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Autism Race Day 2024 Mayhem
19 Plays3 months ago
Chelmsford Community Radio made a notable appearance at the Autism Race Day held at Chelmsford Racecourse, a special event aimed at raising awareness and support for the autism community. The radio team was on the ground, capturing the vibrant atmosphere and conducting interviews with key figures such as Pop Essex and the esteemed Anna Kennedy OBE, a prominent autism advocate.
Pop Essex, known for their engagement with the local community and vibrant performances, shared insights about their involvement in the event and the importance of supporting autism awareness. Anna Kennedy OBE, an influential campaigner for autism and founder of several autism charities, spoke passionately about the ongoing efforts to create more inclusive environments and the significance of events like this in raising public awareness.
The interviews conducted by Chelmsford Community Radio provided a platform for these voices to reach a broader audience, highlighting the collaborative efforts of the community to support autism awareness. The radio station's coverage helped to amplify the message of inclusivity and the need for continued support for individuals with autism and their families.
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Transcript
Introduction & Autism Waste Day Interviews
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to Monday Night Mayhem on Charleston Community Radio 104.4 FM with Autism Waste Day events and these are the interviews from the event.
Autism Anglia: History & Services
00:00:12
Speaker
Who are you and what's your tattoo? I'm Anna Rogers from Autism Anglia. What inspired you to start this autism awareness and charity? Well, I didn't start the charity. and I worked for Autism Anglia, which is a charity. We've been going since the 1970s, formed by a group of parents who found that there was no provision for their children at the time. So we currently operate a school, adult services, residential, community support, and we do have a diagnostic service as well.
Fundraising Experience & Personal Stories
00:00:42
Speaker
So it's it's a large charity that covers Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk.
00:00:46
Speaker
Okay, can you share some personal journey or connection with autism? I don't have any autism in my family myself but I've worked as a fundraiser for the charity for 20 years so I've met a lot of autistic people and their families and I've heard lots of um you know personal experiences over that time. ah it each story fascinates me Autism fascinates me and each story is so personal um and it's just a privilege to be able to help the autism community. Have you got any personal goals or missions for your charity like to complete?
00:01:17
Speaker
and Well, as a charity we want to be able to to help ah every autistic family in the region that that that needs us, that needs support and advice or a service to go to.
Goals & Evolution of Autism Anglia
00:01:31
Speaker
and So as long as we can be available to people when and if they need us, that's our aim. How has the vision of like your charity evolved since the beginning of like when you started your charity?
00:01:43
Speaker
Oh gosh, yeah, going back and say 50 years. that's ah and ah ah To start with, it was just to provide some education for for the children um at at the time. And then as they grew, to provide some adult residential homes and and support.
00:01:59
Speaker
So for for many years we just supported the children adult and adults in our services, but then people came to us from the community saying that, you know, how do how can they get their child diagnosed? Is there support, you know, helping mainstream
Financial Challenges & Fundraising Importance
00:02:14
Speaker
schools? So the charity has evolved over those years to to meet the demands of of each individual as as best we can. What's the biggest challenges you have faced in running your charity?
00:02:26
Speaker
um Money, unfortunately, it always comes down to money. and We know that that services are very expensive, salaries are expensive, and and to be able to provide everything we want to is just not possible on um the contracts we get or the donations. So I'm the fundraising manager, so always trying to sort of promote the charity, and ask for donations, put on events, so any any voluntary income is yeah very rightfully received.
Supporting Autism Anglia: How to Get Involved
00:02:57
Speaker
And individuals getting involved in your charity? yeahp and Well if they if people need support they can phone us and look on our website. It's a whole host of information on our website. um If they want to get involved in putting on events or fundraising then they can contact me in the fundraising team or go through our website. But yeah we're always keen to to get involved with the autistic community.
00:03:20
Speaker
ah people bring all sorts of wealth of knowledge and that that we're very grateful for very grateful to receive. And also I want to show you where certain people can get in contact with you with on the your charity. It's autism-anglia.org.uk. Thank you very much.
00:03:48
Speaker
Hopelessly reaching Out for this girl Who's out of this world Believe me She's got her boyfriend He drives around the bend Kissing's 23 He's in the Marines You kill me So many nights now Find yourself thinking about her now. It's obviously she's out of her league. But how can I win? She keeps dragging me in. And I know I've never won.
00:04:54
Speaker
I'm too late, and that's where I'll stay for two years Murder behind me Murder behind me You're the one place where she can find me Oh, cause obviously she's out of my league I'm wasting my time cause she'll never be mine
00:05:33
Speaker
She's out in my hands And I never know where I stand Cause I'm not
00:06:03
Speaker
I'm wasting my time, cause she'll never be mine And I know I never will be goodie Cause I'm your league, she's out of my league But how can I win, she keeps dragging me in And I know I never will be goodie Cause I'm your league, she's out of my league I'm wasting my time, cause she'll never be mine And I know I never will be goodie
00:06:45
Speaker
Hello and who are you and where are you from?
