Antonia Aluko

she/her
Lived Experience Advisor (Culture of Care Programme)

Antonia is enthusiastic about advocacy and unmasking of autistic people in mental health spaces. At a young age she encountered the obstacles involved with being a carer when a loved one was admitted to an in-patient mental health ward. From this experience, she began to question how processes within the NHS could be improved and done differently to support patients experiencing mental health difficulties holistically and with intersectionality in mind. Antonia is currently aiming to do this through her advisory position to help shape wards into more accessible and open spaces for autistic people.

Being late diagnosed as autistic in her early 20’s, Antonia found that her experiences as a Black queer autistic woman really impacted her life and how she navigated social and academic spaces. She wanted to find ways to advocate and educate others on how the autistic experience is shaped by other aspects of identity e.g. ethnicity, gender, sexuality, religion, age, etc.

Antonia is passionate about making change in every area of life for those from minority backgrounds. Apart from her work at NdC, she is pursuing a PhD using intersectionality as a framework to investigate the nature of identity and systems of oppression within Roman Literature. In her spare time, she enjoys reading terribly written romance novels, watching anime, and going on trips with her friends.

Meliane Mulders

she/her
HR & Finance Administrator

Meliane has a background in languages with a Masters in translation, and is interested in the impact language has on one’s experience of reality, including the language used around neurodivergence and neurodivergent people. She also has extensive experience working in administration within an education setting.

Outside of her role at Neurodiverse Connection, Meliane enjoys knitting, sewing and other crafts, as well as playing video games and cooking new recipes. She also enjoys sitting in the sun with a good book and an iced coffee.

Bat Corbyn

she/her
Canine Associate

Bat (or Wombat, if she’s in trouble) is a Neurodiverse Connection Associate. She’s known for having the best hair. She’s also an exceptional listener and offers excellent reflections and insights to any issue.

In her spare time, Bat likes to run in the woods, find smelly things to roll in, to play catch and help tidy up any leftover snacks. She’s often found asleep at her desk in the day, but when she does attend meetings her contributions are always memorable. Let us know if you’d like to meet her!

Need a pick-me-up?

Becca Hamilton

she/her
Governance and Team Lead

Becca has worked with Jill in previous roles and jumped at the chance to join Neurodiverse Connection at the start of 2023 to support the company and team grow. Currently as the Governance and Team Lead she oversees the daily running of the company, supports the staff and associates and also undertakes Sensory Environment Reviews.

She has previously worked in education and supporting the Care and Treatment Review Programme in the South. In both roles she was frustrated by the lack of neurodivergent affirming support available and saw the long lasting negative impact this has.

As a late diagnosed autistic she is currently in the process of unmasking and learning how to navigate her world in a supportive and sustainable way.

When she is not working or renovating her house she can be found inside watching trashy TV and drawing, or outside with her two rabbits.

Dr Cassandra Lovelock

she/they
Associate

Cassie (she/they) is a Black mixed-race wheelchair user living with chronic illness and neurodivergence.

She is a scholar activist whose work focuses on ethical, community based and lived experience led research, education, and policy making practice within the fields of mental health, neurodiversity, unpaid care, critical disability studies, and race studies.

As an academic, Cassie's current work focuses on the intersections of poverty, mental illness, and support from the welfare state in the UK and ethical ways of co-producing knowledge and knowledge equity among communities that are disempowered within mental health, social care, and welfare services in the UK. She is a lead lived experience consultant in NHS England's adult mental health, and mental health, autism and learning disability quality transformation teams.

Outside of work Cassie mostly reads fiction, writes poetry, and hangs out with her cat.

Charli Clement

she/they
Associate

Charli Clement is proudly autistic, ADHD, dyspraxic, and chronically ill, and is particularly passionate about discussing links between co-occurring conditions, gender, sexuality, and how this then relates to capitalism, systems, and social justice.

Since 2020, Charli has been working with the NHS and third sector organisations on psychiatric care, autism, sensory environments, and human rights after their own admission to a CAMHS unit as a teenager. They have worked on a variety of projects including sensory environment reviews, providing training sessions, and working on co-production for pilot projects aiming at admission reduction of autistic individuals.

