The CREATE! Art for Autism 2014 competition is now open and it has already seen a rise in entries at this early stage of the competition.

This innovative national art competition, now in its fourth year, aims to inspire young people with an Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC) and Asperger’s Syndrome, celebrating their creativity, educating the wider public, and dispelling several myths on autism.

As Darren Jackson, Director of Education at Beechwood College in the Vale of Glamorgan which sponsors CREATE! has said: “This campaign seeks to challenge the conventional barriers as to what is traditionally considered to be ‘art’, and instead raises the profile of the creative talents of those who through their autism are able to remain authentic in their thinking and vibrant in their subsequent responses.”

CREATE! Art for Autism welcomes 11-25 year olds throughout the country to express their creativity across five categories-2D art; 3D art; digital photography; digital animation; and poetry. The competition closes on June 11, 2014, after which judges from the world of Arts, the media, and academia will choose finalists for each category.

Winners and creators of commended pieces of artwork will receive both individual prizes and prizes for their school, which will be handed out at an awards ceremony on July 18 at Beechwood College.

The competition has grown in popularity and support every year and aims to continue and improve on the success of last year’s competition, which received more than 800 entries from across the UK.

MP Alun Cairns and Jane Asher, President of the National Autistic Society, actress and author continue to support the competition.

Jane Asher says of the competition: “It is truly inspirational to see how much creativity oozes out of the autistic young people, enabling them to express themselves through art makes this competition such a worthwhile project”.

Speaking about CREATE! Alun Cairns said: “People with an Autistic Spectrum Condition deserve the highest quality care possible and I feel very strongly that more needs to be done to raise awareness for this cause. Beechwood College is doing excellent work to improve the lives of young people with an ASC and I am delighted to be supporting them in their worthy campaign.”

Participants who meet the criteria can enter the competition or get further information from www.createartforautism.com, or can write to info@createartforautism.com.

Past winners and their work can also be viewed on the createartforautism.co.uk website.

The deadline for artwork is midnight on June 11.