Introduction to Pop Essex & Autism Awareness Event
00:06:47
Speaker
I'm Donna and I'm from Pop Essex in Braintree. I'm Carol and I'm from Pop Essex in Braintree. And I'm Chris and I'm from Pop Essex in Braintree. And this is John Spooner and I'm on a 4.4 event and first question is like can you tell us the main focus of today's Autism Awareness Charity event?
00:07:09
Speaker
So the main focus for today is to um meet new people, new parents and children and so they're all coming here and meeting various groups that are here to support them so they know what's
Creation & Activities of Pop Essex
00:07:24
Speaker
out there. What inspired the creation of the charity?
00:07:28
Speaker
That would be Jamie's um answer probably because she was the lady that started it with her husband Matt okay um from when Park closed down.
00:07:43
Speaker
two years ago yeah Park closed down so there were a lot of families without any support um so they got together with some other parents and started pop which is completely separate from Park nothing to do with Park always add that thing in yeah what does pop actually stand for power of play Okay, I didn't know that. And also, what are some activities planned for today? um So we have some tabletop things in here. And over in the other marquee, and we've got a lot of pop toys and activities for the children to do. So they've got soft play and colouring and all sorts of things. How do you i do believe in this event that will impact the local com community and with those with autism? Hopefully they'll become aware of us. um We have been running two years, but I think there's a lot of people out there that still need to learn about us and what we can offer. And also, like how can people get involved with your organisation in the future? um um we have a We have a Facebook site, Pop Essex.
00:08:55
Speaker
um If you just put that in, pop Essex, it will take you to our page. We also have leaflets that we're handing out today. So, in the old Argos in Braintree Town is where our site is based now. Okay, in the old Argos in Braintree? Yes, that's right. They've revamped it, got a wonderful lot of sensory toys, an indoor green play area for the children where they can ride around on bikes. and music room, hideaway where you get the sounds of the rainforest and lots of cuddly animals and we have story time, a sensory room and a gaming room as well. We've got our posters and things on the windows as well so you can see where we are and anybody can pop in when they want to and have a chat with someone.
00:09:49
Speaker
Yeah, I think, like, if you want to check out, like, pop go to Banktree in Argos and checking them out, like, for the autism awareness. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time. Thank you.
00:10:20
Speaker
Today this could be The greatest day of our lives Before it all ends Before we run out of time Stay close to me Stay close to me Watch the world come alive tonight Stay close to me Tonight this could be The greatest night of our lives Let's make a new start The future is ours to find Can you see it?
00:11:16
Speaker
Can you see it in my eyes Can you feel it now
00:12:13
Speaker
What starts to come alive when you stay close to me?
00:12:23
Speaker
Today this could be the greatest day of our lives Today this could be the greatest day of our lives
00:12:46
Speaker
And the world comes alive And the world comes alive Oh, oh, oh Stay close to me Hold on, stay close to me Watch the work of my life tonight Stay close to me
Growth & Services of Pop Essex
00:13:54
Speaker
Hello, where are you from? I'm Jamie and I am from Pop Essex. What inspired you to start the altern Autism Awareness Charity? Pop Charity formed um in June 2022 when a facility that our son went to in Braintree closed down. ah My husband and I along with some like-minded parents knew that we could do something to fill that gap and that's where Pop began. So Pop means power of play and our main aims and goals is to give children a safe and secure environment to play and learn and just be themselves and enjoy themselves. um Having children on the spectrum that range from one end to the other gives us a good insight of being able to make it suitable for many children.
00:14:42
Speaker
How's your vision for the child to evolve since the beginning? Since the beginning, we we have grown a lot. We've now got our own premises. We offer sessions throughout the school, holidays, Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. We offer Essex Activate vouchers and we've got some Essex County Council funding, so we do a free session on a Friday.
00:15:09
Speaker
we um yeah We've just grown loads at our staff, we've got twenty over 20 staff and we have in at least 100 children a week come and see us and enjoy the services. What's the biggest changes you have faced in your charity pop for playing? That's a good question. and Obviously there's lots of charities when you come in as an independent person I've found that people you'd expect to be quite welcoming and quite helpful haven't been so it's a lot of research a lot of just getting some grit behind you and doing it yourself to get it done because you know it wants you need to get it done for the benefit of everybody so I suppose that's just
00:15:56
Speaker
learning to have thick skin, crack on and do what you need to do to make your vision come alive. Can you share some specific success or milestones you have like got done in your 30s, your 30 problems achieved? Okay so we started off as a non-for-profit organisation um that was in June 2022 and then in January 2023 we gained our charity status which was a huge achievement it wasn't easy but we've got a good team behind us that managed that um and obviously there's The nicest thing about it all is seeing how many children and families are benefiting from it as well. um We now do support groups for um
Sensory & Adaptive Play Programs
00:16:41
Speaker
dads and granddads, male carers one evening once a month and we do the same for ladies one evening once a month so it's more that building that community, that send community up so that we can reach out and support as many people as we can. What's the key programmes does your offer, like charity offer?
