Home Safety Assessments
If you found this page, you are probably already worried. Maybe your child has come close to getting out or has gotten out. Maybe you lie awake at night listening for sounds from the other room. Maybe you have tried everything you can think of and you are not sure what else to do.
You are in the right place.
Why Home Safety Matters
For many individuals with Autism, everyday environments hold risks that are easy to overlook not because families aren't paying attention, but because Autism can affect how a person perceives danger, communicates distress, or responds to the environment around them.
Research from the National Autism Association shows that 48% of children with Autism attempt to elope from a safe environment, a rate almost four times higher than their siblings without autism. Forty percent of their parents report sleep disruption from fear of elopement alone.
Safety is not something that can be left to chance. And it is not something one strategy can solve on its own. The most effective approach combines behavioral treatment, consistent supervision, and a home safety assessment that looks at your specific space through the lens of your child's specific needs.
Our Approach
Commonwealth Autism Services has spent more than 25 years helping families identify risks they did not know were there — and find solutions they did not know existed. We have worked with families navigating everything from elopement concerns and water safety to kitchens that feel impossible to secure and bedrooms that never feel safe enough.
Every assessment is conducted virtually, which means there is no waiting for a home visit and no disruption to your family's routine. We meet with you, learn about your child, and walk through your home with you on video. From there, we put everything in writing with specific recommendations, product suggestions, and a safety plan tailored to your family.
All Assessments Include:
1. Virtual assessment (up to 60-minutes unless otherwise noted)
2. Written report with home safeguarding recommendations and safety product suggestions
3. Family safety plan template
4. Printable autism ID cards
5. Suggested safety goals for behavior treatment.
New Autism Diagnosis Assessment: This home assessment is designed for children 4 years old and younger. This assessment will help you identify safety concerns in your home. It can be used to address specific concerns or take a proactive approach to address issues before they arise. It will review main entrances and exits, windows, outlets, kitchen cabinets and appliances, and heavy furniture.
One Room/Area Assessment: Are you having trouble addressing safety concerns in the kitchen? Does your child always find a way to leave the home? This assessment is used to address a safety concern for one location in your home or in the car. Often, this assessment is for situations where parents have defaulted to the solution of keeping the child away from a particular area because of the risk involved.
Comprehensive Home Assessment: This comprehensive assessment reviews the safety in each room of your home. This assessment is suggested for safety concerns that affect the child across all environments. This assessment includes up to 90-minutes of virtual conversation and video inspection. Contact for quote.
How It Works
Getting started is simple. Here is what to expect:
Download and complete the intake and consent forms using the link below.
Return the completed forms to our team.
A member of our team will reach out to schedule your virtual assessment and provide a personalized quote based on your home and location.
We meet virtually, walk through your space together, and get to work on your written report.
Schedule a Home Safety Assessment
Download the intake and consent forms below to get started. Once your completed forms are returned, a member of our team will be in touch to provide a quote and to schedule your assessment.
““When our son was diagnosed at two, I had no idea what to look for in our home. I thought I had already babyproofed everything. The assessment opened my eyes to things I never would have considered and gave me a plan I could actually follow. I finally felt like I was one step ahead instead of always reacting.””
““Our daughter is strong, fast, and determined. By the time she was 10, the locks and alarms we had when she was little weren’t cutting it anymore. The comprehensive assessment looked at our whole house with fresh eyes and found gaps we had completely stopped seeing because we had just gotten used to them. It was like finally being able to exhale.””
Questions before you fill out the forms? Reach out through our Contact page, we are happy to help you figure out which assessment is the right fit.