This project is the primary focus of research activity for Aspect in 2006. The project, which was initially planned and developed in 2004, attracted an Australian Research council research grant. A total of $307,000 was awarded to Sydney University to undertake the research project with Aspect over a three year period. As the industry partner, Aspect will contribute $81,000 for the same period.

The research has been designed to compare the Building Blocks centre-based program Starting Blocks™ and the home-based Early Play Program in terms of outcomes for children and families and cost/benefit of Aspect. The project will also provide an assessment protocol that can be applied to other intervention programs for young children with autism and their families.

The aims of the Early Intervention (ARC) project are to:

• Assess the outcomes of centre-based early intervention programs in terms of their effectiveness (using standardised measures of development and behaviour) and cost/benefit for children with autism and their families in comparison to a group not receiving treatment (or wait group).
• Assess the outcome of centre-based early intervention in terms of effectiveness (using the standardised measures) and cost/benefit for children with autism and their families in comparison to a group of children receiving the home-based program
• Assess the level of parent skills and family functioning in families, and compare the difference between the three groups.

The innovative cross-disciplinary, collaborative research approach is unique in early intervention research. In promoting collaboration across researchers, it provides the opportunity to develop research methodology that addresses issues from each discipline. The findings will enable judgements to be made about the efficacy of programs designed to give young children with autism a positive start to life. The national social and economic benefits of empowering families with the assistance of the community to meet the cognitive, emotional and social needs of their child with autism are significant.

Fieldwork for the project commenced in January this year with pre-assessment testing being completed for all of the participants in the study (44 in total - 30 participants and 14 controls). The majority of the pre-assessments, which included diagnostic, psychometric and speech pathology testing, were undertaken by Aspect staff, who are to congratulated on their willingness to undertake this additional piece of work. Parent measures (questionnaires and surveys) are currently underway and pre-assessment reports finalised to be sent to families by the end of May. The treatment program has commenced and will operate for the next 12 months. The project will be completed in 2008.

Should you wish to comment on this research project, Aspect welcomes feedback. Please direct comments or questions to:

Dr. Trevor Clark, Director, Education & Research
	Phone:	02 8868 8500
	Fax:	02 9896 5266
	E-mail:	Dr Trevor Clark
	Post:	Dr. Trevor Clark Aspect Centre for Western Sydney P.O. Box 770 Seven Hills NSW 1730