00:17:00
Speaker
um Playing? Sensory play? and Yeah, so it's a lot of sensory play, it's a lot of adaptive play. Children play and learn in many different ways and there seems to be some stereotypes on how they should play but not with us. They play how they play and what makes them happy. um We, as a team, we kind of know what our children want to play with because we have like a one-page profile for each child, we update them, so we'd know of any triggers that the child has ahead of them coming to be with us, um and we know their likes. So we try to make sure, oh, we've got something so in today, let's make sure we've got the spacemen out, or just something like that. We we tailor it around who's coming in.
00:17:45
Speaker
Like, how can individuals get involved with your tattoo? We've got a website, and we've got a Facebook page, social media outlets, they're quite good, so just drop us a message, drop us an email, and then we'll get back to you. Very, very much.
00:18:01
Speaker
and thank you
00:18:35
Speaker
And leave teardrops everywhere You'd think me rude but I would just stand and stare
00:18:45
Speaker
Let myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep Cause everything is never as it seems Cause I get a thousand hugs from ten thousand lightning bugs As they tried to teach me how to dance
00:19:18
Speaker
A sock hop beneath my bed A disco ball is just hanging by a thread I'd like to meet myself early
00:19:38
Speaker
I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep Cause everything is never as it seems Leave my door open just to crack Cause I feel like Sir John is on the act
00:20:07
Speaker
Not far too tired to fall asleep To ten million fireflies I'm weird cause I hate goodbyes I got misty eyes as they said farewell But I'll know where several are If my dreams get real bizarre Cause I saved if you and I keep them in a jar I'd like to make myself believe
00:20:51
Speaker
As it seems I like to make myself believe This planet Earth turns slowly It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep Cause everything is never as it seems
00:21:39
Speaker
Hello Light and Light, where are you from?
Autism in Racing Event & Pop Essex Partnership
00:21:43
Speaker
So I'm Jo, I head up Charity and Community at Chelmsford City Racecourse and myself and the my lovely team have put together this wonderful four event for the third year running now for families with children affected by autism. We inspired the organisation to host this event.
00:22:01
Speaker
So we try to be as inclusive and and as diverse as possible. and So Autism in Racing is an event that is held at various race courses. Generally they just have a sensory room and the families come in and just use the the um third party sensory room. However, because we had such good feedback and big demand for the event, we decided to open up another space. So this is our third year running. First of all, we had one other marquee with some sensory play equipment. um And then last year we partnered with a charity called Pop Essex.
00:22:38
Speaker
um It's a local charity who provide send sessions, respite and play sessions in the local community in and around Braintree. So they bring a team down and also provide us with some equipment and they so they
Event Expansion & Charitable Activities
00:22:53
Speaker
help us. So we then opened this other space as the slightly more quieter space for families to relax with tabletop activities and so yes so really we've just grown over the past three years and we're up to we've tripled this year over last year so the demand is really really high and it's lovely introducing people to racing as well and giving them an opportunity in a non-judgmental quiet space and private as well away from the crowds to yeah just um enjoy some sensory play. Have you got any other charities in our organisations here today?
00:23:30
Speaker
Yes, so we have um the Dawn Charity and they're here today to actually launch their autism passport which is amazing and that's and sort of post-education and to help people in public settings such as hospitals, and the doctors, the visitors and it helps them ah engage and communicate with those those those organisations. We also have Autism Anglia here today so they're here just to give advice for and people with with children with autism and we've obviously got Popesics who are raising money for their charity and we've got cosplayers So it's brilliant, we've got some cosplayers, some familiar characters for the children and they are here raising money for Hayden's Hospices. We've also got some cheerleaders and we've also got Chelmsford City Football Club doing a bit of a kick about. So these are in the general public areas, not just not just for the autism children. and So we have got other things going on out there, some paint face painters and lots going on because we're expecting quite big crowds today. So yeah, hopefully everyone will have a great time. Face for your time.
00:24:54
Speaker
What if I told you it was all meant to be? Would you believe me? Would you agree?
00:25:08
Speaker
It's almost that feeling that we've met before So tell me that you don't think I'm crazy
00:25:21
Speaker
When I tell you love has come here and now A moment like this Some people wait a lifetime For a moment like this Some people search forever For that one special kiss Oh, I can't believe it's happening to me
00:25:52
Speaker
Some people wait in life's time for a moment like this Everything changes but beauty remains Something so tender I can't explain
00:26:19
Speaker
But do you like the way? Can we make this dream last forever?
00:26:30
Speaker
And I'll cherish all the love that we shed
00:26:40
Speaker
Some people wait in a lifetime For a moment like this Some people search forever For their one special kiss Oh, I can't believe it's happening to me Some people wait in a lifetime
00:27:18
Speaker
That you will catch me when I fall So let me tell you this Some people wait a lifetime for a moment
00:27:57
Speaker
Some creep away in a light
00:28:30
Speaker
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this A moment like this