SCHOOLS across Essex (including Harlow) are taking part in the first ever Schools’ Autism Awareness Week.

The National Autistic Society, which is running the national initiative, reports that at least one in 100 people in the UK have autism.

Essex schools are doing their bit to raise awareness of the condition through a series of events and promotional activities this week (14 to 18 March), supported by Essex County Council’s Specialist Teaching and Preschool Service.

Pupils with autism have been busy creating blogs about what school is like for them, and pupils and parents are presenting to school assemblies.

Among the schools taking part are The King Edmund School, Rochford, The Willows Primary School and Great Berry Primary School, both Basildon, Glebe Primary School, Rayleigh, and St Michael’s Junior School, Galleywood.

As well as school activities, the council is hosting its own drop-in events for staff to help illustrate the importance of understanding and meeting the needs of pupils with autism. Sessions are taking place at County Hall in Chelmsford, as well as council buildings in Basildon, Braintree, Colchester and Harlow.

Cllr Ray Gooding, Essex County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Lifelong Learning, said: “We are committed to ensuring pupils’ individual needs are met and all children in Essex receive the best possible education.

“Autism is very complex and I am pleased a number of the county’s schools are participating in this excellent initiative to help raise awareness of the condition.

“As a council, we are also working on various programmes to improve the education of autistic pupils.”

The county’s schools have embraced the national Autism Education Trust training programme, which Essex County Council is promoting as part of an initiative to develop autism-friendly schools. In this past year, almost 2,000 staff in Essex schools have undertaken the training, while the programme is set to be extended to include all early education providers from mid-2016.

The council is also in the process of establishing eight new autism support centres (four primary and four secondary) at mainstream schools in Essex, along with four special school hubs.

The hubs will offer places for those young people who find the social challenges of mainstream school difficult, as well as providing family support and training for other Essex schools.