Presentation to Waterford City and County Council at Municipal District Meeting

Thanks Waterford City and County Council & Cllr. Thomas Phelan for inviting us Autism Support Dungarvan to give a presentation on the Autism Friendly Dungarvan initiative with Asiam.ie at the Dungarvan/Lismore Municipal District meeting on 13th April 2026.

🌏It was a valuable opportunity on World Autism Month to share the lived experiences of autistic individuals and families in our community, and to highlight both the challenges, barriers and stigmas faced and the simple, meaningful changes that can make a real difference.
We were proud to share our progress to date...

📝During our presentation, we asked the Council to pledge their support in a number of key areas:

🗣• Strengthening clear, consistent communication and include regular updates on local projects.
⏰️• Provide an update and indicative timeline for the sensory playspace project, now over three years in progress.
👥• Establish a named point of contact such as a/disability access officer within the Council to support accessibility, engagement and continuity
🏆• Councillors & staff-Commit to attending Autism Champion training working towards Autism Friendly accreditation.
🗺• Continuing to engage and collaborate with us on future planning, public spaces and community events.
📢• Ensuring autistic voices remain part of inclusive planning and decision-making.
♾️• Promote and embed autism-inclusive practices across services and facilities.
🧑‍🧑‍🧒• Support greater visibility and awareness of autism-friendly initiatives across the county.

🔸️Our requests were met posititively and each councillor spoke so highly of our voluntary group and all the work that goes on in our community.
🔸️We are delighted that there was great interest to register for Autism Champion Training and we look forward to facilitating this and supporting one another on the journey to making our lovely town of Dungarvan truly Autism Friendly.