Shaping policies that impact neurodivergent people

The Trust contributes to public consultations (run by the Scottish Government or a Committee of The Scottish Parliament) on issues salient to our practice, the people for whom we advocate, and neurodivergence more broadly. We produce ad hoc briefings on important subjects as appropriate, too, outlining our positions on key issues.

We are pleased to respond to the Scottish Government’s ‘Call for Evidence’ on Adult Disability Payment (ADP).

There is much commonality in the (often poor) experiences disabled people have when trying to apply and be assessed for all sorts of social security. We know neurodivergent people’s experiences are aggravated by the fact there is a lack of cognizance of the impact of social-communicatory ‘barriers’ and other ‘hidden’ differences. Neurodivergence clashes with rigid eligibility criteria focused on physical difference over social factors.

While preparing this response, we engaged with neurodivergent young adults who currently access a skills development, training, and wellbeing service provided by our charity, as well as service colleagues involved in the support of these young adults.

You can read our full response below.