RESPONDING TO AUTISM Teaching Queensland Police how to respond people
to autistic
Autism (ASD) is on the rise and every day Queensland Police Officers are called into situations that they are simply not trained for. This can be confronting, dangerous and leave consequences that can last a lifetime.
Unless you understand autism and the way it impacts people, their behaviour, actions and ability to communicate, understand and respond, you can accidentally perceive their actions as non-compliance or that they are being difficult when in fact they simply don’t have the capacity to engage. Or they simply engage in a different way.
Kathrine Peereboom, Queensland mum of three severely autistic non-verbal boys, is continuing her passion to ensure that no person on the spectrum is ever put in a position where their dignity or safety is compromised by a first responder or service provider due to lack of awareness or ignorance.
Kathrine began working with the Queensland Police Service in late 2020 after being invited by Senior Sergeant Gregory Giles who, for over seven years, has been instrumental in training police in mental health interventions and strategies.
“My boys.... no, everybody deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.” Kathrine is providing autism training to Queensland Police Service officers right across the state for FREE. Peereboom is no stranger to training police. Founder and CEO of Spectrum Support, a leading provider of autism training, advocacy and awareness-raising, she personally developed an autism training program which she delivered to hundreds of NSW Police in 2019, earning her The Commissioner’s Safety Initiative Award the same year. Too many autistic people have faced upsetting and dangerous situations where their safety and human rights have been violated due to a lack of understanding by those confronting them.
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Kathrine developed a two-hour course called ‘Autism and Law Enforcement’ which has already been delivered in Brisbane, Mackay, Townsville, Rockhampton, Cairns and other locations to specialised groups of between 30 and 100 officers at a time. These officers include all ranks; detectives, constables and senior sergeants.
“As a mother of three autistic boys, I want my sons to grow up in a world where they are safe, understood and supported. The training I undertake for Queensland Police is provided on a voluntary basis as it’s important to me that I can make a positive contribution to society.”
