0:00:02 > 0:00:06I'm Richard Mylan, and this is my son Jaco.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09# The lights are off
0:00:09 > 0:00:11# The gates are closed
0:00:11 > 0:00:14# Market over, market shut, market closed. #
0:00:14 > 0:00:16We visit Cardiff Market as often as we can
0:00:16 > 0:00:19to see it close at five o'clock.
0:00:19 > 0:00:21Hey, look, there's the bell.
0:00:21 > 0:00:23We've been over 500 times.
0:00:23 > 0:00:26When we first came here, like, the security guards, they used to,
0:00:26 > 0:00:28you know, give us that kind of odd look, like,
0:00:28 > 0:00:31- "What the hell are they finding so interesting?"- Hello, bell.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33I think they thought at first that we were, like,
0:00:33 > 0:00:34scoping the place out
0:00:34 > 0:00:36to, like, do it over.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38HE LAUGHS
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Jaco has autism, a neurological condition
0:00:41 > 0:00:44that makes him see, feel and hear the world
0:00:44 > 0:00:45differently to most people.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49There she is. Here we go!
0:00:49 > 0:00:52He loves order and repetition.
0:00:52 > 0:00:56BELL CHIMES
0:00:56 > 0:00:58Whoa!
0:00:58 > 0:01:01And he films his life and watches it over and over,
0:01:01 > 0:01:05to help him make sense of a confusing world.
0:01:05 > 0:01:11- Are all these shut? - Yeah, they've shut.- Shut, shut.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14- He's in his element now.- Lights off!
0:01:14 > 0:01:16Here we go! She's closing the gates.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20There they go.
0:01:20 > 0:01:24And we'll jump out. And there's me going out.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27When he's come here and he's seen it all happen,
0:01:27 > 0:01:31and it's all closed, it's like he can go home happy then, you know?
0:01:31 > 0:01:33It settles him down.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- Bye-bye, market.- Bye-bye, market.
0:01:36 > 0:01:37See you again soon.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40- Bye-bye, market.- Bye, market.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43- Bye-bye.- Bye-bye.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50Jaco is 11 now, and he loves life. Where are they, man?
0:01:51 > 0:01:53On the hill...
0:01:53 > 0:01:54He also loves wind farms...
0:01:56 > 0:01:57..rugby...
0:02:01 > 0:02:03..and washing machines.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08Nee-naw, nee-naw, nee-naw...
0:02:08 > 0:02:11When they told me he was autistic, I was terrified.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17Sometimes, I still am,
0:02:17 > 0:02:19mainly about his future.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26I'm lucky. I'm an actor. And I feel really grateful for my life.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30I want Jaco to have the same,
0:02:30 > 0:02:32to be fulfilled and independent.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37The world isn't set up for people like him.
0:02:40 > 0:02:44Will he live without support? Will he ever get a job?
0:02:44 > 0:02:45Will he find love?
0:02:46 > 0:02:48How will he fit into this world?
0:02:51 > 0:02:55So I want to meet people who are a bit like Jaco,
0:02:55 > 0:02:57to try to understand what life will be like
0:02:57 > 0:03:00for my beautiful boy when he is a man.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:03:19 > 0:03:23Today is Jaco's very, very last day of primary school.
0:03:25 > 0:03:26Incredible.
0:03:26 > 0:03:32He's come on so much. He's developed massively. Made so many friends.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35And now they're all splitting off into different schools.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38It's the end of an era for him today.
0:03:38 > 0:03:39- Can I film it?- Yeah.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45When I think back to that first day...
0:03:46 > 0:03:48He could hardly talk then, you know?
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it?
0:03:50 > 0:03:52Lots of people film important moments in their life,
0:03:52 > 0:03:57but if he could, Jaco would literally film everything.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04I'm going to miss his sense of humour.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08He's a real asset to the class. The children absolutely love him.
0:04:08 > 0:04:13He's mischievous, he's full of fun, he's full of happiness.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Sometimes, he does things that, you know, he shouldn't do,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18he's a little bit mischievous, and the kids,
0:04:18 > 0:04:22they are laughing WITH him, but I'm really aware that, you know,
0:04:22 > 0:04:24if he does that when he's in high school,
0:04:24 > 0:04:26some of the children will laugh at him.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30I'm struggling, actually, to figure out how to deal with that.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35But I think he's almost outgrown us now in junior school.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39The teachers in high school are armed with different skills
0:04:39 > 0:04:43and will be able to see him through his teenage years.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46He just seems to be really excited about going to big school,
0:04:46 > 0:04:48as he calls it.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Yeah, of course, I'm a little bit apprehensive, but...
0:04:53 > 0:04:56..for the most part, I'm looking forward to it.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Jaco, Jaco.
0:04:59 > 0:05:04- Did you get People Of The Year, People Of The Term?- Yeah.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07- Is that your cup there? - Yeah, because I'm the winner.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10- You are a winner. - Yeah, I'm a winner.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17SEAGULLS CRY
0:05:19 > 0:05:23It's estimated that 1 in 100 of us are on the autistic spectrum.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26No-one really knows what causes it.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28And there is no cure.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33There is no such thing as typical autism.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36You could be high or low functioning,
0:05:36 > 0:05:38extremely shy or really outgoing.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40No two people are ever the same.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Nice, this cereal's lovely.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50I just open it up.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57And...and then put my videos on.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59The thing that unites people on the spectrum
0:05:59 > 0:06:02is they seem to relate to the world differently.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06If I let him, he'd easily sit
0:06:06 > 0:06:09and watch the same clip for hours on end.
0:06:09 > 0:06:14That's...that's the drama club.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19- SOMETHING BANGS - Whoa!
0:06:21 > 0:06:22Here he comes.
0:06:24 > 0:06:31- Good morning.- Morning. - Dad, wh-what shall we talk about?
0:06:31 > 0:06:34- Did you sleep well?- Yeah, yes. Did you as well?
0:06:34 > 0:06:36Yeah, yeah, I slept well.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Jaco's autism can mean ordinary noises are painful...
0:06:40 > 0:06:42- Oops!- ..and overwhelming.
0:06:43 > 0:06:48I just put my headphones on because Dad is...
0:06:48 > 0:06:50too noisy.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54He also finds the unpredictability of life difficult.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56But every day, he amazes me.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00How he still wants to take part and do all the things other kids do,
0:07:00 > 0:07:02even if he finds something really hard.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07- Let's have a look over here. - Yeah, let's look over here.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11- There's a buzzy bee.- No. - It's not going to hurt you.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14HE BREATHES DEEPLY
0:07:14 > 0:07:19- Try to relax.- Yeah.- It's fine. - Yeah.- Don't worry.
0:07:19 > 0:07:24- We go down here.- Yeah. Hold my hand? - It's fine.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28- Yes, don't worry.- Dad, don't worry. - Nothing is going to hurt you.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32It's getting pollen, see?
0:07:32 > 0:07:34And there's nothing to worry about cos they're so busy,
0:07:34 > 0:07:36that's why they call them busy bees.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38You are always, always looking, aren't you?
0:07:38 > 0:07:41So you are always looking for where the flies are,
0:07:41 > 0:07:44where the buzzy bees are. And you are tense, aren't you?
0:07:44 > 0:07:45Yes, I'm tense....
0:07:45 > 0:07:48You're not relaxed, you're quite tense, aren't you?
0:07:48 > 0:07:53Yeah, quite tense because...because I'm worried about things.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57Yeah, what are you worried about?
0:07:57 > 0:08:02Worried about the flies and the butterflies and the ladybirds
0:08:02 > 0:08:04and the buzzy bees.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07Yeah. It's a lot to worry about, isn't it?
0:08:07 > 0:08:10Jaco started wearing noise-cancelling headphones
0:08:10 > 0:08:13two years ago, and the change in him is incredible.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17He can cope so much more with everyday noises,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20but I worry that it cuts him off from the world.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23Do you want to take those headphones off now we're out here?
0:08:23 > 0:08:25So we can talk properly?
0:08:26 > 0:08:29Let's have a listen to what we can hear.
0:08:29 > 0:08:33- What can you hear?- Can you hear the police car?
0:08:33 > 0:08:37- Yeah, what else?- Hear the birds.
0:08:39 > 0:08:43Hear the... Hear the... Hear the aeroplane.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46That's the bikes.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48BELL RINGS
0:08:48 > 0:08:52And we're just going to walk around,
0:08:52 > 0:08:55and then we are going back in the car in a minute.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Jaco has something called echolalia,
0:08:58 > 0:09:00where he repeats what he's heard.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03- Yeah, just relax.- It's all good. - It's all good.- See?- See?
