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Sensory Street

University of Oxford

Welcome to Sensory Street!
We are a University of Oxford research project exploring the lives of autistic people with sensory processing difficulties using creative and immersive experiences…

About the Project | Get Involved

Want to learn more about our immersive event and give us some feedback on the design concept so far? We're running an informal online feedback session on the 24th of May (17:30-18:30) and we'd like you to join us! If you'd like to be involved send us a message or email us at sensorystreet@psy.ox.ac.uk The last location people reported can be challenging was shops. While people often spoke about supermarkets, we also heard about people’s experiences of shops in our focus groups such as bookshops, DIY shops and pet stores. People identified the importance of shop layouts, background noise and visual displays in helping to make these spaces more accessible. We are excited to announce our immersive event will be at UCL’s PEARL building from the 14-16th of July 2022. Free tickets will be available soon from our website in the next few weeks, so keep checking back to find out when they’ve been released! We look forward to seeing you there… Want to learn more about our immersive event and give us some feedback on the design concept so far? We're running an informal feedback session on the 24th of May (17:30-18:30) and we'd like you to join us! If you'd like to be involved send us a message or email us at sensorystreet@psy.ox.ac.uk #research #actuallyautistic #autism #autistic #research People identified that supermarkets have begun to offer helpful adaptations such as alternative checkouts to reduce feeling rushed and the need to communicate verbally with others. However, our focus groups reported that more recognition and understanding is needed to ensure that schemes such as ‘quiet hours’ are successful and helpful. Our focus group reported that public transport such as buses and trains can be difficult for autistic people due to the sensory input as well as the closeness of other people. They identified that increasing the awareness of staff and others helped to make these places more accessible. City centres and high streets were identified as a challenging location in our focus groups, with people identifying the layering of different sensory information such as lighting, sounds and smells. People also commented on the amount of people and lack of structure which can make these more difficult at times. One location people in our focus groups people found more challenging was eateries, such as cafes. In particular people identified the ‘intense smell’ and loud sound of coffee machines as well as the amount of background noise. Follow to learn more about the different locations we identified in our focus groups over the next few weeks… During our focus groups, people identified that healthcare settings such as GP surgeries and hospitals can be difficult sensory environment due to difficulties with smells, lights and new foods. They reported that increasing the predictability of the space by making plans with staff helped to make these places easier to cope with.

Contact

Please get in touch with us at
sensorystreet@psy.ox.ac.uk
Or follow us on social media to learn more about the project

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