Petition · past parliament

Introduce mandatory training in autism for all NHS mental health services.

Closed 623 signatures

What the petition asks

1 in 68 people has an ASC.
Over 50% of autistic people have depression.
They are 28 times more likely to exhibit suicidal thoughts/behaviours.
There is difficultly in accessing support, and staff are insufficiently trained. According to NAS, Transforming Care implementation needs improvement.
Because of the additional need for support, all mental health services are guaranteed to treat some autistic patients. However, many staff have no training in this whatsoever.

Even basic training would have an immediate impact on helping autistic people engage with services effectively.

Inpatient mental health care should be viewed as our last line of defence. Therefore it is imperative that these staff have, at minimum, a basic understanding of autism spectrum conditions.

Timeline

19 Dec 2017 Petition opened for signatures
19 Jun 2018 Closed to new signatures

Key facts

Signatures 623
Status Closed
Opened 19 Dec 2017
Closed 19 Jun 2018

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.