Oxford Paediatric Autism Assessments

27/10/2025

OPAA are moving! It is with mixed feelings that we leave our spacious, light filled office in Leederville. Yet we are excited to start fresh in leafy West Perth! Our new address is Suite 1, 29 Ord Street. Our first assessment in West Perth will take place on Monday 3rd November. Please be patient while we update our website with new photographs of our space.

15/10/2025

07/10/2025

You asked. We listened.💛
Sign up to be the first to know about our new program, Local Connect Plus created for autistic and neurodivergent women and gender-diverse adults, 18+, right across Australia.
Local Connect Plus helps you find and connect with other adult ladybugs online or in person in a safe and simple way. It could be catching up for coke zero, going for a walk, or just knowing there’s someone close by who’s part of your neurokin. Local Connect Plus will launch later this year. Register your Expression of Interest now to be the first to know when it goes live.

Or link in bio
https://mailchi.mp/yellowladybugs/local-connect-plus

04/10/2025

Rejection sensitivity dysphoria explained

23/09/2025

Just saying…

Image credit: Neurodivergent_Lou

23/09/2025

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/more-or-less-behind-the-stats/id267300884?i=1000710563552

Podcast Episode · More or Less: Behind the Stats · 31/05/2025 · 9m

22/09/2025

🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

We’re taking a short break from social media while our team are on leave. At the same time, we know there will be conversations globally around autism, that may share harmful and inaccurate ideas about the “cause” of autism. These kinds of narratives can feel heavy and damaging for our community.

We want to leave you with these protective reminders:
💛 Autism is not caused by vaccines, parenting, or diet. Autistic people have always been part of humanity.
💛 Harmful claims do not change the truth of our lived experience, or the strength and beauty in our community.
💛 You don’t need to engage with every harmful comment or headline. Protect your energy.
💛 Surround your feed with autistic voices, affirming psychologists, trusted researchers, and good allies. Look to the people who reflect your values and share accurate information.
💛 Choose if, when, and how you wish to advocate in response. You don’t need to enter every discussion you are invited to. But if you do want to respond, know you have a community behind you.
💛 Focus on the communities and organisations that affirm who you are, not those that drain you.

Take gentle care of yourselves. We stand with you in love and solidarity, and we’ll be back online soon after the school holidays. 💛🐞

15/09/2025

🌱 Telling a child that they are Autistic is a gift of understanding.

When a child knows they are Autistic, they:
✨ Gain language to describe their experiences
✨ Feel validated, rather than confused or “different”
✨ Build confidence in their identity
✨ Learn that their brain works in unique and valuable ways
✨ Can connect with others in the Autistic community

Honesty fosters self-acceptance. By sharing their Autistic neurology, we give children the chance to grow up knowing that who they are is not something to hide - it’s something to embrace. 💜



[ID: Against a magenta background, with the Reframing Autism logo at the top left and the colourful knotwork in the lower right corner, white text reads, 'Identity is the key to self-knowledge, self-determination, self-esteem and resilience. By telling your child about their Autistic neurology, you gift them their identity'. Below the text is an image of a mother holding her young child’s hands as they smile warmly at one another.]

14/09/2025

****Update ****
All advisor positions for this University of Western Australia research project have now been filled.
The team received a very high number of expressions of interest and is grateful for the enthusiasm and support from the community. On behalf of the research team at UWA, thank you to everyone who shared their interest and helped spread the word.
******

We’re excited to share this opportunity from a research team at The University of Western Australia.

Are you an Autistic young person (aged 12–21) living in Australia? They invite you to join their research team as an advisor in a new project!

This program aims to find out and understand what supports Autistic teens need and want when exploring being Autistic. Together, the team will also work to develop a support resource to meet these needs and fill gaps in current services.

This project is led by researchers from the University of Western Australia, in collaboration with a diverse team of Autistic, neurodivergent and non-Autistic researchers across Australia and the UK.

As an advisor and part of this research team, you’ll share feedback and ideas to shape the project, guide what’s done and how, help make sense of the findings and co-create materials and resources.

For more information on what being an advisor means and how to get involved, visit:
https://uwa.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4V2Q3UNVbf097hQ

02/09/2025

📚Free Autism Webinar: How We Talk About It

Ever feel unsure about the 'right' way to talk about autism?

Join Belongside Families for this free webinar with me. We’ll unpack how language shapes our understanding of autism and why the words we choose matter.

In this 45-minute session, we’ll explore::

🔸 The shift from person-first to identity-first language
🔸What ‘neuro-affirming’ actually means
🔸Why functioning labels don’t tell the whole story
🔸Reframing traditional advice with a fresh, neuro-affirming view

It's a little bit of education, a little bit of community, and a fresh perspective that will help guide parents and caregivers in understanding current Autism narratives with a neuroaffirming lens. It's ideal for those people who are newer to the paradigm and would like to be engaged in these conversations.

Join me!

🗓 Thu, 11 Sep, 8:00pm AEST
📍 Online via Zoom (and yes, recordings will be sent out!)
🔗 Register now via https://events.humanitix.com/auwebinar1109

08/08/2025

Senior Speech Pathologist Marisa Di Lorenzo looks at social communication and language outcomes for bilingual autistic children.

07/08/2025

“Children who are pushed too much, too soon, have a much higher chance of struggling with anxiety, depression, addictions, poor health and poor relationships throughout their lives because they become ...