We promote and protect physical and mental health of children and young people with ASD and related conditions and their parents or carers through the provision of parent support. We provide a bi-weekly support group for families, including siblings of those with a diagnosis. We also run various sporting and recreational activities for children and teenagers with ASD.

Why the community needs us
Due to the nature of the group - being run for parents by parents, there is a very strong support system in place for those families awaiting and receiving diagnosis of ASD and related conditions. There are currently 30,000 families affected by ASD in NI, with huge waiting lists for diagnosis, Shine is a voluntary group set up by parents which offers information, signposting and support to those families engaging in the long, diagnostic process.

Our impact on the community
At the moment, there are currently 170 families who avail of Shine Autism Support Services. Due to the group being volunteer led, the capacity is stretched and ideally we would like to get our own premises and increase the services provided.