A growing need for autism support in Preston has led to a co-produced initiative between Community Roots, people with lived experience and the Specialist Autism Team at Greenbank. Service users, carers, and professionals have long highlighted the lack of post-diagnostic and community-based support for autistic individuals and their families. This gap has not only overwhelmed crisis services but also left many feeling directionless after receiving a diagnosis.
In early 2024, Community Roots—a lived experience-led service—approached the Specialist Autism Team to better understand existing services and explore new possibilities. A collaborative approach followed, combining clinical expertise with lived experience. A simple questionnaire was created to gather insights, which informed a co-production session in May 2024 at Community Roots @Deepdale.
This session, attended by autistic individuals, family members, carers, and clinical staff, identified three core needs:
- Autism awareness for autistic people
- Autism awareness for families and carers
- Peer support groups with themed topics
Support from the Consultant Nurse for Autism in LSCFT ensured the project would meet clinical governance standards and align with existing services. The initiative also benefits from oversight by the Autism Best Practice Group. The project lead also underwent four days of Anna Freud training to embed current best practices.
Recruitment for lived experience contributors followed, with volunteers from Community Roots and the Trust’s involvement register joining the co-production group. Weekly sessions began in November 2024 via MS Teams. After eight meetings, two pilot programs launched in May 2025 and are now embedded within the Community Roots curriculum:
- Understanding Autism for autistic individuals
- Navigating Autism for Parents & Carers
Looking ahead, Community Roots plans to expand the project and deliver the sessions at their other site in Burnley and in time, in other locations in the Trust patch. The service also plans to co-produce peer support groups for autistic people and potentially for their families and carers, continuing the commitment to co-produced, community-driven support
