Australian Sailing has partnered with AMAZE to expand the scope of knowledge about autism within the sailing community, and to assist with upskilling Australian Sailing qualified instructors and coaches. 

AMAZE is the peak body for autistic people and support workers in Victoria, they provide support and information to autistic people, families, professionals, and the wider community, and have kindly provided Australian Sailing instructors and coaches with access to online training to help increase their knowledge and skills, and to assist with making our clubs and sailing environments more inclusive for all to enjoy.  

The Free online training includes a series of short videos and insights from autistic people and will take approx. 30 minutes to complete. The training modules cover the following topics: 

• Understanding and appreciating the diversity of autism 
• Understanding approaches to autism 
• Creating an autism positive world  
• Learning to support people with an autism diagnosis 
• Bettering your teaching practices 
• Creating an autism positive instructing & coaching environment 
• Understanding how to appropriately adapt your environment or social interaction to suit specific learning needs 

Please CLICK HERE to complete the online training and help to create more inclusive sailing opportunities, clubs, and environments for all.  

What is autism? 

“Autism is a neurodevelopmental disability that affects the way people communicate and interact with the world.” 

Why Should I complete the online training? 

The majority of the Australian population are aware of autism, and most have contact with an autistic person. 

• 98% of Australians are aware of autism. 
• 86% have contact with an autistic person. 
• Approx. 1 in 100 people have an autism diagnosis in Australia. 
• Only 29% of Australians know how to support an autistic person 

It is very likely that you have instructed or coached a participant with autism or that you know individuals with an autism diagnosis. 

However, what we don’t have, is enough people that really understand autism, over half of Autistic people still feel socially isolated and experience negative interactions daily. 

Many instructors will have encountered challenging scenarios in a session they have delivered, where they needed to provide the right response and reaction to an autistic participant. 

Maybe you have been out on the water and a child with autism is having a melt-down. How do you deal with this situation? The online training talks you through why meltdowns occur and some helpful responses you can use if it happens. 

You may have experienced coaching a child who is having a sensory overload. Handling the boat may become too overwhelming for the child, or possibly the thought of having to get wet during a practice capsize drill is too daunting. The training will assist in learning how to support individuals if they are experiencing a sensory overload. 

The online training will help you as an instructor or coach to create an autism positive experience and to better support autistic participants when challenging moments arise. 

To grow our clubs and sailing It is important to ensure that our instructing and coaching is accessible and inclusive for all people, sailing is an important mode for developing skills, social connections, and relationships, and it is essential that an autistic person is given the same opportunity as anyone else to take part in sailing and our club environments.