As a seasoned keynote & public speaker, they have spoken to a variety of clients including the British Medical Association, Activision Blizzard, Young Minds, VISA, Scope, and Brass Bands England, as well as having bylines in outlets such as the Independent, the Metro, The i, Digital Spy, and VICE.

Charli's first book, All Tangled Up in Autism & Chronic Illness, a guide to navigating multiple conditions, was released in December 2023.

In their spare time, Charli loves reading and going to the cinema, theatre, and concerts. They also create content across platforms - you can find them @charliclement_

Chris Memmott

he/him
Associate & Co-Founder

Chris brings extensive experience supporting change in practice in education and healthcare settings to ensure neurodivergent cultural and communication needs are understood and met.

Chris is great at providing gentle and effective challenge to address poor practice and support services to deliver better outcomes for the neurodivergent populations they serve.

Chris is experienced in providing mentorship and development support to neurodiverse individuals who are struggling to identify and meet their own needs. He does this by sharing his own experience to give insight, identification and understanding.

El Dewar

they/them
Resource Lead

El Dewar is a neurodivergent and disabled researcher and community activist. They are passionate about shared community action to ensure that no member of the community is left behind.

Outside of their work with Neurodiverse Connection they are CEO of the accessibility and inclusion charity BlueAssist UK Ltd. Within their academic work they are an interdisciplinary qualitative researcher, their work currently focuses on neurodivergence, philosophical theory (existentialism and post-structuralism), gender, queer studies and education. They also are often found crafting and promote the use of creativity within academia and activism, leading them to run their own small sustainable fibre art business.

Jill Corbyn

they/them
Founder & Director

Jill is interested in people, collaboration, autism, sensory environments health & social care. They are skilled in facilitating workshops and enabling change in practice and working with individuals and teams to support better outcomes for individuals.

In previous roles, Jill has worked with provider organisations supporting involvement, as an advocate, and supporting involvement and innovation in cancer services. In their role with NDTi they developed the autism programme, developed the sensory work into housing and hospitals.

Jill was the lead author on the co-produced ‘It’s Not Rocket Science’ report into inpatient sensory environments. This was commissioned by the CAMHS Mental Health Taskforce. The NHS ‘Sensory Friendly Ward Principles’ are embedded in this report and are supporting change across inpatient services in England. They have continued to develop and embed this work, developing guidance into lighting and working with architects to include aspects of the report into building notes.

Jill was also lead author for the co-produced LGA paper ‘Supporting autistic flourishing at home and beyond: considering and meeting the sensory needs of autistic people in housing’. They are a lover of walking and wild places, and the proud companion of Bat.

Kay Louise Aldred

she/her
Development Lead

Kay is passionate about increasing awareness of the gifts of neurodivergence. She is late diagnosed Autistic, has parented neurodivergent children of her own and has taught 11–18 year old neurodiverse students. Kay has worked pastorally and therapeutically with children and adults throughout her whole career within educational, retreat and wellness settings. Currently she offers Disability Student Allowance (DSA) specialist university mentoring for autistic students.

Kay is a skilled speaker and facilitator who uses her lived personal and professional experience to share intersectional insights and trauma-informed, autism-friendly approaches—particularly focusing on embodiment, somatic and environmental strategies.

Kay is an avid researcher, writer and resource, workshop and course creator. She visions and catalyses individual, institutional and collective evolution - through education, embodiment and creativity—amalgamating metacognition, intuition and instinct.

She is an advocate for safe, nervous-system-friendly structures in education, learning and sharing spaces, alongside the creation of structures for peer support, collaboration and action-oriented groups for visionary professionals and committed change agents—those currently bridging old and new paradigms.

Kay and her husband Dan Aldred, have co-authored a book together, Embodied Structure: Creating Safe Space for Learning, Facilitating and Sharing

Loren Snow

they/them
Associate

Loren Snow, is an autistic autism consultant with over ten years experience teaching people to understand autism. They have delivered training to tens of thousands of parents of autistic children, autistic adults, and NHS staff.

