For over four years, Speak Out, now the Birmingham Branch of the NAS, have worked closely with local schools, health centres and social health care services. Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators of local schools had attended many of our meetings and had visited our sensory room during the school day with some of their children.

As part of the NAS, we now have access to all of the latest research papers and publications. In the past Speak Out has co-operated with Birmingham, Coventry and Glasgow Universities in research and studies, in particular research into how autism impacts upon the family. We are always happy to assist academic bodies and health authorities in their studies and have recently been actively involved in local and national initiatives to increase awareness of autism and its links to criminal justice issues. We will continue the superb work that Speak Out has done in its links to the professional sectors.