Toys R Us introduces ‘quiet hour’ to welcome autistic children Campaigners and parents of children with autism have called for retailers to follow the example of a major toy chain […]

Campaigners and parents of children with autism have called for retailers to follow the example of a major toy chain after it held a “quiet hour” to cater for those on the autistic spectrum

Toys R Us today opened its doors an hour early after adapting its UK stores with measures tailored to meet the needs of children with autism, including dimmed fluorescent lighting and a ban on music and in-store announcements.

Lifeline

The American-owned retailer, which trialed the approach at its Leeds store two years, has now extended the pre-Christmas event to all its other UK stores after working in conjunction with campaign groups.

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Parents and campaigners praised the initiative as a lifeline for those on the autistic spectrum, who can struggle with loud noises and bright lights and thereby can find shopping trips an ordeal. There are some 700,000 autistic adults and children in Britain.

A handful of other retailers, including Asda in Britain, have tried similar schemes, including an American supermarket which has introduced a special check-out aisle with toys designed to calm children on the autistic spectrum.

Other retailers

But campaigners have called for more major chains to think about accommodating the needs of those with autism.

Daniel Cadey, autism access manager for the National Autistic Society, said: “For many autistic people and their families a simple trip to the shops, which should be an enjoyable experience, can be fraught with difficulty.

“Autistic children and adults can become overwhelmed with too much information inside a busy store. Things like artificial lighting and loud announcements can increase their anxiety and be completely overwhelming, even causing them physical pain.

“Simple changes like this can make a huge difference. We hope that many more major retailers will follow the great example set by Toys R Us.”

Parents who took advantage of the quiet hour, held an hour before normal Sunday opening times, took to social media to welcome the event. One mother said her son had been “so much calmer, content and meltdowns”, adding on Twitter: “Such a fab idea, hope other shops roll it out too”.

America

Twitter users in America called on Toy R Us to extend the scheme to its home market. One parent, tweeting under @LaGrastafarian, said: “Only in effect in the UK, and not in the US? We need this too.”

Toys R Us, which also introduced autism-friendly signage and quiet zones in its British stores as part of the scheme, said it was proud of the initiative.

Mike Coogan, the chain’s marketing director, said: “Holding such events has given our teams extreme pride in reaching out to autism groups within their community. Making slight adjustments to stores and creating a ‘quiet’ shopping period allows children and young adults to experience the fun in a toy shop regardless of their disability.”