Autism Funding is education funding.

What's changing

The Province is ending individualized Autism Funding on March 31, 2027. Families use it for speech therapy, occupational therapy, behavioural support and communication devices.

Two new programs replace it: a Disability Benefit for children with the highest assessed needs, and an income-tested Disability Supplement that requires the federal Disability Tax Credit. Some children will receive more. Many will receive less, and some will receive nothing at all.

When private therapy ends, the need doesn't.

It moves into the classroom. This is what we expect educators to see:

• regression, dysregulation and school avoidance
• children starting school without the early intervention they needed before age 6
• more mental health strain on students and staff
• gaps in sensory tools and communication devices
• a heavier load on education assistants (EAs) and teachers
• longer waits for school-based speech-language pathology

Speech therapy, occupational therapy, behavioural support and mental health care are how many Autistic children learn to communicate, regulate and stay engaged at school. When those supports are removed, the need tends to show up as anxiety, dysregulation and absence, and schools become the front line.

The early years matter most.

Early childhood is a critical window for progress in communication, social skills and emotional regulation. Today, Autism Funding pays up to $22,000 a year for children under 6.

Under the new system, many children under 6 will receive less, and some will receive nothing. Without strong early intervention, more children will arrive at kindergarten already behind their peers.

The emotional load shifts to staff.

Autistic children are more likely to experience anxiety, depression and school distress, especially when their environment doesn't support them.

Without therapeutic support outside school, more of that weight falls on educators. That adds to burnout, and turns classrooms into places for managing crises instead of learning.

School speech-language services are already stretched.

Many districts already have waitlists for school-based speech-language assessments. Today, Autism Funding lets families see private speech-language pathologists, which takes pressure off schools.

When that funding ends for children who don't qualify for the new Benefit, more of them will depend on a school system that is already at capacity.

Schools can't replace specialized clinical care.

Staffing. Many districts already struggle to recruit and keep EAs. Less therapy outside school means more clinical needs landing on the EAs and teachers they have.

Equipment. Families often buy sensory tools and communication devices with Autism Funding. Children who qualify for the new Benefit can still use it for communication supports. Children who don't qualify will have only the Supplement, and only if they have the Disability Tax Credit.

Diagnosis and designations. If fewer families seek or can afford private assessments, public waitlists grow. Later diagnoses can mean later inclusive education designations, and the supplemental funding that comes with them.

Your voice matters.

Educators see what happens in classrooms when therapy is pulled. It isn't fair to ask them to absorb the fallout of a change made outside the education system. Decision-makers need to hear from the people who see it every day.

What you can still do:

• Write to your union. Ask your local to send a formal letter to the Minister of Children and Family Development, Jodie Wickens, and the Minister of Education and Child Care, Lisa Beare.
• Share this letter with your school district, your BC Teachers' Federation local or your parent advisory council.

Autism Funding is education funding.