They work with NHS England teaching NHS staff and reviewing autistic patients' care in psychiatric hospitals on Care, Education, and Treatment Reviews and as a Tier 2 Lead Trainer on the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training.

They also work with many organisations from transporting bodies to public health, employers, schools, and charities and regularly speak at public events like conferences.

Lucy Gilbert

she/her
Lived Experience Advisor (Culture of Care programme)

Lucy started her career in academia before moving into the NHS. She has held national roles in Quality Improvement, and Trust leadership positions in Innovation. She now relishes the opportunity to combine her NHS leadership experience with insights from her lived experience of mental health challenges to facilitate reflection and create change.

Lucy is passionate about the power of neuroaffirming care and improving outcomes for Autistic people through increasing understanding of neurodivergent differences. She is also a Trainer on the National Autism Trainer Programme.

As a late discovered autistic parent, Lucy is especially interested in masking and camouflaging, and understanding the impact of autism during the perinatal period and transition into parenthood.

Outside of work, Lucy continues to enjoy discovering her authentic autistic self, perusing charity shops for bargains, and cherishing downtime with her young family.

Molly Anderton

she/her
Lived Experience Advisor (Culture of Care Programme) and Development Lead

Molly brings to the NdC team her passion for improving mental health services and support. Her expertise is informed by her own experiences of accessing a range of inpatient, outpatient, mental health and eating disorder services, alongside the challenges associated with being late-diagnosed Autistic.

Pre-diagnosis struggles with mental health led to Molly experiencing barriers to accessing education, which only increased her determination to improve society’s understanding of Autism, mental health, and the accommodations that can enable individuals like her to thrive. She has supported students facing mental and physical health challenges as a science tutor and is currently working as a co-researcher on projects relating to young people’s mental health and education.

Molly consults on and contributes to policies, procedures and training across various roles as an Expert by Experience in both the NHS and private sector. She influences change on a service level through her dedication to enhancing coproduction, advocating for service user experience and offering peer support.

Molly is also a proud dog Mum to two miniature dachshunds. She enjoys taking them for walks, anything crafty, going for coffee and listening to Taylor Swift.

Richard Maguire

Associate
Uses ’he/him’ pronouns

Richard has been working with autistic people and people with learning disabilities throughout his career. He brings a wealth of experience and insights to working with individuals, and continues to provide support and mentoring to individuals and their teams.

Richard is an experienced speaker and trainer who uses his experience to share stories and insights about autism from a lived experience perspective.

Richard shares some of his learning in his book I Dream In Autism.

Thomas Barnett

he/him
Brand and Design Lead

Tom is a one-man-band design, brand and communications specialist who is responsible for Neurodiverse Connection's brand, website, publicity and social media presence, among other exciting things. Formerly, as a freelance graphic designer and brand consultant, Tom worked with Founder Jill Corbyn to create NdC's brand identity and website.

Outside of his role at NdC, he continues his freelance work with individuals and organisations to develop distinctive, meaningful and beautiful brands. He specialises in working with start-ups, small businesses and non-profits. Tom is passionate about finding an organisation’s unique voice and translating it into compelling and expressive visuals. He also writes a regular design column for BP&O (https://bpando.org/author/tom-barnett/) He loves gardening, painting and David Bowie.

thomaswbarnett.com

Warda Farah

she/her
Associate

Warda is an autistic Speech and Language Therapist who specialises in inclusive policy review and implementation. She is a clinical communication expert who is passionate about helping to create equitable and inclusive environments. She understands the powerful influence that language, race and disability can have on how an individual or group is perceived and treated in society. Warda’s expertise lies in her ability to help organisations/individuals identify and address any systemic biases that exist within their existing approaches and practices. We make organisations more inclusive by providing education about intersectionality within workplaces.

