Turn the music down in shops for World Autism Day -2nd April 2012

An idea for World Autism Day – 2nd April 2012

This isn’t the blog I was going to post today but…

I was walking through my local shopping centre this morning and as it was 10am-ish all was reasonably quiet people-wise and I thought “this would be an ideal time to take D shopping – had she not been at school”.

Then I turned the corner into the next parade of shops, music blaring out from one shop, which always looks quite intimidating – no disabled access, you have to go up steps to get in, very dark atmosphere and very cramped, you almost need night vision goggles to go shopping in there – and the shop opposite was playing its music louder to drown out the other shop.

I tried to imagine how D would feel. Calm and happy up to the point when we turned the corner and then complete sensory overload from either side of the mall. Meltdown city no doubt.

I then thought of “World Autism Day” and whilst people’s perceptions aren’t going to change overnight, I wondered if the manager of the shopping centre would consider – either for World Autism Day or the day before, a Sunday – asking those shops that DO play music loudly and constantly to either turn the music down or off on that day or play something calmer and having notices in their shop windows saying “we are doing this to promote World Autism Day and to encourage special needs families to come shopping today”.

I’m going to phone the shopping centre today, I don’t know if he’s going to agree or not but wouldn’t that be great if he did?

Of course, I’m talking one shopping centre but what you do think? Could it be rolled out to more?

Keep you posted, please leave any comments below :-)

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