The Parent/Carer Workshops are funded by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) through the Australian Government's Helping Children with Autism package, there is no cost to participants.

The parent carer workshops are held over two consecutive days and bring together up to 50 parents with school aged children who have an autism spectrum disorder. The workshops are highly interactive and are facilitated by 4 or 5 professionals who are currently working in both the fields of autism and working with families.

On day one of the workshop,  parents will have the opportunity to explore: the characteristics of autism and how they impact on their child’s learning at both school and home; developing effective & collaborative partnerships with schools; and networking opportunities with other parents.

On the second day of the workshop, parents can choose to attend a number of information sessions. These information sessions are designed to provide specific practical strategies around a range of topics. Topics currently available to choose from include: positive behaviour support; communication; sexuality; making friends; managing everyday transitions; siblings; bullying; establishing a support network.

The Positive Partnerships Parent/Carer Workshops are specifically designed to meet the needs of parents or primary caregivers of school aged children and young people with an autism spectrum disorder.

If you are a Parent/Carer (the primary caregiver for a child with an ASD) please choose your state or territory from the menu on the left and follow the link to the registration page.

If you are a respite carer, teacher, teacher’s aide, or in a related field and wish to attend this workshop please click here
 

Parent Testimonials:

“I just want to send a very big thank you to AAETC, in particular the organisers and presenters of this week's workshop. As a direct result of the workshop, today I was able to open an exceedingly constructive and open dialogue with relevant people at my son's school, in relation to some major issues that have really been worrying us. Without the workshop input we might well have made an overly hasty decision to move my son out of mainstream school into a special education environment. I feel so relieved and much more optimistic now. The presenters at the workshop were so supportive and helpful. Many many thanks.”
 

“Can I also just say, the ….. workshop was brilliant and it is a credit to the team involved.  It has given me a renewed sense of hope and confidence that has been a little lost over the last couple of years, particularly given my son's move into high school.”
 

“Yesterday I came feeling isolated and overwhelmed. Today I feel a totally different person, stronger, lighter. Now I know how to find support.”
 

“It was fantastic and we all got something out of it whether we were new to being a parent of a child with Autism, or been at it a while. The workshop facilitators are a very experienced bunch. We were all given a comprehensive folder of information and some really useful practical tools to use.“