves or a family members with autism - so there is a high level of knowledge and experience around the support requirements our members deserve and need.

Sunbeams works with their members to help them build on existing skills and develop new skills essential for beginning to have a level of independence.  We want to offer our members every chance to succeed and give them every opportunity they need as they transition in to adulthood.

To do this we focus heavily on developing our members life and social skills and build their confidence and self-esteem, encouraging them to believe in themselves and their value to the whole community.  This is done by providing opportunities for learning such as social situations where our members need to interact with local business owners.  We will be going on camping trips where our members will cook their own food over a campfire and engage with forest schools. We attend local venues where we pay bills, order food, order drinks, check our change etc.

It is essential for our young people to learn about money and how to manage it, explore savings, purchasing online, paying bills and budgeting as well as manage their own financial affairs, making them less dependent on carers and giving them more freedom to live their lives as they choose.

To further our project we need your support to enable us to provide work experience opportunities, training, C.V. writing, practicing interviews and purchasing a smart new suit!  We also want to provide support where needed whilst our members are at work experience. We  want to educate the public about autism and how to accept and understand the nuance's of our autistic community and embrace their unique and beautiful characters.

Giving our young people with autism the tools to lead an independent life by empowering them and enabling them to manage their own spending, budgeting and saving will give them the more control of their own destinies.

Our overall aim is to help provide our autistic community with opportunities to grow and develop the skills needed for a fruitful, meaningful and positive transition into adulthood.  Promoting self worth, confidence and optimism for a bright future and paving the way for success in the work force without relying on benefits to survive.

This project successfully funded on 28th June 2022