Surfing the Spectrum is coming to Forster

On Saturday, March 21, the team from Surfing the Spectrum will partner up with Simon Basile from the Great Lakes Surf School to put on the Surfing the Spectrum Summer Series event at One Mile Beach.

The series targets regional towns along the NSW East Coast and Surfing the Spectrum co-founder, director and paediatric occupational therapist, Aimee Blacker, expects around 60 families from the local area to attend.

You may also like: Rainbow forest project a colourful way for community to move forward

She said surfing and being in the ocean allowed children with autism to connect with their bodies in "a fun, unstructured, exploratory environment."

"Our awareness of the space around us is something we take for granted," Ms Blacker said.

"For most of us, our balance, vision and posture take care of themselves, but for people with autism, their sensory systems are a continuous challenge, as they are constantly overloaded by sensory input.

"Surfing enables those with autism to learn to move fluently in challenging environments."

She said the day was also open to the siblings of children with autism, in an effort to include them in the fun.

"We understand the sacrifices, time and love they put aside for their brother or sister with additional needs, often missing out on the joy of events such as this," Ms Blacker said.

Ms Blacker urged any interested families to contact the organisation at info@surfingthespectrum.org for further details.

She also encouraged any members of the local surf community who wanted to be involved to get in contact.

Registration is open now at the Surfing the Spectrum website.

Simon Basile at the Great Lakes Surf School can also be contacted on 0427 823 029

Stay ahead with local news by signing up for the Great Lakes Advocate newsletter here.