Activities at the event, held at Cygnet Wast Hills on Autism Awareness Day, included pet therapy and Makaton lessons, a form of language for those with learning disabilities.
Located on Wast Hills Lane in Kings Norton, Cygnet Wast Hills is a 21-bed service for men with autism and learning disabilities, run by Cygnet Health Care in Birmingham.
The fun-filled day took place on 2 April, which marked World Autism Awareness Day. The event saw staff members, service users and their loved ones from Cygnet Wast Hills come together with those from Cygnet Elms, a Birmingham care service which supports women with learning disabilities.
The event featured pet therapy and saw service users and staff alike handle snakes, guinea pigs and a rabbit. There was also garden games and an ice cream van, which kept everyone cool in the sunshine.
Tendai Munemo, Service Manager at Cygnet Wast Hills, said the open day offered an enjoyable and educational insight into autism and the care provided by the Cygnet Health Care service. The staff team delivered a training session called ‘Physical Health Monitoring in Autism Services’ to improve awareness with service users, families and carers.
Tendai said: “Service users worked incredibly hard with staff to put together this event. The event meant a lot to them.
“The aim of hosting events like this is to give our service users the opportunity to enjoy some leisure activities and try something new. Everyone liked getting to hold the small furry animals and even the snake for those who were feeling daring!”
Between games, the service users at Cygnet Wast Hills and Cygnet Elms teamed up to provide some more entertainment. They led a Makaton session and singalong with a guitar for attendees.
Tendai said: “It is also important for our service users to come together with both their loved ones and others that use our services, so it was great that Cygnet Elms could join us. Their help with the Makaton lessons was much appreciated.
“Raising awareness about autism is so important and this is why we wanted to kick off the celebrations for World Autism Acceptance Month by celebrating World Autism Awareness Day with service users and their loved ones.
“It was a brilliant day in the sunshine enjoyed by all and we’re already excited for next year.”