Navigating a pandemic, changing perceptions and new possibilities

As she comes to the end of nearly seven successful years as Chief Executive at the National Autistic Society, Caroline has been reflecting on some of her proudest moments whilst working at the charity.

My experience with the National Autistic Society began nearly 30 years ago when I reached out for support for my autistic son. Little did I know that one day I would have the honour of becoming Chief Executive and fulfil my life’s ambition.

Leaving a charity that has been such a significant part of my life is not easy. Together, we have navigated huge challenges, achieved remarkable progress, and, most importantly, made a difference in the lives of autistic people, their families, and the communities around them.

As I reflect on my time here, I am filled with gratitude, pride and optimism for what comes next.

“One of my most important focuses during my time as Chief Executive has been ensuring that autistic people are at the centre of everything we do.”

An extraordinary beginning

I joined the charity as Chief Executive just four months before the first Covid lockdown. Almost overnight, we had to transform the way we worked, coordinating the move of schools to home learning, temporarily closing day services, and supporting residential and supported living services through unprecedented restrictions.

For over three months, our residential and supported living homes remained in lockdown to protect the people we support. I could not see my own son, Jack, during that time either.

During that period of huge uncertainty, I witnessed countless examples of dedication, compassion, and creativity from colleagues across the organisation throughout the UK. From staff being creative by replicating cafes in their outdoor spaces when high streets were closed to support workers who fundraised for our charity in their spare time, their dedication to bringing joy to people we support perfectly captured the spirit of our organisation: innovative, caring and dedicated to creating positive experiences even in the most challenging circumstances.

Putting autistic voices at the centre

One of my most important focuses during my time as Chief Executive has been ensuring that autistic people are at the centre of everything we do.

I see this every day in our amazing support workers and teaching staff whose 24/7 commitment and dedication ensures that people get to live the life they choose.

We have worked hard to ensure lived experience informs our decisions, including the development of the ambitious Moonshot Vision and our Vision to Reality Strategy, shaped through extensive listening and engagement with autistic people.

Through initiatives including the It's How You Show Up and Now I Know campaigns, we have challenged perceptions and increased understanding of autism.

We have also invested in creating evidence-based information and resources, helping families, professionals and autistic people access reliable information supported by robust evidence reviews. This is particularly important in a world where so much conflicting and misleading information is available on social media.

Visiting people we support in our services in Devon

Influence, credibility and impact

Over the years, I have been fortunate to represent the charity at events in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as internationally. From parliamentary roundtables in the House of Lords and House of Commons, celebrating our charity’s 60th anniversary in Kensington Palace with our Royal Patron HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh, to speaking about inclusive education in front of 1,000 members of the Autism Society of Japan in Kanagawa.

I have been heartened by seeing positive outcomes – from the 25,000 campaigners who said it was Time to Act on the Mental Health Bill with us to the 46 MPs who attended our event in UK Parliament to Let Every Autistic Child Learn.

In 2024, our charity was chosen for one of the coveted Show Gardens at the Chelsea Flower Show (which went on to win a Silver Gilt award). With the help of autistic people throughout the process and our amazing staff volunteers, we ensured that important information about masking and autism reached a wide audience, challenging common perceptions about autistic people.

Chelsea Flower Show 2024 – Caroline with our charity’s President Jane Asher and Chris Packham

Our influence has improved outcomes and recognition for autistic people across health, education and wider society. This includes ensuring autistic people’s needs were recognised during the Covid-19 pandemic, extending the NHS lives and deaths review programme (LeDeR) to autistic adults, the publication of the House of Lords’ Time to Deliver report, engaging thousands of autistic people and families to call for progress in Scotland as part of our Act Now for Autistic Rights campaign, and securing autism’s inclusion in the national Suicide Prevention Strategy.

Looking ahead, I am delighted that the National Autistic Society has been selected to be the TCS London Marathon Official Charity of the Year for the first ever two-day event in 2027. This will be a huge moment to increase public understanding of autism by helping everyone to consider the ways they can support autistic people. I will be cheering everyone involved from the sidelines.

“At a time when misinformation and negative narratives around autism are a significant challenge, I am particularly proud to have led the charity to take a strong stance in defense of evidence, expertise and the voices of autistic people.”

But of course significant challenges remain

We are entering a period that will bring both opportunities and challenges. A new Prime Minister presents new possibilities for policy and reform. The discussion around fair pay for social care professionals is long overdue, and I welcome the recognition of the need to tackle the disability employment gap highlighted by the Milburn Review.

Meeting pupils at Robert Ogden School

Current debates around SEND reform, Personal Independence Payments, benefits and unemployment, as well as the Independent Review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism, future Autism Strategy and social care reform will shape services and support for years to come. We must continue to ensure that autistic voices are at the heart of these debates.

At a time when misinformation and negative narratives around autism are a significant challenge, I am particularly proud to have led the charity to take a strong stance in defense of evidence, expertise and the voices of autistic people. With public narratives around autism becoming increasingly concerning, we are not afraid to challenge and stand up to the things that are important to us. That commitment must continue.

Getting our foundations right

We would not be able to do any of this without strong foundations in place.

The wider environment has remained tough, with the cost-of-living crisis affecting fundraising, local authority budgets coming under increasing pressure, and growing demand across education, health and social care services.

By strengthening our foundations, shoring up our focus on safety and quality and becoming more digitally and data mature, we have been able to support our frontline colleagues who ensure that children and adults in our schools and services get the best support they can.

I am particularly proud of our education provision and the sustained excellence demonstrated by our specialist schools, including our Sybil Elgar School being rated Outstanding by Ofsted for the third consecutive time. These successes reflect the exceptional professionalism and commitment of our teaching and support teams.

Looking to the future

As I leave, I do so with confidence in the future. We have a strong and experienced leadership team and a passionate Board of Trustees. The foundations are solid, and there is a clear vision for the future.

We are looking forward to seeing more autistic people benefit from the state-of-the-art facilities in our new Randalstown Centre in Northern Ireland, which opened earlier this year.

This is an exciting moment for the next Chief Executive to take over the reins.

At the Randalstown Centre in Northern Ireland

“To everyone who has been part of this journey, colleagues, volunteers, trustees, supporters, autistic people and their families, thank you.”

It has been an honour to lead this organisation and work alongside so many dedicated people committed to creating a society that works for autistic people. I am leaving with some wonderful memories and life-long friends.

There is still much to do. But I leave knowing that together we have built something stronger, more resilient and more ambitious than ever before. I’m excited to see what comes next.