Programmes

Who is this programme for?

The programme is for autistic tamariki or tamariki showing early signs of autism and their family and whānau. It aims to provide support early, from around 12 months of age through to school transition. It is available to those living in the wider Wellington region (Upper Hutt to Waikanae).

What is included in the programme?

The programme will take a neurodiversity-affirming and culturally responsive approach designed to support autistic tamariki and those around them to flourish.

It is provided free of charge and will involve a flexible pathway of support including:

• Identification of autism from 12 months of age through a screening tool
• Diagnostic assessment options
• Parent/whānau support programme, including peer support network
• Educator/professionals education programme
• Ongoing individualised and responsive support within the home and early childhood education setting through to school transition, including working with and connecting to other services as needed.

What are the intended outcomes?

The programme will take a social investment approach offering family and whānau a chance to access support early, when it can be most impactful for them. It will focus on enabling more participation in education as well as family and whānau wellbeing.

Please note that the programme is currently only available for those living in the wider Wellington region (Upper Hutt to Waikanae).

Commitment to culture and community

We are committed to meet the needs of all people and cultures who would like to access our services. We take an individualised approach to support Māori, Pasifika and whānau of all cultures through our programmes and services. This can include support in filling out paperwork involved. The information about registration will be released shortly.

For more information and expression of interest

If you are interested in expressing your interest for the program, please fill out the following form:

Early Years Support Pathway: Registration of Interest form Survey

Social Investment Agency Announcement

Early Years Support Pathway Research Evaluation

FAQ

Ideal programme for parents & caregivers, family/whānau, and professionals.

FANZ is specifically designed for anyone supporting, living or involved with an autistic individual (child to adult), who wants some understanding and practical strategies to enhance the lives and maximise the learning opportunities for those individuals.

FANZ is a two-day programme that enables participants to create a framework for understanding and supporting an autistic person. It is a collection of evidence-based strategies and recommendations from the New Zealand Autism Guideline. The programme is delivered through presentations, video examples, practical activities, and application of the strategies.

What participants say about FANZ

“Enjoyable, enlightening, entertaining, energising. Ka pai te mahi! It is always great to refresh, upskill and remember the varied ways to support these wonderful individuals who see the world in magically different ways to ourselves.”

“All fantastic. Practical suggestions, great stories; approachable facilitators; a huge insight into someone with autism, what to expect, characteristics, a plan, ideas, behaviours and how to deal with them.”

“The workshop was relevant, delivered clearly and used a variety of situations that are often familiar on a daily basis and we now have strategies to employ when dealing with people with autism.”

Outcomes

• A better understanding of the autism spectrum
• Practical strategies to apply immediately, including the use of visual supports, how to teach new activities and writing stories for understanding
• A framework to plan for success using the Autism New Zealand Seesaw
• A better understanding of behaviours that challenge, including prevention and teaching of alternative behaviours
• A workbook, certificate, and notes from the programme

Evaluation of the Framework for Autism in New Zealand Workshops, Phoenix Research.

Participants in the FANZ workshops showed strong improvements from pre to post workshop and subsequently at three months after. Participants reported intentions to make changes following the workshop and these were in place three to four months post workshop. The extent to which participants would recommend a FANZ workshop to a friend or colleague is very high at the conclusion and increases after three months.

Upcoming programmes

View all Autism NZ programmes here.
If you have missed your closest FANZ or to receive updates about programmes in your area, you may wish to consider signing up for free to be an Autism NZ Member. Please contact us if you are considering Individualised Training for your organisation or group.

For family/whānau, early childhood teachers, health professionals, or anyone else living or working with young children on autism spectrum.

Way to Play is a fun one-day introduction to playing joyously with a child on the autism spectrum.

Way to play has been specifically designed for people directly involved with a young autistic child. Adults are often left bewildered when trying to play with the child. The course offers some simple, easy to use, practical strategies to begin playing joyously together. Having fun playing together is the focus.

What participants say about Way to Play

“It’s only been four days since the course and I’m already noticing a huge difference in the way my son and I are interacting, in my confidence with my approaches to connecting with him and most unbelievably his subsequent development.”

“I always wanted to play with my boy. I just didn’t know how. Can’t wait to get home and start playing.”

“12 out of 10!! Fascinating! Exceptionally well presented. Great practical examples, demonstrations, and videos. Your enthusiasm is inspiring.”

Outcomes

• A better understanding of the importance of play and interpersonal engagement
• Strategies to play joyously with a child
• A workbook, certificate, and notes from the programme

Upcoming programmes

View all Autism NZ programmes here
To receive updates about Education Courses you can join Autism New Zealand by completing our new member form. If you have missed your closest Way to Play, you may wish to consider signing up to our Membership to receive updates about programmes in your area or consider Individualised Training.

