We've had a number of calls and visitors to the Autism Hub recently seeking clarification on the wearing of facemasks, particularly for members of the autistic community. There have been suggestions that some members of the public may be exempt from the new government guidelines concerning the wearing of face coverings for medical reasons and of course, whether that applies to adults and young people with autism.
In some cases, face coverings can be uncomfortable, particularly for young people with sensory issues and some adults in the autistic community who rely on reading facial expressions have indicated that it is harder to understand a person in a face mask. Nevertheless, government officials appear to be considering making face masks mandatory in public places to prevent the spread of Covid-19, so we asked Autism Ambassador Robert Lamb for his view.
Robert said; "I am in favour of the general principle of face masks and have no problem with wearing one. However, they do also present a problem for me, as, especially for people with autism, we can lose the ability to read people’s facial expressions. I acknowledge that the UK government has made an exception in its new face mask rules from 15th June onwards for autistic people not to wear masks if this causes them distress (whether it be in terms of sensory issues or the general idea of not being able to see people’s facial expressions), but when you’re an autistic individual who doesn’t have sensory issues like me, any other excuse feels lame and you still feel obliged to wear them. I also acknowledge that there are cards available that people with autism can carry, in the same way as an autism alert card, to show that they are exempt from wearing face masks under the law. However, I’m wary of carrying autism alert cards, in case some authority figures don’t recognise them and there is still that stigma of other people seeing us as rule-breakers, if they can’t see or don’t understand what the cards mean. I also acknowledge that there are masks available which have transparent mouth areas, which are very useful for people that need to lip-read and to see people’s expressions. However, these have mostly been marketed for sign language interpreters or carers. Therefore, when you’re an autistic individual who doesn’t need to lip-read or who doesn’t have a carer, but just needs to be able to understand facial expressions, it can make you feel awkward, as you feel you are potentially making those masks less available for those sign language interpreters or carers. Therefore, as an autistic individual, I feel as if I am very “on the fence” about face masks"
Face masks have been common on public transport in London for several weeks, and it is expected that the government advice on face masks in public may soon change. There's a very good template for face coverings here; https://spitalsurgery.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Face-Covering-Exemption-Cards.pdf
Click here for the latest guidance from Transport for London on face coverings, including a very useful section on who is exempt and why https://tfl.gov.uk/campaign/face-coverings#on-this-page-3
Click here for the latest advice from the UK Government on face coverings https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own