She provides training and resources that empower organisations to create a more understanding, supportive atmosphere for employees and service users. Warda is committed to helping healthcare professionals develop the skills necessary to understand how these social identities can influence interpersonal interactions and how they can best provide culturally sustaining and responsive care.

Grace Lee

she/her
Development Lead

Grace is passionate about intersectional practice and frameworks, CAMHS and educational settings, multidisciplinary design research for sensory environments, and advocating for trauma informed approaches. She has lived experience of mental health challenges and seeks to find ways to advocate for others going through the system, to have more holistic support. Grace has creative facilitation experience working with mental health charities, CAHMS, schools, festivals, and museums with people of all ages.

She is also a Multidisciplinary Freelance Artist (SOME.GAL) who specializes in portraiture, animation, sound design, costume and digital art including gaming platforms and VR. In her spare time, she enjoys making things, getting out in nature and being a part of Mondo Radio DJ collective.

Hilary Campbell

she/her
Non-Executive Director

Hilary has a background in criminal justice. She has worked in both community and prison settings with a special interest in improving access to rehabilitation services for women. She is currently an independent monitor at a women’s prison. She is struck by how many people in prison are neurodivergent : their needs are rarely recognised and almost never catered for.

She loves a good book, enjoys strong coffee and spends a lot of time on her allotment which is often overgrown with weeds. She has piano lessons and sings in an enthusiastic community choir. She is very proud of three wonderful grandchildren who live near and far.

Lizzie Smith

she/her
Communications Lead

Lizzie is a communications and campaigns specialist with a decade of experience in the charity, public and private sectors. With an academic background in psychology and neuroscience, Lizzie is passionate about the creation of evidence-based communications content, that is impactful, insightful and accessible.

Outside of her role at NdC, Lizzie works as a freelance consultant predominately with not-for-profit and charitable organisations; supporting her clients to develop their brand voice, plan and execute powerful campaigns and create potent communications that are clear, compelling and representative of peoples’ lived experiences.

When not working, Lizzie is studying a Masters in Integrative Psychotherapy and volunteers as a Trainee Psychotherapist at a local Women’s Centre. As a late-diagnosed Autistic person, she is keen to explore the role neurodivergent-affirming therapeutic practice can play for herself and others. Lizzie can often be found listening to Psychotherapy-themed audiobooks whilst on long walks with her two wonderful Labradors.

01
Lived experience

We value lived experience, including in paid roles, at all levels—design, delivery, governance and oversight.

All patients are supported to have a voice in their care
All patients’ experiences are systematically measured, valued and used to improve care
Paid peer workforce at all levels are an integral part of the multidisciplinary team (MDT)
Lived experience leadership roles are at all levels of the organisation
Lived experience representative of the service type and local community is embedded in service design, quality improvement, governance and oversight
Infrastructure is in place to support people with lived experience in these roles, and designed by people with lived experience

03
Relationships

High-quality, rights-based care starts with trusting relationships and the understanding that connecting with people is how we help everyone feel safe.

Staff take the time to get to know the people on their wards and build a trusting relationship with them
Staff are competent in building relationships with different people and responding compassionately to extreme states of distress
Staff understand and respond to different individuals’ needs, for example with reasonable adjustments
The ward builds and maintains consistent relationships with people’s chosen support network
People and families feel care is culturally competent and meets people’s diverse needs
The organisation supports staff to protect and prioritise the therapeutic relationship
The organisation supports the development of healthy team dynamics that positively impact on patient care and patient experience

05
Equality

We are inclusive and value difference; we take action to promote equity in access, treatment and outcomes.

