About Us

The MAIN Project is a registered charitable company limited by guarantee. Charity number 1116884.
Company house number 4809912.

Mission Statement


"To provide advice and support for families who have children with an autistic spectrum condition, in the Tees Valley area".

Who are we?


There are over half a million people in the UK with Autism that's around 1 in 100 people. The young people themselves, parents/ carers of these children can find it difficult to get the help, advice and support they need. We offer this support by providing:

  •  Weekly autism specific social clubs, ( attended by  young people aged 11-19 with ASC). Middlesbrough's has been independently assessed by the University of Teesside.
  •  Home visits and assessments, project officers provide specific advice and support to each situation, often resolving difficulties immediately, putting a plan into place, or referring to one of the projects other services or signposting.
  •  Website, regularly updated.
  •  Newsletters, e-mailed, on website, posted to database contacts. 
  •  Autism specific training, seminars and workshops, provided regularly, enabling parents/carers/professionals to gain new skills needed to support their children. We also provide specific workshops for young people with Aspergers Syndrome addressing issues around friendship, social and communication skills, sex ed issues and being positive about Autism.
  •  Holiday activities, organised during most holidays- supported group days out, involving young people, siblings, parents and carers to encourage social skill development.
  •  Monthly support groups, allowing parents/carers to support each other, and gain skills and experience from other parents- we regularly invite people from other agencies and services to speak about their provisions. Click here for more details
  •  Telephone advice and support- often resolving specific issues immediately.
  •  Lending Library, stocked and updated with books/videos/CD-ROMs on Autism specific issues.  
  •  Autism Specific after school clubs, provided 4 evenings a week term time only, - quality educational activities, available for children diagnosed with ASC. The MAIN project provide the service, delivered by  Staff and  MAIN Project Volunteers, with a high staff to child ratio.