0:09:03 > 0:09:06It's a normal stage in how babies learn to talk.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10But, at 11, Jaco is still processing language.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14The people, like, his teachers and myself, when we talk...
0:09:15 > 0:09:18..he's constantly repeating us.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21I think it's about order and pattern, so he hears something...
0:09:23 > 0:09:27Yeah, that kind of compulsion to...
0:09:27 > 0:09:30It's a need for order, isn't it?
0:09:30 > 0:09:33- Can we go back in the car?- Yeah.
0:09:33 > 0:09:34Yeah.
0:09:45 > 0:09:50- Mam.- Yeah?- Mummy!- Mam. Mam.
0:09:50 > 0:09:51Since Jaco was four,
0:09:51 > 0:09:56he's split his time living between my house and Catrin, his mum's.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00That's the hand-dryer. There it is.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05She's putting it on now.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09- Ready?- Ready.
0:10:09 > 0:10:10HAND-DRYER WHIRS
0:10:12 > 0:10:13Whoa!
0:10:15 > 0:10:19- And mine as well? And mine?- OK.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24He's had such a thing about the hand-dryer, for years and years.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Like, scared of them, but then wanting to put them on,
0:10:27 > 0:10:28wanting to film them.
0:10:28 > 0:10:32You know, it's been a huge thing for him whenever we go out anywhere.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35So we thought, "Why don't we just have one in the toilet
0:10:35 > 0:10:37"and maybe it'll help him, you know,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40"get used to them and not be so scared of them."
0:10:40 > 0:10:43- Isn't it?- Yeah, isn't it?
0:10:43 > 0:10:46- Do you think it's a good idea that we got a hand-dryer?- Yeah.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48You're not going to play it all the time, though, are you?
0:10:48 > 0:10:51- You're not going to put your hand under it all the time.- OK.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56HANDDRYER WHIRS
0:10:56 > 0:10:59I'm just worried that he's going to spend his whole time...
0:10:59 > 0:11:01Because another thing that's going to go in there
0:11:01 > 0:11:02is the washing machine
0:11:02 > 0:11:05which is another thing that, you know, he loves.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07So I think that will be his favourite room in the house
0:11:07 > 0:11:09with the hand-dryer and the washing machine.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11Jaco, wheeee!
0:11:11 > 0:11:13- Yeah?- Jaco, wheeee!
0:11:14 > 0:11:16I think Miriam is really good for him.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18It's brought him out of himself.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20You know, she kind of surprises him.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23You know, you can't tell what she's going to do
0:11:23 > 0:11:26so that's why the headphones have really kicked in
0:11:26 > 0:11:28because of the noise. She's really noisy.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32- The Tombliboos.- Yes, the Tombliboos.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35He is really sweet with her, and, you know,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38we'll do stuff like that, but if you leave them alone,
0:11:38 > 0:11:41you can hear him kind of trying to tempt her to do something naughty
0:11:41 > 0:11:44or, you know, he's not an angel.
0:11:44 > 0:11:46He does wind her up as well.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48Uh-oh!
0:11:49 > 0:11:54- Yeah, we laugh, don't we?- You're funny, you, aren't you?- I'm funny.
0:11:54 > 0:11:55Yeah, you are.
0:11:56 > 0:11:57THEY LAUGH
0:12:00 > 0:12:01Can we go feed the birds?
0:12:03 > 0:12:04- OK.- Stand up, then.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06SHE LAUGHS
0:12:06 > 0:12:08Stand up.
0:12:08 > 0:12:14- OK. Yeah, we'll stand up. - I'm standing up.- I'm standing up.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17Oh, wow!
0:12:17 > 0:12:20- Oh, uh-oh.- Uh-oh.- Oh, my God!
0:12:20 > 0:12:23WINGS FLAP
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Uh-uh-uh!
0:12:25 > 0:12:27Wow!
0:12:27 > 0:12:28Oh, my God!
0:12:31 > 0:12:34- INTERVIEWER:- Do you think much about his future?
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Sometimes it scares me to think about it, and, you know,
0:12:37 > 0:12:40who knows what he's going to be like when he's 15?
0:12:40 > 0:12:42I do wonder, is he going to be able to live independently or,
0:12:42 > 0:12:45you know...
0:12:45 > 0:12:48So I'm just trying not to think too much about it.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51And just see how he develops in the next five years,
0:12:51 > 0:12:56and when he hits, like, 14, 15, I'll have to start thinking about it
0:12:56 > 0:12:59and, you know, making provisions.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01At the moment, I'm just trying to enjoy him, really.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08He could develop, you know, he could not develop,
0:13:08 > 0:13:11or he could develop a lot more in the next five years, so...
0:13:13 > 0:13:16I'm just trying not to panic about it, really.
0:13:16 > 0:13:17Which is not like me,
0:13:17 > 0:13:20cos I worry and panic about everything,
0:13:20 > 0:13:22but with him, I'm trying not to.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24- Do your pigeon face for us. - Do your pigeon impression.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32He's always had a thing for pigeons.
0:13:32 > 0:13:33That's when I first noticed
0:13:33 > 0:13:36that there was something different about him,
0:13:36 > 0:13:37because whenever he was around pigeons,
0:13:37 > 0:13:40he used to get really excited and just hit his face like this.
0:13:40 > 0:13:41And that was the first time
0:13:41 > 0:13:43I ever noticed that it was with pigeons.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46So it's weird that he still loves them.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51TRANSLATION:
0:13:54 > 0:13:56Clever boy.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00Say Mum.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02- Mam.- Say Dad.
0:14:02 > 0:14:03Dad.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09I was aware, deep down,
0:14:09 > 0:14:11that there might be something wrong with him.
0:14:11 > 0:14:18I was away on a job, I was filming up in Yorkshire,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22and I came through the door and he was in a high chair.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27So I got my camera out, and I went to take a picture of him
0:14:27 > 0:14:30and he went like that...
0:14:30 > 0:14:32He put his fingers in his ears.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35And I put the camera down, he took his fingers out.
0:14:35 > 0:14:38I put the camera up again. He did that.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41And then when the flash went off,
0:14:41 > 0:14:43he went like that.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47And that was the first time I noticed...
0:14:49 > 0:14:51..something wasn't quite right, you know?
0:14:53 > 0:14:56I can't actually remember, at any point,
0:14:56 > 0:14:58anyone saying it could be autism.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02Maybe I blocked it out, I don't know,
0:15:02 > 0:15:04but I can't seem to remember...
0:15:07 > 0:15:10..when the word autism was said to me. I really can't.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18Jaco's first day of high school has finally come.
0:15:22 > 0:15:28The local authority have laid on a taxi for him and another child.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31So pick up Jaco and pick up another child
0:15:31 > 0:15:34and take him to his first day of school.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38So I'm going to be like stalker Dad. And follow the taxi.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45I worry about wrapping him up in cotton wool too much.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48But I think that's different to being overprotective. Is it?
0:15:50 > 0:15:52Jaco is going to a mainstream
0:15:52 > 0:15:56Welsh-speaking school, Ysgol Glantaf.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59This looks like a good place.
0:15:59 > 0:16:00I can see down there.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06I'm like a kind of rubbish spy.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10HE LAUGHS
0:16:10 > 0:16:14I've always wanted him to be part of the real world as much as possible.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16He'll join mixed ability classes,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19but have support from the specialist resource base.
0:16:24 > 0:16:31TRANSLATION:
0:16:31 > 0:16:35THEY SING IN WELSH
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Jaco is bilingual. I've always felt it's important for him.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44It's given him a sense of identity,
0:16:44 > 0:16:47and helps him fit in with the world around him.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55- INTERVIEWER:- So where are we, Jaco?
0:16:58 > 0:17:03That's... That's me in my big school.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07To look in my friends...
0:17:08 > 0:17:11And there's all my new friends.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17I love them. Because they're great, aren't they?
0:17:17 > 0:17:19Yeah.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23And now it's time to go to classroom.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Miss said we are going to classroom.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Today is his first day.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36His first day in uniform, his first day following a timetable.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40First day of being with part of the sort of hurly-burly of the school.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42Hello, new teachers.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46They're very dependent, at the moment,
0:17:46 > 0:17:49on somebody telling them where to go.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54We integrate the children into a real-life school
0:17:54 > 0:17:57because what we want them to do is to see how well they cope
0:17:57 > 0:18:00in a situation where they are with other children, cos we want them
0:18:00 > 0:18:04to be part of the school, we want them to feel a part of the school.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08We aim for him to be as independent as possible,
0:18:08 > 0:18:10so that he can make friends,
0:18:10 > 0:18:12take part in things going on in the school,
0:18:12 > 0:18:14and just to get on with it, really,
0:18:14 > 0:18:16cos that's what life is about, really.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27HE SINGS
0:18:27 > 0:18:33He's down by the Astroturf. He's releasing a bit of energy.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36He's fine.
