Articles

Governance and Accountability in Autism Safeguarding and Human Rights Practice

Strong governance is essential to ensure safeguarding, capacity and human rights are upheld in autism services. This article explains how providers evidence accountability, oversight and continuous improvement.

Safeguarding Autistic Adults While Respecting Rights and Autonomy

Safeguarding autistic adults must balance protection with autonomy and rights. This article explains how services evidence proportionate safeguarding practice without defaulting to restrictive or risk-averse approaches.

Human Rights in Autism Services: Embedding Dignity, Autonomy and Proportionality

Human rights must be actively embedded in autism services, not referenced abstractly. This article explains how providers evidence dignity, autonomy and proportionality in daily practice.

Consent in Autism Services: Supporting Informed Choice Without Coercion

Consent in autism services must be actively supported, not assumed or overridden. This article explains how providers evidence informed consent, avoid coercion, and meet commissioner and CQC expectations.

Best Interest Decisions in Autism Services: Lawful Process, Not Professional Opinion

Best interest decisions are often misunderstood as professional judgement. This article explains how autism services evidence lawful best interest processes that withstand commissioner and CQC scrutiny.

Mental Capacity Assessments in Autism Services: Avoiding Assumption, Ensuring Lawful Decisions

Mental capacity assessments are frequently challenged in adult autism services. This article explains how providers avoid assumption, conduct decision-specific assessments, and evidence lawful outcomes under commissioner and CQC scrutiny.

Consent Under Pressure: Managing Risk Without Eroding Autonomy in Autism Services

Risk situations often expose weak consent practice in autism services. This article shows how providers maintain lawful consent, avoid coercion, and evidence choice during safeguarding, health and behavioural crises.

Human Rights in Adult Autism Services: Applying Proportionality, Dignity and Lawful Restriction

Human rights in autism services are upheld or breached through everyday decisions about restriction, privacy and control. This article explains how providers apply proportionality lawfully, evidence least-restrictive practice, and protect...

Capacity and Consent in Autism Services: Recording Decisions That Stand Up to Scrutiny

Capacity and consent are not one-off tick boxes — they are decision-specific, time-specific and evidenced through how staff communicate and record. This article shows how autism services operationalise the Mental...

Safeguarding in Adult Autism Services: From Policy Compliance to Everyday Practice

Safeguarding for autistic adults is not a “paper exercise” — it is daily risk spotting, proportionate action and clear evidence of learning. This article sets out how providers operationalise safeguarding...