Dates announced for summer autism friendly activities at High Rise Lisburn

High Rise Lisburn has announced new dates for autism friendly sessions this summer.

The centre will go quiet for autism friendly Clip ‘n Climb and soft play sessions at the following times:

• Sunday 6 July at 10am (Clip ‘n Climb fully booked – soft play available)
• Thursday 3 August at 10am
• Sunday 6 August at 10am
• Thursday 10 August at 10am
• Thursday 7 August at 10am
• Thursday 24 August at 10am

During these autism friendly sessions there will be no music playing in the centre, and numbers will be limited, to ensure a more comfortable environment for guests and their families. We have ear defenders which will be available at reception (subject to availability), but guests are also welcome to bring their own.

During these autism tailored sessions, soft play is open to children up to age 12.

Clip ‘n Climb is for those aged 4 plus, including autistic adults, and parents/carers can also participate in the activity if they wish, or can join them in the climbing arena to provide support without climbing themselves. Just speak to a member of staff to arrange this.

The pre-climbing safety briefing has been adapted to be suitable for autistic guests and staff have had specialist training from Autism NI on how they can best support guests using the centre as part of our work in achieving the prestigious Autism Impact Award. There is a Changing Places toilet facility available within High Rise.

Guests who attended these autism sessions at High Rise Lisburn previously told us how valuable they were:

“Brilliant quiet ASD session and staff were absolutely brilliant with the kids, will be back for next month’s ASD session.”

“We initially hired a sensory room for our 3 year autistic son and 6 month old baby….We then booked the autism friendly morning. This day was brilliant and helped our son cope with the soft play area fantastically. It was great to meet other families with similar situations to us and not have to worry about people looking and judging. It was two successful visits which is hard for us to have with our son’s needs. He loved his time there and we will definitely be back!”

Speaking ahead of the summer programme of autism tailored sessions, Marie Marin, Chief Executive of Employers For Childcare, the local charity which runs High Rise commented: “We know it can be challenging for families of children with autism to find activities the whole family can take part in so we are delighted to launch additional autism tailored sessions this summer, to support our autistic guests and their families. We are passionate that High Rise is a place where families can enjoy leisure time together, whatever their needs, and this is one of the ways in which we are facilitating that.”

Guests are advised to pre-book the autism tailored sessions at High Rise Lisburn – link below.