0:18:45 > 0:18:46Ticky-ticky-ticky...
0:18:48 > 0:18:50JACO LAUGHS
0:18:51 > 0:18:54I just remember lots of appointments and lots of tests.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57Lots of cognitive tests.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01I just remember the whole thing. It just made me angry.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07You just want your child to be normal.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10The first thing that you do is you blame yourself.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12You think, "Have I done something?"
0:19:12 > 0:19:15Right down to the formula that you've used,
0:19:15 > 0:19:17or the food that you feed your child with.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23Yeah, I found it difficult to talk about.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26And then, when I did talk about it, when I did open up,
0:19:26 > 0:19:27people didn't really understand.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31Especially my friends, you know.
0:19:31 > 0:19:32My male friends.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39Men are crap in situations like that. You know?
0:19:39 > 0:19:41"You'll be all right, boy." You know?
0:19:44 > 0:19:48I remember there was a kind of a moment where I was, like,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51"I've got to learn about this world."
0:19:51 > 0:19:55I just remember kind of starting to soak it all up,
0:19:55 > 0:20:02and I got past that period of feeling sorry for myself,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04and I've not looked back from that.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13'I have so many questions about Jaco's autism,
0:20:13 > 0:20:15'I have read everything I can get my hands on,
0:20:15 > 0:20:20'but I still wonder what it would be like to be in Jaco's head.'
0:20:20 > 0:20:22Thank you all for coming,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25it is a real honour for me to be speaking for you all today.
0:20:25 > 0:20:30And as Henry VIII said to his wife, "I won't keep you for long."
0:20:30 > 0:20:32'I came across Alex Lowery online.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35'He struggled with speech from an early age,
0:20:35 > 0:20:38'but now makes a living talking about autism.'
0:20:38 > 0:20:41Hello, my name is Alexander Lowery and I have autism.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44I was diagnosed when I was four years old.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48My earliest memory is of when I was three years old.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50I was in a world that was a terrifying place
0:20:50 > 0:20:54with noises so loud you had to hold your ears to face them.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57Going into shops was one of the worst torments
0:20:57 > 0:20:59you could have on this earth.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02And I'm passionate about raising people's understanding
0:21:02 > 0:21:06and increasing awareness of autistic spectrum conditions.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09- Alex.- Hello.- Hiya. Richard. - Nice to meet you.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11Nice to meet you, Alex. You all right?
0:21:11 > 0:21:13- Yeah, you?- Yeah, good, good.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17'Alex lives at home in Holywell with his mum, dad and two siblings.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20It's nice to get into the warm, it's pretty cold out there.
0:21:20 > 0:21:24- Yeah.- Hello.- Hi. Nice to meet you.- You are?- Sylvia.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27- Sylvia. You're Mum, yeah? - Yeah, Mum, yeah.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29- Nice to meet you. - Yeah, nice to meet you too. Yeah.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33What often comes with being on the autistic spectrum
0:21:33 > 0:21:36is having particular interests, things that you fixate on
0:21:36 > 0:21:38and one of them in my case is autism.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40I could talk about it for a really long time,
0:21:40 > 0:21:43so just getting the opportunity to talk about autism
0:21:43 > 0:21:47and, you know, getting to say...
0:21:47 > 0:21:52Getting everything I want said to be said, if that makes any sense.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54Yeah, no, it makes perfect sense.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56That's quite rewarding, I would say.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01One of Alex's YouTube videos is about self-stimulatory behaviour
0:22:01 > 0:22:03or stimming for short.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07He keeps rocking back and forth and clapping his hands.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09I don't think he's all there.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11Jaco has always stimmed too,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14he taps his face and clicks bottle tops.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18Alex is more physical and uses his whole body.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Yes, I've broken things several times.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25- I've broken things several times, just because I'm...- Have you?
0:22:25 > 0:22:28I don't know, like, at what...
0:22:28 > 0:22:31Like, you know, I don't have the control,
0:22:31 > 0:22:33if you know what I mean?
0:22:33 > 0:22:35And, actually, Alex doesn't need an exercise class,
0:22:35 > 0:22:37he keeps himself fit.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40He keeps himself fit, yeah. THEY LAUGH
0:22:40 > 0:22:44OK, does it make you feel good?
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Yeah, I'd say so, and when I'm in...
0:22:46 > 0:22:50when I'm in those... when I'm doing it, yes.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54Alex feels really passionate about raising awareness of stimming
0:22:54 > 0:22:55and he feels that people...
0:22:55 > 0:22:58You know, that really it's not even a disability,
0:22:58 > 0:23:02the only problem with stimming is society doesn't accept it.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06And, you know, Alex has had people, you know, when he has stimmed
0:23:06 > 0:23:09in the past, he's had people thinking he was having a fit.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12Sometimes I might be doing the odd twitch where I stim
0:23:12 > 0:23:15and I'm not even noticing it and someone will say,
0:23:15 > 0:23:21"Are you cold? You shivered." And I think, "No, no, I wasn't."
0:23:21 > 0:23:25That just shows that even subtle ones people pick up on.
0:23:25 > 0:23:27I think of you take stimming away,
0:23:27 > 0:23:31- it's like taking away an operating system.- Yeah.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34And Alex used to use that little string called Freddie
0:23:34 > 0:23:36and he used to say, "It's my power."
0:23:36 > 0:23:38This is my power, it gives me power for my brain.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Basically, it almost is a way of charging my brain up,
0:23:41 > 0:23:43- if you know what I mean.- Right.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45If I go on a long time without it, I'm, like,
0:23:45 > 0:23:48my thirst for it gets stronger and stronger.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51And we all stim. We all do little things.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55- I play with my hair or you rock... - Yeah, I do this, lots.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57Yeah, or even, I don't know,
0:23:57 > 0:24:00do you ever sit there and count things,
0:24:00 > 0:24:02like, count all those things, you know,
0:24:02 > 0:24:04in your head sometimes when you're bored.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06So that's something that we need to...
0:24:06 > 0:24:08- We need society... - We need to accept it.- Yeah.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10Do you remember being diagnosed then,
0:24:10 > 0:24:13- if you can remember that far back? - No, no.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17I basically just viewed the world as a very confusing place
0:24:17 > 0:24:19which I didn't understand at all
0:24:19 > 0:24:22and it didn't help that I couldn't really...
0:24:22 > 0:24:24I struggled with my language too,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27but I thought I was speaking just like everybody else,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30but no-one seemed to understand what I was saying.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Alex's language started to come at age, you know, five,
0:24:34 > 0:24:37but it was... There was still a lot of problems
0:24:37 > 0:24:40and he would go, "But, but, but, but..."
0:24:40 > 0:24:42and then he would get on the floor and have a meltdown
0:24:42 > 0:24:44with frustration, he was self-harming,
0:24:44 > 0:24:47he was attacking us, he was attacking siblings,
0:24:47 > 0:24:51he was obviously in a terrifying world and it was absolutely awful.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55All I could see in that blackness was Alex as a 15-year-old
0:24:55 > 0:24:59and I was terrified of not being able to look after him, you know.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02And then you start to see, as time goes on, and particularly
0:25:02 > 0:25:06if you allow, you know, I allowed Alex to follow the interests,
0:25:06 > 0:25:09the things he's good at, instead of worrying about
0:25:09 > 0:25:11focusing on the things that he struggles with.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15I admired Alex and Sylvia's positive outlook.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20It's so easy to fall down a black hole of worrying about
0:25:20 > 0:25:22things your kid can't do.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26I absolutely loathe discos entirely.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31Alex has come a long way since being a four-year-old who couldn't talk.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42THEY SPEAK WELSH
0:25:52 > 0:25:55THEY SPEAK WELSH
0:26:03 > 0:26:06Jaco's been at school for six weeks now,
0:26:06 > 0:26:09I'm keen to find out how he's getting on
0:26:09 > 0:26:12and his teacher's take on how he's developing.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18So, how is he getting on?
