It's tricky enough for neurotypical teens when it's time to leave secondary school and make the move into the adult world – but for those with FASD it can be much harder.
For parents, caregivers and whānau, there's a lot to think about, too: how can you find information about supporting your rangatahi / young adult into tertiary education and what kind would be best; could they manage a job and is there financial support available while they're looking – and what about housing?
Because we are asked about this a lot, we put a team of lived experienced professionals together to find answers to these questions and more. The result is a dedicated section on our website called 'Teens and Beyond' – and we provide it thanks to funding from Whaikaha / the Ministry of Disabled People.
We'd like to acknowledge NOFASD Australia for permission to adapt their publication 'Now that you are 18: A guide for young people with FASD transitioning into adulthood'. It was an enormous help to us in structuring this resource. Kia ora rawe atu.
UPDATE: In July 2025, Whaikaha launched a new digital resource called 'Whaimana - Support my Decisions' which is all about helping family, whānau and friends, carers, paid supporters, advocates and service providers to practice supported decision-making for people with neurodivergencies of all kinds. We think it will be great to use in conjunction with our Teens and Beyond resources to help us remember that people with FASD can make their own decisions, but just need a bit of support to do so.
