This policy explains how Alfie responds when a conversation raises a concern for the safety or wellbeing of a neurodiverse young person or their family, and how we escalate concerns to third-party support when needed. It is an accompanying document to the Spectrum Alpha Privacy Policy.
Spectrum Alpha operates Alfie, an AI support tool for parents and caregivers of neurodiverse young people, delivered via WhatsApp. Alfie supports the parent or caregiver; it is not used directly by children.
This policy covers how Alfie responds when a conversation raises a concern for the safety, wellbeing, or development of a neurodiverse young person or their family. It explains our approach, our limits, and the escalation pathway to third-party support.
Spectrum Alpha does not provide clinical, medical, legal, or crisis intervention services. Alfie is a support tool, not a clinician or an emergency service. Where a situation requires human support, Alfie directs people to appropriate resources and, where relevant, alerts the Spectrum Alpha team for review.
Alfie is designed to prioritise user safety, clarity, and connection to appropriate human support.
Autistic and neurodiverse young people face elevated risks in several areas compared to their neurotypical peers. These include masking-related burnout, mental health difficulties, bullying and social exclusion, online grooming, sensory distress, and challenges around identity and relationships.
Generic AI responses to these issues can misread a young person's experience, reinforce unhelpful framings, or fail to point families to support that fits their specific needs. Alfie is designed to respond through a neurodiversity-affirming lens. This means:
The following summarises Alfie's approach to issues that commonly come up when a parent is supporting a neurodiverse young person. In each case, Alfie holds a neurodiversity-affirming lens and follows the escalation pathway described in Section 4 where needed.
All third-party resources that Alfie signposts to are selected against a neurodiversity-affirming standard. Spectrum Alpha does not signpost to organisations that advocate for curing autism or that frame neurodiversity through a deficit lens.
Alfie recognises that anxiety and overwhelm often run higher in autistic young people because of sensory load, masking cost, and social processing demands. Alfie helps the parent read the early signs, respond calmly, and draw on patterns from earlier conversations. Where a conversation describes persistent low mood or escalating distress, in the young person or in the parent themselves, Alfie signposts to appropriate mental health support.
If a conversation describes thoughts of self-harm or suicide, whether in the young person or the parent, Alfie responds with calm, direct acknowledgement and signposts immediately to country-specific crisis resources. Alfie does not attempt to assess risk, provide therapy, or suggest specific methods. The escalation pathway activates and the Spectrum Alpha team reviews the interaction within one working day.
Alfie recognises that autistic young people are at elevated risk of bullying, often compounded by difficulty reading social cues or masking the distress. Alfie helps the parent support their child, identify the right people to involve at school, and keep a record. Where bullying is described as severe, ongoing, or accompanied by harm, the escalation pathway activates and the Spectrum Alpha team reviews the interaction within one working day.
Alfie recognises that autistic young people can be at elevated risk from online grooming because of direct communication styles and the strong pull of online communities around specific interests. Alfie helps the parent respond to online safety concerns with practical guidance framed around specific warning patterns rather than general fear. Where a conversation describes contact that matches grooming patterns, the escalation pathway activates and the Spectrum Alpha team reviews the interaction within one working day.
Alfie recognises that home and family life can be a source of both support and stress for neurodiverse young people, particularly where understanding of neurodiversity is still growing. Alfie helps the parent think through what they can influence and how to communicate needs where appropriate. Where a conversation describes abuse, neglect, or unsafe conditions affecting a child, the escalation pathway activates and the Spectrum Alpha team reviews the interaction within one working day.
Alfie helps parents approach questions about relationships, dating, and consent with clear, age-appropriate framing centred on the young person's agency. Alfie does not provide explicit sexual content or detailed guidance on sexual activity. Where a conversation raises concerns about exploitation, coercion, or sexual harm to a child, the escalation pathway activates and the Spectrum Alpha team reviews the interaction within one working day.
Alfie treats sensory distress, meltdown, and shutdown as valid nervous system responses, not behavioural problems. Alfie helps the parent recognise early signs, reduce immediate load, and support recovery without shame. Routine sensory and regulation topics do not trigger escalation. Where a pattern of emerging risk is identified across conversations a parent has shared, the Spectrum Alpha team may flag for review.
Alfie distinguishes between sensory-based food selectivity, which is common in autistic young people and is treated as a working preference rather than a problem, and eating patterns that indicate restriction, purging, or body-image distress. For the former, Alfie is supportive and practical. For the latter, Alfie signposts the parent to appropriate eating disorder support and the escalation pathway activates, with review by the Spectrum Alpha team within one working day.
Alfie does not actively monitor user messages in real time. Escalation is triggered automatically by content indicators in a user's message at the point it is sent. The Spectrum Alpha team reviews flagged interactions after the fact, not continuously.
Spectrum Alpha uses an automated escalation pathway built into the n8n workflow that delivers Alfie's responses. The pathway activates when a user's message contains indicators of safeguarding concern.
Keywords, phrases, and patterns in user messages that indicate:
Alfie signposts to resources matched to the user's country of registration across ten countries (United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand). The operational resource list, detection signals, and exact response language are maintained in Spectrum Alpha's internal Escalation Triggers document and reviewed regularly by the SA team.
All data handling follows the Spectrum Alpha Privacy Policy. In the context of safeguarding:
Alfie is an AI support tool. Alfie is not:
In any situation where someone is in immediate danger, the correct action is to contact local emergency services directly. Alfie signposts to these services when relevant and does not attempt to manage crisis situations alone.
If a parent, caregiver, partner organisation, or member of the public wishes to report a safeguarding concern relating to Spectrum Alpha or Alfie, they can contact the Spectrum Alpha team directly:
The Spectrum Alpha team aims to respond to all concerns within one working day. Concerns relating to immediate risk will be prioritised.
This policy is reviewed every six months or on material change to the Alfie workflow or the Spectrum Alpha team. Section 4 (Escalation Pathway) is subject to update as the n8n workflow is finalised and tested.
Material changes will be notified by email to registered families.
Spectrum Alpha Ltd
St John's Innovation Centre
Cowley Road
Cambridge, CB4 0WS, United Kingdom
Email: support@spectrumalpha.org
Telephone: +44 1223 931 172