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Oh, he's doing really well, really pleased with him.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24He does know his way around for the main places,
0:26:24 > 0:26:26he knows his way to the canteen, he knows his way out to the yard,
0:26:26 > 0:26:28he knows his way in from the yard.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32He's usually last coming off the yard,
0:26:32 > 0:26:34but he does talk to the seagulls,
0:26:34 > 0:26:37cos the seagulls around here, as soon as they hear the bell,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40they know to come and pick up whatever's been dropped,
0:26:40 > 0:26:44sandwiches and stuff, so he talks to the seagulls nearly every day.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Does he? What kind of conversations does he have?
0:26:46 > 0:26:48He has chats about one of them being the mummy
0:26:48 > 0:26:49and one being the daddy
0:26:49 > 0:26:51and they're coming to have sandwiches.
0:26:51 > 0:26:56And he's... I don't know if he's half afraid, but half likes them,
0:26:56 > 0:26:59but he's talking it through and he's getting himself through,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01- it's quite interesting, actually. - Right.
0:27:01 > 0:27:03Now we're getting to know him really well, I think,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06- and he's settled in really well, he's very popular.- Yeah?
0:27:06 > 0:27:10How is he getting on with integrating here?
0:27:10 > 0:27:12Because obviously it's a much bigger school.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15He's, again, he's coping really well.
0:27:15 > 0:27:17Some of the lessons, I mean, the drama lessons,
0:27:17 > 0:27:23he's more confident and more keen to get up in front of others
0:27:23 > 0:27:26and some of them are really quite nervous
0:27:26 > 0:27:28about standing up in front of people and performing.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31No problem at all. He's quite happy to do that.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34He really enjoys the music lessons as well.
0:27:35 > 0:27:37PE, he's taking part.
0:27:37 > 0:27:38There's nothing really,
0:27:38 > 0:27:42he hasn't stood out as particularly different.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44A couple of children have asked why he wears headphones
0:27:44 > 0:27:46and we've explained it's because things are a bit
0:27:46 > 0:27:50- too noisy sometimes, not always and they go, "OK."- Right.
0:27:50 > 0:27:51So, a few people have enquired,
0:27:51 > 0:27:55but there hasn't been any kind of animosity
0:27:55 > 0:27:58or anything strange at all. He's just kind of slipped in,
0:27:58 > 0:28:00slipped into life, really.
0:28:00 > 0:28:01That's great.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10- It's great that he's getting on so well.- Yeah.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17Jaco's settling in so well at school,
0:28:17 > 0:28:19taking it all in his stride.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21But I still worry about
0:28:21 > 0:28:23what the future holds when he leaves.
0:28:29 > 0:28:33'I've always had reservations about special schools,
0:28:33 > 0:28:35'I don't like the idea of separating kids,
0:28:35 > 0:28:37'because they have different needs,
0:28:37 > 0:28:40'but I've heard about one right on my doorstep in Penarth
0:28:40 > 0:28:42'that sounds interesting.'
0:28:44 > 0:28:48- Hello.- Hi, Richard, I'm Ben. - Hi, Ben. Richard, nice to meet you.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50- What's your name?- I'm Jamie. - Jamie, nice to meet you.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53- Would you like to go on a tour? - Yeah, I'd love to go on a tour.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56- OK, follow us.- Cool.
0:28:56 > 0:29:01Ysgol Y Deri takes kids from three to 19 years old.
0:29:01 > 0:29:04Almost half of its students have autism.
0:29:04 > 0:29:08- Where you can do...- Arts, crafts...
0:29:08 > 0:29:11- What's your name?- This is...? - Richard, my name is Richard.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Richard. This is Richard?
0:29:13 > 0:29:16Yes, I'm Richard. Nice to meet you.
0:29:17 > 0:29:19So, arts and crafts in here, yeah?
0:29:19 > 0:29:21How long have you been here?
0:29:21 > 0:29:24Well, I've been here for about three years.
0:29:24 > 0:29:28I wasn't diagnosed with my autism until I was 11 years old,
0:29:28 > 0:29:31so, when I went to junior school,
0:29:31 > 0:29:36all the way through I was bullied and then I was transferred over
0:29:36 > 0:29:37to high school.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41When I had my first six months there,
0:29:41 > 0:29:44I had my arm broken by another student.
0:29:44 > 0:29:47Then I got moved on to private school,
0:29:47 > 0:29:50got asked to leave there.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53I moved over here and I've been here ever since.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57- Wow. You've been through a lot. - Yeah.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02I was kicked out of school, so...
0:30:02 > 0:30:04How come you were kicked out of school?
0:30:04 > 0:30:06- Naughty.- Naughty?
0:30:06 > 0:30:11- I got bullied as well.- Did you? - Absolutely hated it.
0:30:11 > 0:30:14But since I've been here, I've had loads of friends.
0:30:16 > 0:30:21- Friends with the teachers as well. - Yeah? Are the teachers nice?- Yeah.
0:30:22 > 0:30:27The school has 256 students, with a range of disabilities.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29- So, this is the flat.- Yes.
0:30:31 > 0:30:33So, what's this area like?
0:30:33 > 0:30:35This is, like, the living room area where you can learn
0:30:35 > 0:30:37about social interactions.
0:30:37 > 0:30:41- It's like a proper little crib, isn't it?- Yeah, yeah.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44It's amazing in here, it's absolutely superb,
0:30:44 > 0:30:48it's like I've learnt so much from this room myself.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51Have you? Yeah. What kind of things?
0:30:51 > 0:30:54I've learnt to make a cup of tea, I've learned to cook, clean...
0:30:54 > 0:30:56What kind of things do you cook in here?
0:30:56 > 0:31:00- I make toast.- I cooked chicken in there once.- Did you?
0:31:00 > 0:31:04- Yeah. Roast chicken. - A roast chicken?- Yeah.
0:31:04 > 0:31:05It's absolutely lovely in here.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08It is really nice in here, isn't it?
0:31:08 > 0:31:11It's quite sort of calm in here as well.
0:31:11 > 0:31:14Everything that's in here is like your first kind of steps
0:31:14 > 0:31:17- towards independence.- Yes.- Yeah?
0:31:17 > 0:31:19It's been a long journey,
0:31:19 > 0:31:23but I feel I'm going to make something of my life.
0:31:23 > 0:31:25Yeah? I'm sure you will.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27Are you allowed to sort of, you know,
0:31:27 > 0:31:29venture out on your own or go to shops or anything?
0:31:29 > 0:31:32- I've got no sense of danger, so... - You don't?
0:31:32 > 0:31:34I've got to be out with an adult.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36He can come out with me
0:31:36 > 0:31:40and I can teach him about the dangers of the road.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44Cos learning things from an autistic's point of view
0:31:44 > 0:31:48makes it so much easier for that other autistic person to learn.
0:31:48 > 0:31:49Right.
0:31:49 > 0:31:52We understand where everyone's coming from in this school.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54That makes sense, I mean, obviously,
0:31:54 > 0:31:58kind of unique individuals can understand each other better.
0:32:03 > 0:32:05It's a massive school, isn't it?
0:32:05 > 0:32:09- Yeah.- I think it's too big. I'm out of breath just walking up here.
0:32:09 > 0:32:12Wow, it's like a proper little salon.
0:32:13 > 0:32:17- Hello. There's a nail bar going on here.- Yeah.
0:32:19 > 0:32:22- After you, Rich. - Thank you very much.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25- So, have you enjoyed your tour of the school so far?- I'm loving it.
0:32:25 > 0:32:26I'm loving it.
0:32:26 > 0:32:29Class sizes are much smaller than regular schools
0:32:29 > 0:32:31and the curriculum focuses on life skills
0:32:31 > 0:32:33as much as academic achievement.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35So, this is our careers corner.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38- This is the careers corner. - This is the careers corner, yes.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40And I think part of our sessions here are about kind of
0:32:40 > 0:32:42managing hopes, dreams and expectations
0:32:42 > 0:32:45and, you know, what's realistic for jobs.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48That can be tricky, I guess. So how do you do that?
0:32:48 > 0:32:51We have placements in school, but also when they get to sixth form,
0:32:51 > 0:32:53they'll go out on an external placement.
0:32:53 > 0:32:55Then it's trying to just show them what's realistic, really
0:32:55 > 0:32:58Most of the students do want to kind of end up working or...?
0:32:58 > 0:33:02Yeah, I think the majority have all kind of got a plan for the future,
0:33:02 > 0:33:05most of them do want to go out to work, the majority will want
0:33:05 > 0:33:07to go to college first and develop their skills there.
0:33:07 > 0:33:09They've all got the capability to go on and learn further,
0:33:09 > 0:33:12so we try and encourage that before employment.
0:33:14 > 0:33:19- So, this is the playground. - It's pretty foggy out here today.