Cost

$25 per person for family/whānau of an autistic person.

$125 per person for professionals and non-family/whanau

For organisations or other groups requiring a training or education event. 

Our experienced educators can individualise and create a training experience that suits your particular needs.

We have developed education programmes for early learning centres, primary, special and high schools, teacher aide organisations, Ministry of Education, Paediatricians, adult support providers, workplace teams, and teams of family/whānau and professionals.

What people have said about our individualised education

“I’d like to congratulate you both on the enthusiastic presentation you both gave to the group.”

“It was the most fun filled learning experience and informative session I have attended for some time!!! Thank you both very much for the ideas you suggested, I can’t wait to get back to the kindergarten to try some fun patterning with our children. (Kindergarten Association).”

“The simple strategies, such as writing down questions for him to think about, have already made a difference. The staff now recognise his strengths and use them (Car Sales Operator).”

How to access individualised training

Email training@autismnz.org.nz with the following information so we can provide a quote;

• Organisation/group details
• Age group you work with
• Time you can allocate to training
• If you’d like training based on any of our existing programmes
• Any specific topics or challenges you’d like covered

If you require a short, introductory presentation, you may wish to contact your local Outreach Coordinator about Autism Kōrero.

To receive updates about Education Courses you can join Autism New Zealand by completing our new member form.

This 2-day workshop works through strengths-based, practical strategies to support the everyday inclusion of autistic children across their full primary school and home settings.

This course is valuable for teachers, professionals and whānau to align, and forms an excellent professional development opportunity for teachers.

Team Requirements:

• Supporting one child 5 – 12 years (multiple children will require multiple teams)
• Child attending Full Primary School
• 2 – 5 participants
• At least one Teacher (primary contact)
• At least one Family Member

A parent/caregiver of the child, and a teacher from the school MUST be part of the team. You will need their details to complete registration. Please ensure you provide personal contact details as Autism New Zealand will be in touch prior to the programme to provide resources.

Tilting the Seesaw for Teams is based on the externally evaluated Autism New Zealand programme; Tilting the Seesaw.

What participants say about Tilting the Seesaw

“This course has been invaluable to me and my teacher aide.”
“We have learnt so much more about how to understand, analyse and respond to behaviour. This course has helped me so much.”
“I feel a lot more confident in teaching children with autism and being successful.”
“Learnt a lot of strategies and was inspired to try new ideas.”

Outcomes

• A better understanding of autism
• Learning how to use the tamariki’s strengths and interests to promote learning and communication
• Learning how to implement consistent visual supports at home and at school
• Learning how to implement stories for understanding at home and at school
• Learning strategies for inclusion
• Learning strategies for emotional regulation and reducing anxiety
• Learning tools for behaviours that challenge
• Planning for success by creating an action plan and goals

Research into Tilting the Seesaw

“Results indicated significant improvements in Knowledge, Communication, Behaviour Management, Inclusion and Confidence. Tilting the Seesaw provided greater understanding, greater confidence, learnt useful practical strategies to teach children with autism. An invaluable course”

Tilting the Seesaw – An evaluation of a teacher and teacher aide based intervention for primary school children with autism, Auckland University of Technology, 2014.

Upcoming programmes

View all Autism NZ programmes here
If you have missed your closest Tilting The Seesaw for Teams, you may wish to sign up to our Membership to receive updates about programmes in your area and other learning opportunities.

Cost
The Tilting The Seesaw for Teams programme is free to participants thanks to funding from the Ministry of Education.

Teacher Relief Costs
To apply for cover of relief teacher costs, schools should submit their invoice(s) for teacher release by emailing them to nationalautism.programme@education.govt.nz.

A maximum of $150 (GST excl) per day can be reimbursed for a teacher to attend the course i.e., $345 (GST incl) for the two-day course.

The tax invoice must include the following details:

• School name, address and bank account
• Name of the teacher who attended the Tilting the Seesaw for Teams course, and the course date
• Invoice number

Teacher release for this programme is managed by the Provider Services team, which is part of Learning Support at the Ministry of Education’s national office in Wellington. Any enquiries regarding an invoice can be made to Provider Services by emailing nationalautism.programme@education.govt.nz.

A Ministry of Education funded programme for Early Childhood Educators

These programmes can differ across locations according to our contracts with the Ministry of Education, however they usually involve a one-day workshop focusing on strategies for playing with and including autistic children in the Early Childhood Centre/Kōhanga Reo environment. Most programmes include centre visits, where you can see strategies in action and get hands-on experience.

