I enjoyed a visit to Autism Rocks (Fife) which is a Scottish charity based in Methil with a centre in Buckhaven called Kaleidoscope.
They provide a drop in 3 days a week from 10am till 2pm. A teen /adult session on a Friday evening. Pool parties once a month, and family days every other Saturday. They also provide coffee mornings all over fife once a fortnight and have been a registered charity for a year and a half.
They have a sensory room, arts and crafts room, soft play and many other activities and cater for all ages at kaleidoscope.
The group receive no external funding for any of their services and they do not charge a fee for anything they provide. Last year they won an award for community charity of the year with Heart FM radio.
This group do some great work and there is a big demand for such a group and such services but they are struggling with finance, so in the first instance I am going to link up with the local councillors to see if there could be some local support and then take things from there.
The groups said; “We are extremely proud of everyone involved with Autism Rocks (Fife) and what the children/adults and their families have achieved since coming to our drop in centre and family days.
“We still have a long way to go but we know how hard life can and will continue to be living with Autism, due to the lack of support out there and also the lack of awareness of the condition but we aim to change all that and will continue to dedicate ourselves to our goals.
“Our main obstacle is trying to get funding for the continued lease of our facility and funding to improve our outdoor area . Our services provide a vital lifeline to so many families all over Fife and some beyond who do travel to use our services.
We are the first service of its kind in Fife. Unfortunately, provision for autism in Fife is extremely poor”.