0:33:20 > 0:33:24Do you think that all children with special needs
0:33:24 > 0:33:26should go to a special needs school?
0:33:26 > 0:33:31People who have the same sort of, like, differences as me,
0:33:31 > 0:33:34should come to schools like this,
0:33:34 > 0:33:35because it's a coping situation,
0:33:35 > 0:33:37whereas if they went to a mainstream school,
0:33:37 > 0:33:40they wouldn't cope in that situation.
0:33:40 > 0:33:43Does this place feel like a safe place to you?
0:33:43 > 0:33:45- This school?- Yeah.
0:33:45 > 0:33:49- Do you look forward to coming here? - I love it.- Do you?
0:33:50 > 0:33:52I love this school.
0:33:54 > 0:33:55- Yeah?- Yeah.
0:33:57 > 0:34:00Thanks a lot, guys, bye-bye. Bye.
0:34:04 > 0:34:05Wow.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08That place is amazing.
0:34:08 > 0:34:11I have always wanted Jaco to be part of the real world
0:34:11 > 0:34:13and to learn about the world around him,
0:34:13 > 0:34:17but that is the real world in there, you know?
0:34:19 > 0:34:22That wasn't a bubble mentality in there,
0:34:22 > 0:34:27they're not being sort of sheltered from the big, bad world,
0:34:27 > 0:34:33you know, they're being equipped and they're gaining the tools
0:34:33 > 0:34:37to be able to survive and they're doing it
0:34:37 > 0:34:40in a really kind of forward-thinking, inclusive way.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47Yeah. I don't see that place as a bubble,
0:34:47 > 0:34:49I thought I would, but I don't.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52I don't. I thought it was really impressive in there.
0:34:56 > 0:34:58So, remember?
0:34:58 > 0:35:03One, two...
0:35:03 > 0:35:06- That's it.- ..three. - Three, very good.
0:35:06 > 0:35:10- One, two...- Hold in the middle.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13..two, three.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16Very good. So, why are we doing these jobs?
0:35:17 > 0:35:21Because learn to...learn to...
0:35:21 > 0:35:24learn to be a bigger me.
0:35:24 > 0:35:27Yeah, when you're big, what will happen if you learn all these jobs
0:35:27 > 0:35:28and you can do them properly?
0:35:28 > 0:35:32Because I'm going to...have my own house.
0:35:32 > 0:35:36Yeah, if you learn to do these jobs really, really well,
0:35:36 > 0:35:39- one day, you might be able to have your own house...- Yeah.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41..and put your own clothes in the washing machine,
0:35:41 > 0:35:43have your own washing machine.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46- A black washing machine. - You want a black one, I know.
0:35:46 > 0:35:50- Yeah.- And you can cook your own food.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53- Yeah. - That would be amazing, wouldn't it?
0:35:53 > 0:35:55Yeah.
0:35:55 > 0:35:59It means that you can look after yourself and it's really important
0:35:59 > 0:36:03for people to be able to look after themselves, yeah?
0:36:03 > 0:36:07'I'm thinking about his adult life now, but I learnt a few years back
0:36:07 > 0:36:11'that you've got to plan ahead, you've got to think ahead.'
0:36:11 > 0:36:16And then we put them...in the... in the washing machine.
0:36:16 > 0:36:18Then we put them in the cupboard.
0:36:18 > 0:36:23'It takes so long for him to grasp something, but once he does,
0:36:23 > 0:36:24'he can do it really well.'
0:36:24 > 0:36:27- Into the cupboard. - Yeah. There we go.
0:36:27 > 0:36:30- And we put the washing on.- Yeah.
0:36:32 > 0:36:35I've got to think about his teenage years now
0:36:35 > 0:36:37when he's sort of 10, 11, 12.
0:36:38 > 0:36:40It's very fast.
0:36:40 > 0:36:41It's super-duper fast.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45And then, when he's in his mid-teens,
0:36:45 > 0:36:47I'll be thinking about his early adult life.
0:36:47 > 0:36:49It's slowing down.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57'Independence has always been important to me.
0:36:57 > 0:37:00'I left home in Swansea at 12 years old to go to dance school.
0:37:00 > 0:37:03'I have no idea where Jaco will end up living
0:37:03 > 0:37:05'and how much support he will need.
0:37:05 > 0:37:09'But there are places that can help provide the stepping stones
0:37:09 > 0:37:11'to an independent life.'
0:37:13 > 0:37:15Coleg Elidyr, near Llandovery
0:37:15 > 0:37:19is the only further education college in Wales to have received
0:37:19 > 0:37:22special recognition from the National Autistic Society.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28Wow, it's great in here.
0:37:28 > 0:37:31This is the least likely classroom you're ever going to see.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34The college is independent,
0:37:34 > 0:37:37but students that come here are local authority funded.
0:37:37 > 0:37:42It takes people up to 25 years old and provides supported accommodation
0:37:42 > 0:37:44nearby for when they graduate.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47Life skills and learning through craft are a key part
0:37:47 > 0:37:49of its philosophy.
0:37:49 > 0:37:52- Hello.- Hello. You're not Ed. - Ed.- Oh, this is Ed.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54'I'm meeting 21-year-old Ed,
0:37:54 > 0:37:57'who's been here for two years, and his mum, Isabel, who is visiting.'
0:37:57 > 0:38:00Thank you very much. Nice to meet you, Ed.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Shall we give Richard a tour of the house
0:38:02 > 0:38:05and maybe show him where your room is, if you're happy with that?
0:38:05 > 0:38:09- Yes.- That OK?- Yes. - Thank you, Ed, thank you very much.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15Is this where you eat your food? I'm guessing.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23So this is your room. Got it.
0:38:23 > 0:38:25- Ta-da!- Wow, it's a big room.
0:38:27 > 0:38:29Is that your exercise bike?
0:38:29 > 0:38:32- Yeah.- Wow.
0:38:33 > 0:38:37What was the big bike ride you did last year, Ed, can you remember?
0:38:37 > 0:38:40- Last year - Tenby. - Yeah, Cardiff to Tenby.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42- Cardiff to Tenby.- Cardiff to Tenby?!
0:38:42 > 0:38:44- And you cycled...- 100 miles.
0:38:44 > 0:38:46You cycled that whole way?
0:38:46 > 0:38:49It was a charity ride. Big charity ride in Cardiff.
0:38:49 > 0:38:53That's amazing one-leg cycling.
0:38:54 > 0:38:58What's this here? Is this your planner, your diary?
0:38:58 > 0:39:00What do you do on a Monday?
0:39:00 > 0:39:02ICT suite, careers.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06- Yeah, careers.- Careers. - What do you do on a Tuesday?
0:39:06 > 0:39:10Craft, art and design for mosaic in the whole classroom.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13And tell Richard where you go on a Wednesday morning,
0:39:13 > 0:39:15- because you like that, don't you? - Co-operative shop.
0:39:15 > 0:39:18Yeah. Tell him you work in the Co-operative shop.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21- You work... I've been... - Stacking the shelves.- Wow.
0:39:21 > 0:39:24What's Ed playing? Is he playing solitaire?
0:39:24 > 0:39:26Yeah, yeah, solitaire.
0:39:26 > 0:39:28He's doing that really quick.
0:39:28 > 0:39:33Yeah, he's good at it. He is good at maths, actually, yeah.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36He's got a thing about sort of birthdays.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39Ed, do you want to ask Richard his birthday?
0:39:39 > 0:39:42What's your birthday, Richard?
0:39:42 > 0:39:46- My date of birth or just my...? - Just your date of birth, yeah.
0:39:46 > 0:39:50- 24th of November...- 19...?
0:39:50 > 0:39:55- '72.- 24th of November 1970...
0:39:55 > 0:39:58- Two.- Two is...
0:39:58 > 0:40:00Friday.
0:40:00 > 0:40:03Were you born on a Friday?
0:40:03 > 0:40:04Possibly, you were.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07- That's amazing. - Just stare and smile.
0:40:07 > 0:40:08- That's amazing.- Yeah.
0:40:08 > 0:40:10- What, he can work out the day? - Yeah, it's some formula.
0:40:10 > 0:40:15None of us quite know how he does it, but he usually is right.
0:40:15 > 0:40:16He's usually right, you know.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18- Ed, that's...- That's his thing.
0:40:18 > 0:40:20- It's his thing. - That's really very impressive.
0:40:20 > 0:40:23- I'm really impressed by that.- Yes.
0:40:23 > 0:40:26- That's really cool. - Really impressive.- Yeah.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28- Shall we go downstairs for some lunch?- Yeah.
0:40:28 > 0:40:30Yeah, let's do that.
