How The A World UK Works
A Clear Community-Led Model
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The A World UK exists to remove barriers that prevent the autistic community from accessing inclusive, enjoyable experiences.
Our work is built around a simple but intentional model: community-funded, experience-led, and designed around real life.
Rather than offering one-off support or small-scale provision, we focus on creating large, autism-friendly events and accessible opportunities that allow autistic people and their families to take part without pressure, judgement, or unrealistic expectations.
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Listening First, Then Building
Everything we do is shaped by lived experience and ongoing feedback from the autistic community.
We understand that many families have faced exclusion, anxiety, or disappointment when attempting traditional days out. Instead of asking people to adapt to environments that don’t work for them, we design our provision around what families actually need.
This approach allows us to build events and support that feel safe, predictable, and flexible.
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How Our Autism-Friendly Events Are Delivered
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We work directly with major UK attractions and venues to deliver large-scale autism-friendly events.
Rather than running small groups or tightly structured sessions, we typically:
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Hire venues exclusively or significantly reduce public attendance
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Limit ticket numbers to maintain a comfortable environment
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Allow families to explore freely at their own pace
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Remove pressure to participate in specific activities
This means families are not expected to move as a group, follow a timetable, or stay for a fixed amount of time. Each household can engage in whatever way works best for them.
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Why Our Events Are Ticketed
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Our events are ticketed so that numbers can be carefully managed and environments remain calm and accessible.
Everyone attending an event requires a ticket, regardless of age. This allows us to plan safely, work responsibly with venues, and deliver the best possible experience for the autistic community.
Ticketing also enables us to subsidise access wherever possible, helping to keep events affordable.
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How Events Are Funded
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Autism-friendly events are expensive to deliver. Venues are not provided for free, and significant costs are involved in hiring spaces, staffing, accessibility planning, and logistics.
To make events accessible, we subsidise ticket prices through a combination of:
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Community store income
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Fundraising initiatives
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Lottery and supporter contributions
This model allows us to reduce financial barriers while continuing to deliver high-quality, inclusive experiences.
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The Role of Community Stores
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Our community stores are a vital part of how The A World UK operates.
They sell donated, pre-loved items and provide a sustainable source of funding for our work. Every purchase, donation, and volunteered hour helps fund autism-friendly events and inclusive support.
Community stores also:
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Create local volunteering opportunities
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Reduce reliance on single income streams
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Allow support to be funded by communities, for communities
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Why We Focus on Large-Scale Events
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We are often asked why we focus on large events rather than small local groups.
Large-scale events allow us to:
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Reach more people
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Work with major venues
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Create inclusive environments without singling individuals out
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Offer choice, flexibility, and autonomy
This approach helps reduce stigma and creates spaces where autistic people and their families can participate on their own terms.
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Who We Support
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The A World UK supports the autistic community across the UK, including:
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Autistic children
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Autistic teenagers
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Autistic adults
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Families, carers, and siblings
A formal diagnosis is not required to access our events or engage with our work. However, to ensure our support is reaching the autistic community it is intended for, attendees are required to provide some form of supporting evidence, such as being on the diagnostic pathway or relevant professional information.
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A Sustainable Approach to Long-Term Support
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Our model is designed to be sustainable, transparent, and responsive to the needs of the autistic community.
By combining community funding, partnerships, and lived-experience insight, we are able to continue developing autism-friendly events and inclusive opportunities without placing additional pressure on families.
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Want to Learn More?
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If you’re new to The A World UK, you may find the following pages helpful:
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We aim to create spaces where the autistic community feels supported, understood, and able to take part without pressure.​​​​​