What participants say about SELO Introduction to Autism in an Early Childhood Setting

“Thank you so much! Fantastic sessions filled with very practical tips easily implemented in our daily work.”

“Exceeded expectations. Would recommend! :)This workshop was amazing and gave me so much useful information to use in the centre with our children.”

Please contact training@autismnz.org.nz to receive further information regarding the process to arrange an upcoming education programme.

To receive further updates about Education Courses you can join Autism New Zealand by completing our new member form.

Cost

Free, thanks to Strengthening Early Learning Opportunities (SELO) funding from the Ministry of Education.

What is the ADOS-2?

The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2; Lord, Luyster, Gotham, & Guthrie, 2012; Lord, Rutter et al., 2012) is a semi-structured, standardized measure of communication, social interaction, play and both restricted and repetitive behaviours. The ADOS-2 is often considered the gold standard observational component with individuals referred for diagnostic assessment. The ADOS-2 can be used across the lifespan and provides an opportunity for structured observation of current experience. As with any assessment tool, it should be considered as part of a comprehensive clinical assessment of autism.

This workshop introduces the ADOS-2 as a developmental assessment tool and is a first step in the process for establishing reliability. It uses a mixture of group lecture, demonstration, scoring and video demonstration of the ADOS-2 and includes all five modules of the tool (Toddler Module and Modules 1-4).

Your ADOS trainer

Nicola Gillan, clinical psychologist, has been using the ADOS and ADI-R in complex, multi-disciplinary assessments and in a research context for over 18 years. She provided training in the UK from 2013 until her move to New Zealand in 2022.

Upcoming workshops

Workshop 1 | Register for Course

• Location: Wellington, Rydges Airport
• Date: 14th, 15th, and 16th September 2026
• Times: 9am-5pm on the first two days, 9am-1pm on the last day
• Cost: $1,400 (incl. GST), including catering

For further information contact diagnosis@autismnz.org.nz

What is the ADOS-2?

The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2; Lord, Luyster, Gotham, & Guthrie, 2012; Lord, Rutter et al., 2012) is a semi-structured, standardized measure of communication, social interaction, play and both restricted and repetitive behaviours. The ADOS-2 is often considered the gold standard observational component with individuals referred for diagnostic assessment. The ADOS-2 can be used across the lifespan and provides an opportunity for structured observation of current experience. As with any assessment tool, it should be considered as part of a comprehensive clinical assessment of autism.

This workshop introduces the ADOS-2 as a developmental assessment tool and is a first step in the process for establishing reliability. It uses a mixture of group lecture, demonstration, scoring and video demonstration of the ADOS-2 and includes all Modules 1-4 (Training does not include the Toddler Module).

Your ADOS trainer

Deborah Sweeney, registered psychologist, has been using the ADOS and ADI-R in complex, multi-disciplinary assessments for over 16 years and regularly trains health professionals throughout Australasia.

Upcoming workshops

Workshop 1 - Register for course

Location: Online via Zoom through interactive sessions. We will require a physical address to send you course materials. Zoom link and details will be sent closer to the time of the workshop.

Date: 28th and 29th of April, 5th and 6th of May 2026

Time: 8.30am – 1pm each day

Cost: $800 (incl. GST)

For further information contact diagnosis@autismnz.org.nz

What is the ADI-R?

The Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R) is a standardised, semi-structured interview for use with parents or caregivers of people showing signs of autism. The ADI-R is a vital partner to the ADOS-2 in autism assessment. It focuses on three main areas (i) quality of reciprocal social interaction, (ii) communication and language, and (iii) repetitive, restricted and stereotyped patterns of behaviour.

This workshop gives you understanding of and practice in using the ADI-R. This is done by observing and coding an experienced interviewer, interview practice and live interviewing with a volunteer parent of a child with a confirmed diagnosis of autism. The workshop is run across 5 half days.

Your ADOS trainer

Deborah Sweeney, registered psychologist, has been using the ADOS and ADI-R in complex, multi-disciplinary assessments for over 16 years and regularly trains health professionals throughout Australasia.

Upcoming workshops - Register here 

• Location: Zoom
• Date: 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th June 2026 (5 half days)
• Times: 8.30am-1pm
• Cost: $1,500 (spaces are limited to 10 attendees)
• Run online via Zoom through interactive sessions. We will require a physical address to send you course materials. Zoom link and details will be sent closer to the time of the workshop.

If you have any other enquiries email: diagnosis@autismnz.org.nz