0:40:30 > 0:40:32- Hello!- Hello!
0:40:32 > 0:40:35Nice to meet you.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38- He just seems, like, really settled. - Well, he's really settled here.
0:40:38 > 0:40:39He is settled.
0:40:39 > 0:40:45I never, ever thought that he would be residential away from us, really.
0:40:45 > 0:40:49He's a long way from home, and he doesn't have great language,
0:40:49 > 0:40:52and he's not great on the telephone, so, actually, it's...
0:40:52 > 0:40:55It was a huge leap of trust to have him here.
0:40:55 > 0:40:58- You do have to let your kids go, don't you?- You do.
0:40:58 > 0:41:00You have to let them grow up.
0:41:00 > 0:41:03You have to let them be independent, especially kids like Ed,
0:41:03 > 0:41:05and probably Jaco.
0:41:05 > 0:41:07You know, the temptation to, sort of, keep them at home,
0:41:07 > 0:41:11and wrap them in cotton wool, and keep time standing still,
0:41:11 > 0:41:13when you can't do it, can you?
0:41:14 > 0:41:18Knowing he's happy here and he's safe here
0:41:18 > 0:41:22has been a really, really big part of it.
0:41:22 > 0:41:26He's achieved so much more than we ever thought he would,
0:41:26 > 0:41:28and he's still continuing to achieve.
0:41:28 > 0:41:30Because I know that my son really, kind of,
0:41:30 > 0:41:33responds well to having those kind of responsibilities,
0:41:33 > 0:41:35with, you know...
0:41:35 > 0:41:39- ED WHINES - Shh, shh, shh.- ..being able to do things for himself, you know?
0:41:39 > 0:41:40Yeah. Oh, absolutely.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42- No, he...- He gets a real kick out of that.- Yeah, they do.
0:41:42 > 0:41:46- They really do. I think it makes a big difference, doesn't it?- Yeah.
0:41:46 > 0:41:48- You love it at Coleg, don't you? - Yeah.
0:41:48 > 0:41:51- Yeah, and your friends, living with your friends?- Yeah.
0:41:51 > 0:41:52What's your favourite lesson?
0:41:52 > 0:41:54Er, woodwork.
0:41:54 > 0:41:56- Yeah, that's what you told me this morning.- Woodwork?- Yeah.
0:41:56 > 0:41:59- Woodwork with Lewis, isn't it? - Yeah.- Yeah.- Do you know...?
0:41:59 > 0:42:01Do you remember what you're making in woodwork at the moment?
0:42:01 > 0:42:04- Table.- Wow. Wow.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06- They do - they make the most incredible things.- Yeah.
0:42:06 > 0:42:10Can I ask you, have you noticed a difference in him,
0:42:10 > 0:42:13and what are those differences since he's been coming here?
0:42:13 > 0:42:16He's got much more self-confidence.
0:42:16 > 0:42:20He's got much more, um...
0:42:20 > 0:42:22He... His language is better.
0:42:22 > 0:42:26He is more interactive.
0:42:26 > 0:42:30He tries harder to have relationships and friendships.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33He's calmer. You know, somehow, he's calmer.
0:42:33 > 0:42:34Thank you, Richard.
0:42:34 > 0:42:35Thank you.
0:42:35 > 0:42:37Thank you for showing me round,
0:42:37 > 0:42:41- and thank you for showing me your room and your bike...- Yes.
0:42:41 > 0:42:43- ..and thank you for telling me I was born on a Friday.- Yes.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45That's amazing.
0:42:49 > 0:42:53It makes me nervous, thinking about Jaco living that far away,
0:42:53 > 0:42:56and how he would cope without all of his favourite things in Cardiff -
0:42:56 > 0:42:59the market, the train station, and the hustle and bustle.
0:43:06 > 0:43:08JACO BLOWS A RASPBERRY
0:43:13 > 0:43:17I knew pretty early on that Jaco had an incredible amount of joy
0:43:17 > 0:43:18in him, you know? That... That was...
0:43:18 > 0:43:20That's always been there.
0:43:20 > 0:43:24And that he really loved life, and that all I...
0:43:24 > 0:43:27all I needed to do was work out what life on his terms was
0:43:27 > 0:43:29and live it with him.
0:43:31 > 0:43:36I know that some people look at me and think,
0:43:36 > 0:43:37"You're deluded about your son."
0:43:37 > 0:43:40You know? I know people have thought that.
0:43:40 > 0:43:42# Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba... #
0:43:42 > 0:43:45You cannot put a limit on any child,
0:43:45 > 0:43:48especially a child with special needs -
0:43:48 > 0:43:49you cannot.
0:43:51 > 0:43:53Like I always say, it's like... It's...
0:43:53 > 0:43:56I'm being led by the hand by my child, not the other way around.
0:43:58 > 0:44:02All right, once you get your head around that, you start to think,
0:44:02 > 0:44:09"My child is just wired differently, and that's, like,
0:44:09 > 0:44:11"an incredible journey that I am going to go on with him,
0:44:11 > 0:44:13"to work all that out with him."
0:44:16 > 0:44:19'Like all kids, Jaco talks about what job he wants to do
0:44:19 > 0:44:21'when he grows up -
0:44:21 > 0:44:25'at the moment, it's ringing the bell in Cardiff Market -
0:44:25 > 0:44:29'but only a third of people with autism are in employment.
0:44:31 > 0:44:33'There's a new project called Engage To Change
0:44:33 > 0:44:36'that's helping 1,000 young people in Wales with learning disabilities
0:44:36 > 0:44:38'and autism into work.'
0:44:40 > 0:44:42- Hello.- Rick, hello. - Are you Gerraint?- I am.
0:44:42 > 0:44:44- Richard. So, this is where you work, yeah?- It is, yeah.
0:44:44 > 0:44:45Do you want to come up and have a look?
0:44:45 > 0:44:48- Are you going to show me around? - Yeah, come on, then.- Yeah, cool.
0:44:48 > 0:44:50'Gerraint is working at Cardiff-based charity
0:44:50 > 0:44:52'Learning Disability Wales.'
0:44:52 > 0:44:53This is my desk.
0:44:53 > 0:44:55Right.
0:44:55 > 0:44:58- Hiya, everyone. Hi. - Hi.- Hello.- Hi.
0:44:58 > 0:45:00So, are you always here? Are you always sat here?
0:45:00 > 0:45:04I am, yeah. Yeah, this is where I'm put, to be honest.
0:45:04 > 0:45:06What's your official job title here.
0:45:06 > 0:45:09My official job title is administrative officer for
0:45:09 > 0:45:10the Engage To Change project.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13- Administrative officer. - Officer, yeah.
0:45:13 > 0:45:16- That's very official.- I know. It is very, yeah.- Do you get...?
0:45:16 > 0:45:17Is that, like, a buzz?
0:45:17 > 0:45:19- Do you get a buzz out of, like, the job title?- I do, yeah. Yeah.
0:45:19 > 0:45:22Yeah. One of my responsibilities for the office is doing the post
0:45:22 > 0:45:24for the members of staff.
0:45:24 > 0:45:25- It just comes in...- Yeah.
0:45:25 > 0:45:28- Some of these have just got "Learning Disability Wales"...- Yeah.
0:45:28 > 0:45:30..and no staff member.
0:45:30 > 0:45:32So, what I do then is have a look.
0:45:32 > 0:45:36I pick it up and have a look.
0:45:36 > 0:45:37All right, all right...
0:45:37 > 0:45:41- Now, because this is a finance thing...- Yeah?
0:45:41 > 0:45:43- ..it goes to the finance team. - Right.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47Now, with these, even though it's just to the office,
0:45:47 > 0:45:50- you've still got to stamp it.- Right. STAMP CLICKS
0:45:50 > 0:45:52- Did you always want to be an admin officer?- Yeah.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54- Did you? - I always wanted to be admin.
0:45:54 > 0:45:56This admin, believe it or not, is my dream job.
0:45:56 > 0:45:57- Really?- Yeah.
0:45:57 > 0:45:59People say, "Oh, my dream job is to win the X Factor
0:45:59 > 0:46:01"or Britain's Got Talent or whatever,"
0:46:01 > 0:46:02but, with me, admin is my life.
0:46:02 > 0:46:04That's how I've always wanted to do admin.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06Why admin? What do you love about it?
0:46:06 > 0:46:10There's so many different bits involved, so you can go from,
0:46:10 > 0:46:13like, doing a letter to a company, you know, for, like,
0:46:13 > 0:46:16fundraising or what have you, and the next minute you could be doing
0:46:16 > 0:46:19a spreadsheet for an amount of people you've got on a project.
