Calmer times for charity hour

A Perthshire branch of a supermarket chain is going peaceful to show its support to Autism Hour.

Sainsbury’s in Blairgowrie has teamed up with the National Autistic Society to support the event, which will see scores of shops and services take 60 minutes to provide a break from “too much information”.

The store will be holding its autism hour on Monday at 10am.

Staff at the shop will turn down the tannoy and switch off music in the cafe to create a calmer shopping environment. Colleagues will also be provided with information about autism.

Paul Massey, store manager, said: “It’s an excellent initiative which will not only help increase awareness and understanding of autism among our colleagues and customers but also provide an enhanced shopping experience for people with autism.”

Mark Lever, of the National Autistic Society, added: “It is really encouraging to see shops and services getting involved in the National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour.

“Our Too Much Information campaign has highlighted that the smallest changes can make the biggest difference for autistic people and we are confident this event will help shops and services understand how we can work towards a more autism-friendly world.”

For more information visit www.autism.org.uk