Coles autism initiative a big hit in Ringwood and Balwyn East, says mum Emily Dive

A RINGWOOD mum of an autistic boy says a Coles initiative has transformed her shopping trips and left her fighting back tears of joy.

A RINGWOOD mum was brought to tears when she saw the impact a new program had on her autistic son.

Ringwood mum Emily Dive took her son Lachlan, who has autism, to Ringwood Coles during "Quiet Hour" and said it was a great success. Picture: Supplied

Emily Dive wrote a post on Coles’ Facebook page on Tuesday, praising its Quiet Hour program.

Coles’ Ringwood and Balwyn East stores introduced a range of measures including reducing the volume of the radio, register and scanner volumes, and dimming the lights, to make shopping easier for people with autism.

In the post, which has been liked more than 5000 times, Ms Dive said she left the Ringwood store in tears because the measures made such a difference to her son Lachlan, who has autism.

“Lachlan was provided with such a positive experience in an environment that is challenging,” Ms Dive said.

“Crawling under shelves, running out of the store, screaming, running, and yelling are our “norm” when we visits the supermarket.

“Today we walked side-by-side for the entire shopping trip, and the hardest challenge he faced was to make a decision about choosing Grain Waves or Tiny Teddys.

“Kudos to you Coles for your Quiet Hour today, and acknowledging your environment for people entering your store can be a sensory landmine for many to navigate.”

Coles Accessibility Sponsor Peter Sheean said they had been really pleased with the positive response from the community to the first Quiet Hour sessions.

“Our stores teams at Ringwood and Balwyn East are enthusiastic about the trial and customers have provided wonderful feedback to them, and have also taken to social media to let us know what they think,” Mr Sheean said.

Lachlan’s mum Emily said shopping is usually a very trying experience for him.

Autism Spectrum Australia worked with Coles to develop the pilot program, with kids such as Lachlan in mind. Picture: Supplied

“It’s fantastic to hear that the small changes we made in store to help reduce noise and distractions have helped to make a difference to the shopping experience for our customers who find it challenging to shop in a heightened sensory environment.”

He said Quiet Hour would continue on Tuesdays in both stores for the next 11 weeks and they would be looking at the results and feedback to determine the next steps for the program.

Autism Spectrum Australia worked with Coles to develop the pilot program.

The Coles Ringwood store is in Ringwood Square, corner of Maroondah Highway and New St. The Balwyn East store is at 342—344 Belmore Rd,