0:46:19 > 0:46:21What else do you love about admin?
0:46:21 > 0:46:23Phone-calling. I'm a talker. I'm loud.
0:46:23 > 0:46:27- I love a phone, as you can tell. - RICHARD LAUGHS
0:46:27 > 0:46:29- PRINTER HUMS - It's six pages, this action plan.
0:46:29 > 0:46:30Right.
0:46:30 > 0:46:34It's actually doing something that I love doing
0:46:34 > 0:46:38and I want to do until I retire.
0:46:38 > 0:46:39So, you want to do this for life?
0:46:39 > 0:46:41Oh, God, yeah. Yeah.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46It's been... It's been really eventful, being Gerraint's boss.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48He's probably the...the smartest person in the office.
0:46:48 > 0:46:50He always comes to work in a suit.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53He's always got a story to tell.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56I sometimes do have to tell him to stop talking so much...
0:46:56 > 0:46:58- RICHARD LAUGHS - ..because he likes to chat,
0:46:58 > 0:47:00and he likes to banter with his colleagues,
0:47:00 > 0:47:02but he really contributes to...
0:47:02 > 0:47:05to the relaxed and the happy environment
0:47:05 > 0:47:07that we've got in this office.
0:47:07 > 0:47:10So, what would you say to, you know, a company that might say,
0:47:10 > 0:47:14"Look, you know, why should I employ an adult with autism?
0:47:14 > 0:47:18"It would take more time. It would be a drain on resources,
0:47:18 > 0:47:20"you know, when I can just hire somebody of, kind of,
0:47:20 > 0:47:23"normal cognitive ability. Why? Why would I go down that route?"
0:47:23 > 0:47:24What would you say to them?
0:47:24 > 0:47:28People with a learning disability or autism generally would have
0:47:28 > 0:47:30less sick days in work.
0:47:30 > 0:47:33Um...they...
0:47:33 > 0:47:34Generally, once they...
0:47:34 > 0:47:36If they have the proper support in the workplace,
0:47:36 > 0:47:40then they're more likely to stay in the workplace,
0:47:40 > 0:47:42and so the turnover...
0:47:42 > 0:47:44Your staff turnover would be less.
0:47:44 > 0:47:46So, there's a lot of financially viable reasons
0:47:46 > 0:47:48that would be good for businesses.
0:47:50 > 0:47:52Which of your four viewings is it?
0:47:55 > 0:47:57Ah, that.
0:47:57 > 0:48:00And then the rest are actions that we have, and have ongoing.
0:48:01 > 0:48:04What I am today is because of one thing, and that's autism,
0:48:04 > 0:48:05cos, if I didn't have that,
0:48:05 > 0:48:07I wouldn't be as special as I am today.
0:48:07 > 0:48:12- So you're saying that young people should see it as...- A positive.
0:48:12 > 0:48:15- ..a positive, as an opportunity? - Oh, yeah.
0:48:15 > 0:48:17Autism is a very special thing,
0:48:17 > 0:48:19and whoever has got it should be proud of it.
0:48:25 > 0:48:26Tickets.
0:48:26 > 0:48:27Tickets.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29I've got my phone.
0:48:29 > 0:48:31Money.
0:48:31 > 0:48:32And, no...
0:48:32 > 0:48:34No, my money...
0:48:34 > 0:48:36- You haven't got any money on you, have you?- No.
0:48:36 > 0:48:38Bank of Dad again.
0:48:38 > 0:48:39Have you got your phone?
0:48:39 > 0:48:42- Yes, I've got my phone in my pocket. - Yeah?
0:48:42 > 0:48:44- Yes.- Shall we do this?
0:48:44 > 0:48:45- Yes, let's do it.- Yes!
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Yes!
0:48:47 > 0:48:49Let's go to the match.
0:48:51 > 0:48:57'It's Wales versus England at the Principality Stadium - a big day.'
0:48:57 > 0:49:00- We don't know who's going to win, do we?- No.
0:49:00 > 0:49:01It's whoever...
0:49:01 > 0:49:04Whoever plays the best.
0:49:04 > 0:49:05- That's right.- Yeah.- That's right.
0:49:05 > 0:49:09- There it is!- There it is!
0:49:09 > 0:49:14'From the first time I took him to a stadium to now is a massive leap,
0:49:14 > 0:49:17'and I never actually thought that we would be able to do this,
0:49:17 > 0:49:19'growing up with him, you know?
0:49:20 > 0:49:22'So it's... It's amazing.
0:49:22 > 0:49:25'It's great, cos it actually fulfils that, kind of...
0:49:25 > 0:49:27CHEERING '..one of the things you want to do
0:49:27 > 0:49:29'with your son, and that's to take him to the rugby,
0:49:29 > 0:49:31'take him to the football, and...
0:49:31 > 0:49:34'There was a time where I wasn't quite sure whether we were
0:49:34 > 0:49:37'going to be able to do that, and so it's great that we can.
0:49:37 > 0:49:38'It's amazing.'
0:49:38 > 0:49:42SINGING
0:49:42 > 0:49:44- CHEERING AND APPLAUSE Yay!- Yay!
0:49:44 > 0:49:48- Wales! Wales!- Yay! Yay!
0:49:48 > 0:49:50CHEERING
0:49:53 > 0:49:55Come on!
0:49:55 > 0:49:57CHEERING GROWS LOUDER
0:49:57 > 0:49:58Come on!
0:49:59 > 0:50:01CHEERING, YELLING AND APPLAUSE
0:50:04 > 0:50:08And these people who are shouting when I shout, it's just passion.
0:50:08 > 0:50:11They're so happy that Wales are doing so much better...
0:50:13 > 0:50:15That's what's going on, OK?
0:50:15 > 0:50:17It's just passion, remember that.
0:50:17 > 0:50:19Sling your hook!
0:50:19 > 0:50:20OK? Remember that, OK?
0:50:20 > 0:50:21Yeah.
0:50:21 > 0:50:24Remember that, OK, buddy?
0:50:24 > 0:50:25Wales! Wales!
0:50:25 > 0:50:27Listen, do you want to go home, buddy?
0:50:27 > 0:50:29- HE SNIFFLES - No.
0:50:29 > 0:50:30OK.
0:50:30 > 0:50:32SNIFFLING AND SOBBING
0:50:37 > 0:50:39YELLING
0:50:41 > 0:50:43WHISTLE BLOWS
0:50:43 > 0:50:46Dad, the Wales are going in.
0:50:47 > 0:50:50And we're winning 13-8, OK?
0:50:50 > 0:50:53Can I have a h-h-hot dog?
0:50:53 > 0:50:56Er... Yeah, in a minute.
0:50:56 > 0:50:58Yeah, in a minute.
0:50:58 > 0:51:01So, if Wales are about to score a try, and I get really passionate
0:51:01 > 0:51:05- and I start shouting, are you going to be all right with that?- Yes.
0:51:05 > 0:51:06Are you sure?
0:51:06 > 0:51:10Yes, yes, yes, be-because I'll go, "Go on," like that.
0:51:10 > 0:51:12- Yeah.- Are you sure, buddy?
0:51:12 > 0:51:14- Yes.- OK.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16CHEERING AND YELLING
0:51:21 > 0:51:23- Yes!- Come on!
0:51:24 > 0:51:26Oh, no, that was England.
0:51:32 > 0:51:35We're not going to win today, I don't think, boy.
0:51:35 > 0:51:38CHEERING
0:51:38 > 0:51:39Well, they lost.
0:51:39 > 0:51:41Yeah, they lost.
0:51:41 > 0:51:44They had a really good first half, but then...
0:51:44 > 0:51:45But then they lost.
0:51:45 > 0:51:47..the second half wasn't so good.
0:51:50 > 0:51:54When he was smaller, I couldn't even laugh.
0:51:54 > 0:51:58I couldn't show any kind of emotion, whether it would be laughing,
0:51:58 > 0:52:00or being passionate about something...
0:52:00 > 0:52:03If I laughed at a friend who was telling me a story,
0:52:03 > 0:52:06he would have that kind of reaction that you saw today,
0:52:06 > 0:52:10but it happened all the time, and I, kind of,
0:52:10 > 0:52:13stopped laughing for about three or four years of my life.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15I just didn't laugh. People...
0:52:15 > 0:52:18People would come round the house, he'd be in our company,
0:52:18 > 0:52:21they'd tell me a funny story and I just wouldn't laugh.
0:52:21 > 0:52:23I'd be like, hmm-hmm-hmm.
