Parents' perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 and school transition on autistic children's friendships

Friendships play a key role in supporting a successful transition to a new school for autistic children and young people. However, little is known about how these relationships have been impacted by restrictions put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to explore how parents perceived the impact of COVID-19 on their autistic child's friendships during transition to a new school. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 14 parents of autistic children in the United Kingdom. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Parents discussed a variety of experiences, which differed between and within school types and age groups. Several factors influenced children's friendships during transition including support from their new school and others' understanding of their needs. Parents described the differing expectations of what friendship was and how that affected their children's existing and new relationships. For some, COVID-19 negatively impacted on friendships by reducing contact with existing and new friends. Others experienced positive or neutral experiences due to lockdown restrictions. This study highlights the diversity of needs among autistic children and calls for a personalised approach to transition support beyond the pandemic as one way of supporting autistic children to develop positive peer relationships. Lay abstract Research shows that moving schools can be a challenging time for autistic children and young people. One factor that has been found to support successful transition is friendships. However, there is little research exploring how transition between schools affects autistic children's friendships, and even less on how children's relationships during transition have been impacted by COVID-19. Fourteen parents of autistic children and young people were interviewed about their child's move to a new school and the impact they felt this had on their friendships. Parents described how moving with existing friends helped some children to find the transition less challenging. Others had differing experiences, with their children's friendships playing a much smaller role in the move. Differences were also seen with regard to the impact of COVID-19, with some parents speaking of how hard being away from friends was for their child, while others found the social restrictions a welcome break from interacting with peers. The study highlights how different the experiences of autistic individuals, and their parents, can be and the importance of a child-centred approach to transition support.