Train operator Trenitalia c2c has released a film that aims to improve understanding of autistic passengers’ needs.

It worked with local charity, the Sycamore Trust, to make a short video showing how families with an autistic family member might travel on the rail network.

The Trust, which was formed in 2014 with roots back to 1995, in based in the east London Borough of Barking, Dagenham and Havering. It supports people before and after they receive a diagnosis of autism, and assists them and their families with education, and with employment-related issues such as interview skills and navigating working life.

The film aims to celebrate the Sycamore Trust’s services and those of similar organisations which provide for neurodivergent people.

It highlights how autistic people experience a train journey, and how parents with young autistic children manage travelling by train.

c2c, which runs services between Fenchurch Street in the City of London and Shoeburyness in Essex, points out that there has been an increasing focus on neurodiversity in recent years. It argues that many organisations and individuals have become more aware of the challenges that neurodivergent people can face, and of the strengths that neurodivergent people have and the benefits that neurodiversity offers to society.

‘Neurodiversity’ is short for ‘neurological diversity’, and promotes acceptance that different people have differently-structured brains.

People who are autistic, dyslexic, ADHD or have an otherwise atypical brain structure are ‘neurodivergent’. Other train operators which have taken initiatives to assist autistic people with travel include TransPennine Express and Govia Thameslink Railway.

c2c reports that the people involved in the film were keen to focus on the difficulties that train travel can pose to autistic passengers and to raise railway staff’s awareness of how autistic or other neurodivergent passengers might behave during their journey.

c2c has also highlighted the work of industry groups such as ‘The Neurodiversity Centre for Excellence in Transport’ and ‘Rail Industry Neurodiversity Community’.

Another group working in this field is Neurodiversity in Rail, which is led by neurodivergent people.

“We really enjoyed collaborating with c2c on this project and we had a great day. We are delighted with the results, and we are so pleased that a major travel operator has adopted such a positive approach to the autistic community. We hope it will raise awareness of the issues faced by autistic people when it comes to using public transport, and we hope it will encourage greater empathy from the travelling public.”

Steve Dixon, Marketing and Communications Manager at Sycamore Trust