0:52:23 > 0:52:24And it was like...
0:52:24 > 0:52:27It must have been...come across so rude, but I, kind of,
0:52:27 > 0:52:31conditioned myself, for a time, not to laugh, and it...
0:52:31 > 0:52:34You know, it's weird, when I think back on it,
0:52:34 > 0:52:36that I didn't laugh for that length of time,
0:52:36 > 0:52:39but he's all right with laughing now.
0:52:39 > 0:52:42What do you think about Wales losing today?
0:52:42 > 0:52:44Because they... Because they lost...
0:52:44 > 0:52:46Yeah. Are you happy or sad?
0:52:46 > 0:52:47Happy.
0:52:49 > 0:52:51RICHARD LAUGHS
0:52:52 > 0:52:54Oh, well.
0:52:56 > 0:52:58I am certainly not happy.
0:53:02 > 0:53:03Huh...
0:53:03 > 0:53:07No, I understand that it makes you sad, but...
0:53:07 > 0:53:08Yeah.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11..you did well to get past it,
0:53:11 > 0:53:14- because, you know, we didn't have to come home.- Yeah.
0:53:14 > 0:53:17You got yourself together and then you were happy again,
0:53:17 > 0:53:19and that's good that you did that.
0:53:22 > 0:53:25'I constantly worry whether I'm doing the right thing as a parent -
0:53:25 > 0:53:27'how much should I push Jaco?
0:53:30 > 0:53:33'I've spent the last 12 months trying to find answers.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39'I'd read about a young autistic man who uses running to help him
0:53:39 > 0:53:41'cope with the world.'
0:53:41 > 0:53:43Much of my life, I feel like I'm just...
0:53:43 > 0:53:45just about surviving, just about scraping through.
0:53:45 > 0:53:49'He's about to run 30 marathons in 30 days.
0:53:51 > 0:53:54'I've come to meet Shaun and his wife at their home in Merthyr.'
0:53:54 > 0:53:56- Shaun, what's happening?- Hello.
0:53:56 > 0:53:58- How are you doing, fella? - Are you all right?
0:53:58 > 0:54:00I'm good, thanks. Nice to meet you again.
0:54:00 > 0:54:02Thanks for having me.
0:54:02 > 0:54:05When did you start running?
0:54:05 > 0:54:08I've always been a runner. I was a 100m sprinter in school.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11I was a winger in football and rugby for a while,
0:54:11 > 0:54:12so running's always played a part.
0:54:12 > 0:54:14So, when were you diagnosed?
0:54:14 > 0:54:16I was diagnosed just over a year ago.
0:54:18 > 0:54:20- How old are you?- I'm 31.
0:54:20 > 0:54:21Bloody hell.
0:54:21 > 0:54:23Yeah, I was confused for a long time.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26I, kind of, was on a path of self-help before I even knew
0:54:26 > 0:54:28what was wrong, and so I...
0:54:28 > 0:54:31The running had come about, and all that, before I had my diagnosis.
0:54:31 > 0:54:32That just, kind of...
0:54:32 > 0:54:35- SHAUN CLICKS HIS FINGERS - That was the missing puzzle piece.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38- Is this your wedding day? - Yes, that's on our wedding day.
0:54:38 > 0:54:41'Shaun and Sarah have been married for two and a half years.'
0:54:43 > 0:54:47So, Sarah, what's it like living with a...
0:54:47 > 0:54:50with a serial marathon runner? SARAH LAUGHS
0:54:50 > 0:54:52Well, a 30-mile runner?
0:54:52 > 0:54:54There's a lot of washing to do.
0:54:55 > 0:54:59How are you feeling about the actual run, like? Are you...?
0:54:59 > 0:55:02- I'm really excited for him to do it. - Are you?
0:55:02 > 0:55:05Yeah, cos it's something that he's wanted to do for years.
0:55:05 > 0:55:10Before you met Sarah, how was...?
0:55:10 > 0:55:13How was it? Did you...? Were you, like...?
0:55:13 > 0:55:15Were you on your own for a while, then?
0:55:15 > 0:55:17I didn't think marriage meant anything - vows were meaningless.
0:55:17 > 0:55:19I thought, in modern-day life now,
0:55:19 > 0:55:21we don't treat it with the same respect that we would have once,
0:55:21 > 0:55:23and just, "What's the point of getting married?"
0:55:23 > 0:55:25Had you given up on love?
0:55:25 > 0:55:26Yeah, kind of. I...
0:55:26 > 0:55:30I've often wondered, you know, can you truly have love?
0:55:30 > 0:55:32You know, because I struggled to connect with people
0:55:32 > 0:55:33and relate with people,
0:55:33 > 0:55:35and I found, like,
0:55:35 > 0:55:38a lot of relationships I had were really shallow and meaningless.
0:55:38 > 0:55:40Not a lot of women could deal with me.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42A lot of women don't want to know a guy who's a grown man
0:55:42 > 0:55:44who can't drive, works part-time,
0:55:44 > 0:55:46and is having panic attacks and things. I just didn't...
0:55:46 > 0:55:48I assumed it wouldn't happen, you know?
0:55:48 > 0:55:50And this, kind of, came along by...
0:55:50 > 0:55:52Just as it does, doesn't it? It just surprises you.
0:55:52 > 0:55:54I mean, one of the first things I told her is,
0:55:54 > 0:55:56"Are you sure? Because I am hard work."
0:55:56 > 0:55:58I always knew I had issues but I didn't know why.
0:55:58 > 0:55:59Like, so I said, "I'm hard work."
0:55:59 > 0:56:00It didn't bother me, to be honest.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04I just said that everyone's hard work most of the time,
0:56:04 > 0:56:07- so we can't all be the same.- Yeah.
0:56:07 > 0:56:09So, I didn't think anything of it, really.
0:56:14 > 0:56:18'Four weeks later, and Shaun has run 850 miles
0:56:18 > 0:56:19'of the Welsh coastal path.'
0:56:19 > 0:56:21There he... There he is. Look.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24'I've come to Chepstow Racecourse to see him at the finishing line.'
0:56:24 > 0:56:27CHEERING, WHISTLING AND APPLAUSE
0:56:27 > 0:56:29Yeah!
0:56:29 > 0:56:30Whoo!
0:56:36 > 0:56:40'Shaun's running is extraordinary,
0:56:40 > 0:56:42'but what I really love about Shaun's story
0:56:42 > 0:56:45'is that he found Sarah -
0:56:45 > 0:56:47'someone who's accepted him for who he is.'
0:56:53 > 0:56:55- Yeah!- Yes!
0:56:55 > 0:56:57Oh... I'm catching you up.
0:56:59 > 0:57:03Jaco is the winner again.
0:57:03 > 0:57:04You beat me fair and square.
0:57:04 > 0:57:06Fair and square...
0:57:06 > 0:57:10And...and, Dad, do you...do you love Gareth Bale?
0:57:10 > 0:57:12I love Gareth Bale.
0:57:12 > 0:57:15He's... He's one of the best players in the world.
0:57:15 > 0:57:18And so, and so, and so...and he loves playing football.
0:57:18 > 0:57:20He definitely loves playing football.
0:57:20 > 0:57:24Then, Dad, well, wh-wh-wh-what should we play next?
0:57:26 > 0:57:27Punchball?
0:57:33 > 0:57:37'Having a child with autism is sometimes like navigating
0:57:37 > 0:57:40'a thick forest without a map or a compass.'
0:57:40 > 0:57:44Wind turbine. Oh, oh, it's stopping now...
0:57:44 > 0:57:46- We're going down.- Yeah.
0:57:46 > 0:57:50'By spending time with people on the spectrum who are finding
0:57:50 > 0:57:55'their way through life, it's shown me a way through.'
0:57:55 > 0:57:57They're called wind turbines.
0:57:57 > 0:57:58Wind turn-bines?
0:57:58 > 0:58:00- Turbines.- Turbines?
0:58:00 > 0:58:02Yeah.
0:58:02 > 0:58:07'As a society, we have a long way to go, but I have hope that our
0:58:07 > 0:58:11'understanding and acceptance of autism can only get better.'
0:58:11 > 0:58:13Now, what should we talk about, then?
0:58:13 > 0:58:16We don't have to talk. We don't have to talk.
0:58:16 > 0:58:18- You can just look at them.- Yeah.
0:58:18 > 0:58:21'Like any parent, the best I can do
0:58:21 > 0:58:24'is surround Jaco with love and support.
0:58:27 > 0:58:32'He still surprises me every day, so I have to aim high.
0:58:32 > 0:58:34'My expectations have to be limitless.'