Back in 2015, a local branch of Irish supermarket SuperValu teamed up with AsIAm (an autism advocacy organisation) after a suggestion from one of their customers.
Eugene and Catriona Scally (of Scally's Supervalu, Clonakilty) were approached by one of their regular shoppers who wanted to see what their view was on a more autism-friendly approach to shopping.
Both the supermarket and AsIAm did their research on how they could make this possible and came up with an idea. They decided to regulate and reduce the amount of sensory stimulation taking place for people with autism.
So at certain hours of the week, they would dim the lights, turn of the radio, muffle the sound of fridges and have no announcements on the loudspeakers. This was a huge success.
Fast forward to today, and the West Cork town has gone a step further by introducing a new program that aims to make the whole community autism-friendly.
We are delighted to be leading this initiative alongside @scallysupervalu and @asiamireland and have every confidence in Clonakilty becoming Ireland’s First Autism Friendly Town. #AutismAwareness pic.twitter.com/wAyWHLnpTQ
— SuperValu Ireland (@SuperValuIRL) July 24, 2018
In order to make this happen, there are four key stages:
- Training
- Examining sensory environments
- Preparation material
- Understanding
On this morning's Dermot and Dave, Adam Harris, who is founder of AsIAm, called into studio to tell us all about the significance of this move. He also portrayed what the world is like through autistic eyes.
"It moved autism awareness beyond the school gate and into the community"
We're excited to sponsor the @AsIAmIreland National Autism Conference on building more inclusive communities. pic.twitter.com/ipzPlRkcEP
— SuperValu Ireland (@SuperValuIRL) May 1, 2018
SuperValu have implemented the system into 100 stores nationwide.
Check out more on www.AsIAm.ie or on the autism section of SuperValu's website.
You can listen to the chat in full by pressing the play button in the image at the top of the page.
