Café Autistiqué

Narrative

Café Autistiqué aims to provide an autism friendly and inclusive environment where actually autistic individuals and wider members of the community (friends, family, clinicians and researchers) can come to hear about current research related to autism. It is open to the public and set in a relaxed café environment with consideration given to making a calm sensory space. As well as providing a venue for learning about research, the aim is to create a space where attendees can network and learn from one another, while drinking tea and eating cake. These events are run biannually (autumn and spring) by the team from autism@manchester.

Thursday 12th October 2023 • Time: 5.30-8pm
Venue: The Whitworth Café, The Whitworth Gallery, Oxford Road, Manchester
6pm Talk by Dr George Bendo (autistic and autism researcher at The University of Manchester) about the SPAACE project (Speech Perception by Autistic Adults in Complex Environments) and our growing understanding of listening differences among autistic individuals.
7pm Talk by Katy Baldwin (clinician and researcher at The University of Manchester) about her work on The Haven project, designed to encourage autism-affirming spaces in secondary schools to encourage social communication and relationship building.

Thursday 11th April 2024 • Time: 6pm-9pm
Venue: Space 0 (just off the ground floor café), Contact Theatre, Oxford Road, Manchester
6.45pm: Talk by Monique Huysamen (researcher at The Manchester Metropolitan University) where she shared findings and resources from the Supporting Autistic Adults’ Intimate Lives (SAAIL) research project. This project explored autistic people’s experiences around sex and relationships and how adult social care might do better at supporting this area of people’s lives.
7.45pm: Talk by Bill Davies (Professor at The University of Salford and autistic researcher) introduced the concept of aural diversity, starting from the observation that everyone hears differently. He then discussed the findings of a recent Defra project focussing specifically on what we know about how autistic people differ from so-called ‘normal hearing’.
Café Autistiqué is due to continue at the Contact Theatre, with a next event scheduled for October 2024.

Category of impact	Attitudes and behaviours, Awareness and understanding, Health and wellbeing, Society and culture
Impact level	Benefit