News and Knowledge

For many young adults with autism, fostering self-determination through independent living is important, and many parents are concerned that they will not be able to provide the level of care that their children need as they age. The Autism Housing Network also notes that 48 percent of autistic adults report feeling lonely, and 57 percent report feeling depressed. However, with financial limitations and support needs to consider, adult housing options can be fairly scarce. Of the 5 million people with intellectual/developmental disabilities, only 10 percent have access to supports to live outside of their family home, according to the Autism Housing Network.

Supportive housing options provide a potential solution, offering group homes with support services for adults with autism. In Dover, N.H., Laurie McIntosh, a mother of two individuals with developmental disabilities, plans to open a group home called Our Place, Inc. within the next two years. Once established, the project will provide housing and supportive services as needed for 10 adults. Based on the Visions for Creative Housing Solutions group home model, Our Place, Inc. will offer services and support for the residents as well as housing. Residents will be encouraged to work in the community to help gain independence and life skills, and McIntosh hopes to find a site with nearby public transportation.

Others are planning housing options that provide even more community integration. Cape Cod Village, a community home in Massachusetts, recently opened its doors to its first residents. The organization’s goal is to function as a “congregate living” center for people with autism that forms an integral part of the surrounding community. In addition to providing housing and assistance to up to 16 adults with autism, Cape Cod Village will host educational programs and recreational activities for residents and community members to participate in together. Lauren Jones, co-founder of the Village and the mother of a young adult with autism, noted in an article in Cape Cod Times that she wants the village to operate like a “community within a community.”

Integrated communities go a step further, providing housing where neurotypical people and people with developmental disabilities can live. For example, the Faison Residence in Richmond, Va., has 45 apartments in one building, with one-third of those apartments set aside for people with autism. The one- and two-bedroom apartments are scattered throughout the building to help build relationships between the residents with developmental disabilities and their neighbors, notes Matthew Osborne, the director of Adult & Residential Services, in an article on The Hill website. Services include a program with activities designed so that residents with developmental disabilities can learn social communication skills with staff and each other before taking part in opportunities to use and practice the skills with their neighbors and neighborhood residents. That program builds on the natural opportunities that happen because of “the integrated nature of the Faison Residence,” Osborne says.

These options offer a glimpse of the possibilities for adults with autism and those who will soon be adults. There is a great need, as noted above, for more creative, supportive housing options for those with developmental disabilities generally, and autism more specifically.