Aidan is an 18-year-old student here at Edmund Rice College. He has attended the College for the last 7 years. He was diagnosed with Aspergers in Primary School.

“Like any 11-year-old, I was slightly nervous about starting Secondary School. What I found helped me in this change from Primary to Secondary School was that the College provided me with a full-time classroom assistant for all my subjects. My classroom assistant helped to explain my work in a way that I could understand. As the years went on, I started to feel a lot more comfortable and confident in my place within the College.

By the end of Year 12 I had achieved 6 GCSEs and decided to stay on to complete my A-Level studies.

During Year 13, the school opened its first youth club for children with ASD. I was approached by Miss Deery to volunteer as a supervisor. The club ran on a Wednesday night and it provided me with an opportunity to help other young people who were going through similar experiences to me when I was the same age.

The youth club gave me valuable experience – I went on trips and I found it extremely fun.

This week gives us all a chance to show that autism/Asperger’s/ADHD are not disabilities, but they are part of an individual’s personality.