Halfway through the long summer break, there’s still plenty of time to have fun and enjoy new experiences with our little ones. Going out and about can be tricky when your child has autism – planning ahead is necessary and it’s always great when venues are understanding about your child’s special needs. Your child may feel overwhelmed by crowds or bright colours, overstimulated by noise or triggered by new surroundings, so you need to know that when you’re going out and about, you will find understanding and perhaps even a helping hand if needed.

The following five venues have been selected for their proximity to Manchester: we’d love to hear about more autism-friendly places to go, so please comment below if you can make a recommendation.

1. Inflatanation Autism Friendly Session

   

   Inflatanation in Trafford Park offers autism-friendly sessions every Saturday.

   Previously Jump Nation trampoline park, the owners decided they wanted to offer something unique and so Inflatanation was born. It’s essentially a huge arena filled with inflatable fun – from bouncy castles to bouncy slides, an inflatable climbing wall and an inflatable assault course. Inflatanation offers Autism Friendly sessions from 9 – 10 am every Saturday.During the week it’s very noisy and it can get very busy, possibly overwhelming for a young person with autism. The Autism Friendly session turns the music right down (it was so quiet, I wasn’t actually sure whether it was playing or not!) and allows only half of the usual numbers in. You get free entry for an essential carer (spectators are always free, but you will at the very least want to do a brief tour of the inflatables with your youngster) and free juice and biscuits at the end.It costs £5.95 per hour for under fours (they have a designated area for this age group) and £9.95 per hour for over fours. You can find out more about Inflatanation’s Disability Friendly sessions on their website.

2. Morrisons Quieter Hour/ the Unicorn Grocery

   

   Morrisons supermarket offer an autism-friendly Quiet Hour every Saturday.

   Okay, it’s not quite got the excitement factor of some of the other activities but the big shop needs to be done in as calm an environment as possible, am I right? Morrisons deserves massive praise for this autism-friendly initiative. During Quieter Hour (every Saturday from 9 – 10 am), Morrisons stores:

   • Dim the lights;

   • Turn music and radio off;

   • Avoid making tannoy announcements;

   • Reduce movement of trolleys and baskets;

   • Turn checkout beeps and other electrical noises down;

   • Place a poster outside to tell customers it’s Quieter Hour.

   I would also like to mention the Unicorn Grocery in Chorlton. It’s a small supermarket selling fantastic, organic fruit and vegetables (much cheaper than elsewhere) as well as other staples such as pasta and bread. They don’t play music or pipe offensive smells into the shop and there’s a small play area for children with a blackboard, a mock-up shop and kitchen area. I consider the Unicorn to be very autism-friendly at all times – but don’t go on a Monday, because it’s closed.

3. Eureka National Children’s Museum

Eureka is an autism-friendly venue.

Situated in Halifax – a 45-minute drive or a one hour train journey from Manchester Victoria – Eureka is the national children’s museum. The museum caters for children aged 0 – 11 and offers the opportunity to explore science and geography with interactive exhibits and role play in a ‘real’ shop, bank, post office and kitchen. It’s a lot of fun – and children with autism are well looked after.

Eureka offers free entry for essential carers, a ‘chill out room’ for children who feel overwhelmed and a booklet (The Eureka Story) which you can download and read before your visit. Eureka also offers an Extra Pair of Hands: you can ring up two weeks before your visit and Eureka will allocate you a staff member who will stay with you for two hours during your visit. All in all, Eureka offers a very autism-friendly experience. You can find out more about all of this by visiting Eureka’s access information page.

4. Autism Friendly Relaxed Screenings and Performances at Home Manchester

Home Manchester offers autism-friendly relaxed performances and cinema screenings.

Whether your child is a fan of raindrops on roses or prefers whiskers on kittens, they are sure to enjoy Home Manchester’s autism-friendly relaxed screening of The Sound of Music on Saturday, 25th August at 11 am.

During the screening, Home will keep the cinema lights on low and turn the volume down a little. There will be no trailers or advertisements before the film starts and you are welcome to move around the cinema if you want to. A separate chill out space will be provided if you need some time out of the screening.

Home offers autism friendly ‘relaxed’ theatre performances and cinema screenings throughout the year, as well as various workshops aimed at young people with autism spectrum disorder. You can find out what’s coming up here on their website.

5. The Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool

The Sandcastle offers many autism-friendly facilities.

The Sandcastle is a huge waterpark boasting 18 slides, a wave machine and lots of water-based play facilities. This place is fantastically welcoming to people with autism spectrum disorder: the first hour of every day is a quiet hour and they also have accessibility evenings (the next one is on 8th September) which are extremely cheap (£3.50 for your child and one essential carer; £4.50 for siblings or other carers).

The Sandcastle has a ‘fast track’ queuing facility and a quiet room you can use if feeling overwhelmed. They also offer familiarisation visits and a familiarisation booklet – The Sandcastle Waterpark Story – that you can read beforehand. You can download the booklet and read more about the Sandcastle’s fantastic autism-friendly facilities here on their website.

Wherever you go this summer and beyond, please let us know if you find somewhere that is truly welcoming for children with autism. We can spread the word and hopefully help make parents’ lives a little easier. Comment below or call in and see us at our tuition centre in the heart of Urmston.