Chris P

Some good advice here already. I think the unannounced flushing of urinals in male toilets can be alarming for the nervous. In my experience disabled toilets are usually in a cleaner state, are more private, and only flush when you tell them to! A RADAR key might be useful for disabled access at public toilets? And what about an air freshener spray that he likes the smell of, that he can use to 'claim' a loo as 'his own' when he goes in to it? Alternatively there are some very powerful little sprays I have seen that can deodorise a toilet spell virtually instantly. I have access to these, but don't know how generally available they are. Might any of this help?

Certainly was with me at school age! Any idea what the issues might be? Unpleasant smells? Unfamiliar noises? Bullying in school toilets?

I can smell a leak in a gas pipe even when it is buried 4ft underground, and I know 697 hymn tunes (the average church attender knows less than 100). I THINK the latter skill has been more useful to me in my working life.

The Bikeability website includes a link to a document on providing inclusive training. This looks good, but I suspect that (1) implementation will be patchy in different areas, (2) all the inclusive rhetoric in the world is no substitute for the instructor having the right attitude, and (3) typically of government these days, the high ideals are not matched by any funding.

I hadn't encountered the requirement for gears before - I'd check that one. I agree with you that a lot depends on the ability of the instructor to create an Aspie-friendly learning environment. There is potential for a lot of sensory overload in the average practical lesson. I take it this is the Highways Dept of the local council providing the lessons: they have the same responsibility as everyone else to provide a disability-friendly environment, but may need the exact needs to be spelt out in practical terms. Don't be surprised if they are wary - many parents regard passing the course as 'qualification to be on the road', but we always stressed that the decision about when a child was 'road-ready' was solely a parental decision. PS: Although middle-aged, I deemed myself too old to look good in lycra!

Is that down to balance, or to generally not being safe?

Mine passed the equivalent test some time ago. The instructor was Aspie friendly - in fact he was Aspie - in fact he was me! As the local Vicar, I used to treat this duty as Funeral Prevention.... Is your child having problems with the course?

Croeso o Ffrainc hefyd! (I used to live and work in Betws y Coed)

I certainly have some of the tendancies you describe, and the male line of our family have a long tradition of 'never doing today what could be done tomorrow'. I'm sure this has plenty of drawbacks, but it did keep my father going until the age of 98, and prevented him from turning into a Boring Old Fart. How? Because having a plan or agenda for 'tomorrow' kept him forward-looking and interested when so many of his age (or 20 years younger!) had completed or decisively abandoned everything they had ever planned to do, so seemed to have nothing to live for in the future.

Welcome from me - I hope you find this a good place to be!

I was in hospital as an emergency admission 9 years ago. I went in with an unexplained serious stomach pain, and woke up after surgery to find I had been treated for peritonitis, had a tumour removed from my intestine, and had a colostomy. This was more surprises than I think most people could take in a day, but as an (undiagnosed) aspie I had total loverload, not helped by hallucinations caused by weird drug reactions. A fair number of the nurses were vile and uncaring bullies, and not just to me either. It was a horrendous experience. Incidentally, clergy often get ill treated in hospital: the wise ones do everything they can to avoid their real occupation beng found out.

I didn't go near a dentist until I was 10, and stopped going when I was 14! I can't recommend this as an ideal, however. When I needed treatment a few years ago my GP referred me to what turned out to be an incredible find: a dentist who was scared of dentists! He was brilliant, he explained things well, and enabled me to feel in control of the situation so that things could unfold at my speed. I think male dentists have far more empathy than female ones ('you think this hurts, just try having a baby!'). Just don't let him watch 'Little Shop of Horrors', ever!

Hi and welcome from me as well. I'm an occasional poster but a regular visitor here.

Only 48 views - I must be very dull!

Welcome, Sarah! I hope you find this place as informative as I have.