Plymouth Autism Spectrum Service (P.A.S.S)

Who is in the P.A.S.S. Team?

P.A.S.S. is a small team which is led by a Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist. P.A.S.S. works alongside and collaborates with community partners. 

How and why P.A.S.S. has been developed?

The establishment of the Plymouth Autism Spectrum Service (P.A.S.S.) was advocated for by Plymouth's Autism Partnership Board and commissioned by Plymouth City Council as part of a wider Devon Sustainability Partnership Trust initiative. This commissioning has been influenced by key legislation; The Autism Act 2009 and its statutory guidance, the NHS Long Term Plan and the Transforming Care Agenda.

P.A.S.S. has been developed to provide a dedicated and specialist service for adults with autism, their families, health and social care services and to collaborate with community organisations within Plymouth.

Services have not been adequately meeting the needs of adults with autism; this has huge implications for people with autism and the wider community. It is known that adults with autism are less likely to be in fulfilling employment; may need more support to live independently; may experience reduced access to social and leisure opportunities; often experience enduring discrimination and are more likely to develop mental health problems.

It is important that people with autism feel empowered, enabled and advocated for to have equal opportunities to participate in community life. To feel supported to live a meaningful and rewarding life, on their own terms and unique ways.

P.A.S.S. has attempted to be as accessible as possible for the people that need our support and have therefore collaborated with the autism community to help set the foundations of the service and will continue to do so as it develops.

P.A.S.S. intends to embed its self and be integrated with Plymouth's community, services and organisations.  P.A.S.S. hopes that by working in this way our society will be encouraged to accept and be inclusive of neurodiversity, and that a cultural shift can be developed and sustained within Plymouth's health, social care and community services; to embrace and adapt to the needs of adults with autism.

What does P.A.S.S. do?

P.A.S.S. intends to provide a service that is strengths-based, person-centred, holistic, time-sensitive, accessible, appropriate, dynamic and responsive. The aim is to promote and provide pro-active strategies to support adults with autism to live their lives as they want and to prevent the number of crises that they may experience.

P.A.S.S. offers two services

1. Advice Service 
2. Training and Consultation Service

Advice Service 

It is likely that due to COVID-19 Advice Service appointments and groups will be virtual (using Livewell Connect App), with the hope we can meet people in person at the Advice Service very soon.

The Advice Service will include:

• 1:1 signposting and advice for adults with autism and their families
• Navigating Autism Group
• Workshops
• Support with accessing services
• Drop-in social space
• Mindfulness practice group
• Co-working with community organisations

Adults with autism and their families will be able to meet one of the P.A.S.S. team who will discuss current challenges and difficulties, abilities and strengths in order to identify what the person might need and want to help them live the life they want to live. Once we have a shared understanding of the persons experience we will develop an action plan together and then support the person to access relevant services to help them to achieve what they need and want for example benefit support, employment support, housing advice, hobbies/interests and activity groups, mental health support, and social care support etc.

Community partners will be at the Advice Service to support people with their benefits, housing advice and accessing employment support, Plymouth Options and social care.

P.A.S.S. will offer 'Navigating Autism' group which aims to support and develop people's knowledge of autism and be able to explore how it fits in with their identity.

In the future, the Advice Service will run a drop-in problem solving group and mindfulness practice group. There will also be a programme of workshops (e.g. managing relationships) for adults with autism and their families.

How do I access P.A.S.S. Advice Service?

To access the Advice Service you must be:

• aged 18 or over
• formally diagnosed with autism
• registered with a Plymouth GP

The service is for adults with autism who are not eligible to access support through the Learning Disability Service. You or somebody on your behalf can refer in to the service with your consent.

You can access P.A.S.S. by completing the referral form and sending this via post or email.

Once a person is open to P.A.S.S. they will be able to continually access the Advice Service when in need of support.

What will happen when P.A.S.S. receives your referral form?

We will contact you when we have received your referral form, to arrange an initial session at the Advice Service. You will be asked to send in the report for your diagnosis of autism before your first appointment.

At the initial session you will be given the opportunity to talk about your current experiences and together we will develop an action plan to help best meet your needs. We will support you to carry out the action plan.

After the initial session you can then access the groups and meet the other workers at the Advice Service.

Once we have met you, the service is available to you when you need support. We will check in with you 12 weeks from your first appointment with P.A.S.S. (with your consent) to see if you want further advice or support.

Who will be at P.A.S.S. Advice Service?

The P.A.S.S. team will be at the Advice Service.

P.A.S.S. works alongside other health, social and community organisations and groups such as:

• Social Care
• Housing
• Employment
• Benefits
• Plymouth Options

These services/organisations will be available to meet you at the Advice Service.

Where is the Advice Service?

During the period of COVID-19, P.A.S.S. will be a virtual service and will be operating online until it is possible to meet in person.

When it is safe for P.A.S.S to meet you in person the location will be: Leadworks, Stonehouse, 170 Rendle Street, Plymouth, PL1 1TP. Please do not turn to to this address for the Advice Service without a previously arranged appointment with us.

Specialist Training and Consultation Service 

P.A.S.S. offers a Specialist Training and Consultation Service available to adult Livewell Southwest services and relevant adult Plymouth City Council services.

The aim of the training that P.A.S.S will provide is to develop teams/practitioners' understanding of autism and provide an opportunity to enhance knowledge and skills in adapting practice when working with adults with autism. Adults with autism have the right to equitable access and service provision to health and social care services. P.A.S.S. is not a care-coordinating or case holding service and therefore will work with you but not instead of you.

Teams and practitioners can access the specialist training and consultation service by emailing livewell.pass@nhs.net

What does P.A.S.S. not do?

Like most services P.A.S.S. is not able to do everything, so here is a list of what we are not able to provide:

• Work with those without a formal diagnosis of autism
• Conduct autism diagnostic assessments
• Care-coordinate or hold a case-load
• Work with people under the age of 18
• Work with those with a learning disability, including conducting eligibility assessments
• Long term therapy and interventions
• Not a crisis service
• Conduct parenting assessments
• Provide private assessments or interventions
• Or provide expert witness assessments for court

P.A.S.S. is not a crisis service.  If you are in need of crisis help you should contact First Response on 01752 434922.