About our Team: 

We are a relatively new service, launching in April 2022 and are a multi-disciplinary team which consists of 

  • Psychologists 
  • Consultant Psychologists
  • Speech and Language Therapist
  • Occupational Therapist
  • Nurses
  • Assistant Practitoner
  • Social Worker
  • Support Worker
  • Dedicated Admin Support

The FAS will deliver the service Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. The FAS offer consultancy, support, and case management where appropriate to autistic individuals with a significant forensic risk, whilst addressing a wide range of health issues and vulnerabilities.

The entry point to the service will be via referral from a lead agency who is already working with an individual, such as, Local Mental Health Teams, Local Inpatient Services, Probation, Youth Offending Services, HMP establishments including Young Offenders Instituations.

Referral Process 

All referrals come through the single point of access at the secure bed hub email.

Individuals referred to the FAS will be subject to screening and a triage assessment. If the service user meets the FAS criteria (as previously listed), further consultation will be offered within two weeks of the initial referral. The consultations are offered by nurse practitioners, the team manager, the clinical lead or the senior psychology team. Following the initial consultation meeting, the referral will be brought to the MDT for discussion and to agree if further input from FAS is needed.

After the service user has been accepted onto FAS case load, the service user is then allocated a nurse practitioner who will oversee their care whilst under the service, alongside other professionals within the team depending on the needs of the service user.

The appropriate interventions and/or risk assessments will be determined by the MDT, and actions fed back to referrers. If appropriate, formal structured risk assessment using the HCR-20 or RSVP may be undertaken. The cases are reviewed on a regular basis in the weekly MDT meetings.

The team aim to help reduce offending behaviours through specific interventions, risk assessment and management. We do this by working collaboratively with the individual and working closely with other agencies who are also involved in their care. These services include; Social Care, Probation, Mental Health Teams and Child Youth Services.

FAS help individuals with a forensic risk such as:

  • Arson 
  • Physical Violence
  • Sexual Violence 
  • Harassment 
  • Criminal Damage

A risk management consultation is offered to the referrer and lead agencies, usually within two weeks of an accepted referral. Following this, advice, sign posting and risk management advice may be provided. If appropriate the service user may require a longer piece of work and be allocated a lead nurse. The lead nurses work with the team to create effective care plans, formulations and risk management plans, which are underpinned by the factors in the Framework for the Assessment of Risk and Protection in Offenders on the Autism Spectrum (FARAS).

Screening

  1. Signposted
  2. Allocated lead nurse
  3. Appropriate risk assessment/ intervention

  • Consultation
  • MDT
  • Allocated lead nurse
  • Appropriate risk assessment/service

FAS Acceptance Criteria

The FAS will accept referrals for individuals with the following:

  • The service user is aged 16 or over, or are 15 years old but due to turn 16 in the next eight weeks.
  • A diagnosis of autism, or clinical presentation of autism and awaiting an autism diagnostic assessment.
  • Those whose autism has a significant impact on social functioning, and are presenting with significant risk of offending behaviour towards others within the last 12 months. Cases with historical risk will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

A referral form can be requested from by calling or emailing the secure bed hub.  

Where autism is suspected, a completed Autism Spectrum Screening Tool AQ-10 must be included with the referral; the service user needs to score six or above and have been referred for a diagnostic assessment.

A consultation may be offered following a decision by the FAS Multi-disciplinary team and screening.

Exclusion Criteria

The exclusion criteria is as follows:

  • No formal diagnosis of autism, or does not score high enough on the AQ-10 that is provided in the referral form (need to score six and above).
  • Individuals with a diagnosis of a learning disability.
  • Where the predominant risk is to self, and there is no current significant risk to others.
  • Service user is currently in prison and their release date is longer than three months away.
  • The service user is not under the Lancashire and South Cumbria ICS footprint.

If you have concerns, questions or need advice on our services, you can call or email the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS).