SACAR is a charity dedicated to support people with Asperger Syndrome and Autism.(SACAR in the Sanskrit language means Positive Creation).

Sacar was established in October 1999 in the Bradford area with a district wide remit due to increasing demands from parents and carers of people with Autism and Asperger Syndrome, when we established a ‘Social Skills’ group which met one evening per week, involving just 6 members. We became a registered charity in March 2001 and currently have around 130 members who we work with according to their needs. We continue to receive referrals and our service is increasingly in demand. Through our flexible and innovative approach we have been able to target the specific needs of this client group.

Sacar’s mission is to support people with Autism and Asperger syndrome by the provision of health, education, training, sports, creative art and counselling activities, which ultimately promote their social inclusion, training opportunities and ultimately employability. Sacar’s highly trained staff also provides essential information, training and support to carers, parents, health professionals and also contribute to research in this specialist field.

The key aims of Sacar are to:
• Empower and enable people with Autism and Asperger syndrome to lead a more independent lifestyle and integrate into the community
• Increase their self confidence, social and interpersonal skills
• Increase opportunities for training and work placement leading to full time employment
• Promote educational attainment of this client group
• Encourage meaningful engagement and social inclusion, leading to a reduction in criminal or antisocial activity
• Increase awareness of Autistic Spectrum Conditions such as Asperger syndrome
• Strengthen Sacar as an effective community organisation
• Liase with other voluntary and statutory organisations

The key objectives are to:
• Identify the individual's needs
• Provide an information, advice and support service to those affected by Autism and Asperger syndrome
• Provide a positive environment to support the individual's personal, emotional and social wellbeing
• Develop and continually reinforce essential social skills
• Deliver a programme of accredited courses in key skills, life-skills and creative arts
• Offer the opportunity of exploring potential employment with support
• Encourage involvement in local communities through the creative arts
• Facilitate involvement of parents/carers to ensure successful transference of skills to residential, training and employment environments
• Provide training workshops and conferences for parents, carers, teachers and healthcare professionals
• Work in partnership with other organisations and professionals to promote awareness of Autistic Spectrum Conditions, developing a network of support and providing progression routes into and out of Sacar

Many families have lived for years trying to cope with family members who have not been correctly diagnosed or referred for diagnosis at all. Many adults with Asperger syndrome receive no assistance from outside agencies and as a result they feel isolated and singled out as people whose disability is deemed unworthy of assistance.

Sacar is not simply a daycare service, we aim to provide meaningful engagement to assist our members to lead increasingly independent lifestyles. Through Sacar's support, many of our members have now progressed to full-time education, employment and independent living. Our model of progression enables us to optimise our level of support across the Yorkshire area.

The specialist teaching and learning support available at Sacar is unique. We are unlike any other educational environment in this respect. All of Sacar's employees have the experience, qualifications and specialised knowledge to enable them to fully understand and support individuals with Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASCs). Our employees receive crucial training which is not presently available in other learning establishments.

We are a user led organisation and aim to address the issues put to us by our client group and their parents and carers. The anxieties of individuals with an ASC manifest themselves in a variety of ways such as inappropriate or anti-social behaviours, which together with a general lack of awareness of ASC's within learning establishments often results in exclusion from mainstream education. We are therefore aiming to widen access to education for this group who have not in the past been able to take advantage of educational opportunities. We intend to offer to these vulnerable young adults the confidence, enthusiasm and means to re-engage with learning and employment.

Whilst there is no specific treatment or cure for the condition, it has been demonstrated that a combination of psychotherapy,communication and social skills training, together with support and training for families and carers can have marked effects. Sacar is unique in that it does not exist simply to provide therapy but to offer creative skills, employment, independent living, and oriented training which can substantially enhance quality of life and employment prospects.