Come As You Are

Come As You Are is back at The Night Owl in Digbeth on Monday 19 October. It's an inclusive club night for anyone 18+, and it runs on the third Monday of every month, so this is the October edition. The night is run by QAC Community Services, and it's built as a welcoming, safe space for adults with autism or other support needs, alongside their friends, partners, family and carers. It's explicitly inclusive of neurodiversity and other neurotypes, and the whole point is that you can just turn up as you are.

The music comes from the DJs, who spin groovy tracks from the 1950s right through to the 1990s. The venue itself, The Night Owl, is a Midlands spot devoted to Northern Soul and Motown, so the sound fits right in. It's a broad stretch of decades, so there's plenty to dance to whether you're into the early soul stuff or the later grooves.

Behind the night is Queen Alexandra College, a national college for the blind, visually impaired and learners with Asperger Syndrome and/or Autistic Spectrum Disorders, based at Court Oak Road in Harborne. They're the ones running the whole thing through their community services, and that's where the inclusive focus comes from.

It's a straightforward one to get into: £5 on the door, and carers go free. If you're coming with someone who supports you, they don't pay, so you can bring along your partner, a friend, or a family member without worrying about the cost. It's on Monday 19 October at The Night Owl in Digbeth, part of a monthly run that hits the third Monday of every month.