The organisation understands its local population and takes action where certain groups are over- or under-represented in services. And where outcomes for particular groups are poor, we take steps to mitigate these and share learning
Patient experience and outcome measures are captured and analysed by protected characteristics (including for levels of restrictive practice)
the organisation fosters connections with local community services, VCSE (Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise) providers and other statutory organisations to take a collaborative approach in identifying and addressing health inequalities across the whole care pathway
The organisation uses tools such as the Patient Carer Race Equality Framework (PCREF) and Advancing Mental Health Equality (AMHE) Framework to eliminate disparities in access, experience and outcomes
The organisation ensures it meets Equality Act (2010) duties to people with a learning disability or who are autistic, and that their wider human rights are respected and protected
Mandatory ongoing training for staff covers inequality and there is regular reflective space (see also Staff support) to discuss equity, intersectionality and impact of own identity
The organisation’s workforce and leadership is diverse and inclusive, and reflects the diversity of the community it serves. Leaders take action to address any workforce inequality

07
Needs-led

We respect people’s own understanding of their distress.

We are needs-led, not diagnostically driven
People are supported and encouraged to define their needs
The MDT respects people’s individual understanding of their distress
We validate patients’ feelings, and respect their culture, values and beliefs
We take a capabilities approach and recognise that everyone has something to offer
We meet the needs of people’s chosen support network
Patients’ needs and wishes are listened to in the admission and discharge process

09
Environment

Our inpatient spaces reflect the value we place on our people.

The environment is inclusive and accessible, including through making reasonable adjustments where appropriate
The environment is autism-informed, trauma-informed and sensory friendly
Comfort is prioritised alongside the space being clean and hygienic
To prioritise relationships, there are no locked staff offices on the ward
All people have open access to outdoor and green space
The ward environment and procedures foster a sense of community, for example eating together
The environment has been co-designed with people with lived experience and the needs and preferences of patients are evident in it

11
Therapeutic support

We offer people a range of therapy and support that gives them hope things can get better.

People have access to culturally sensitive support and treatment that is helpful
People can choose their preferred therapy from a range of options, including trauma-specific therapy
People have access to support around their social needs, including to maintain links with any community-based health and social care services and to plan for transition

02
Safety

People on our wards feel safe and cared for.

All people (patients, staff and visitors) feel safe on the ward
We respect and protect people’s civil and human rights
Staff prioritise building therapeutic relationships to support patient safety
People always receive a compassionate response when they feel unsafe
The approach to safety is relational
People’s mental health and physical health needs are understood and met

04
Staff support

We support all staff so that they can be present alongside people in their distress.

Staff have the practical and emotional support they need to remain compassionate, understanding and emotionally available. This is evident at every level of the organisation and underpinned by HR policies
Ward leaders have the skills and training to foster a compassionate culture on the ward
Freedom to speak up systems are in place for staff to raise concerns and be heard
Staff experience is systematically measured and used to improve care
Reflective practice is mandatory for all staff providing care on the ward, regardless of role
We have enough skilled staff on the ward to deliver safe and therapeutic care
Staff know spending time with patients is a measurable priority, and that administrative tasks are never prioritised over providing compassionate care

06
Avoiding harm

We actively seek to avoid harm and traumatisation, and acknowledge harm when it occurs.

We acknowledge and avoid the harm and traumatisation that can occur when people are in hospital.
There is a clear pathway of support for patients who have experienced abuse/harm, including access to advocacy
We understand that restraint and coercion is harmful and we only use it as a last resort; that includes the use of blanket restrictions
We do not use mechanical restraint
Our inpatient services meet the needs of trauma survivors in crisis
We are trans*-accessible and inclusive

08
Choice

Nothing about me without me—we support the fundamental right for patients and (as appropriate) their support network to be engaged in all aspects of their care.

Patients always have the choice to be present at meetings about them
We adhere to the evidence-based approach of Open Dialogue and its key principles
Patients are supported to be involved in the decisions about them
Patients have choice in everyday decisions
Patients have the choice to collaborate in the writing of their notes and/or have access to their notes so that they know what has been recorded about them at any point during their inpatient stay
Patients have informed choice over their preferred treatment and who is involved in their care
Where legislation overrides personal choice, this is explained in a clear and transparent way
Patients have the choice to be supported by people who know them well, by an advocate or by a peer worker

10
Things to do

We have a wide range of patient requested activities every day.

People are supported to spend their time doing activities they enjoy
Patients decide which activities are on offer, including those that are culturally appropriate
Wards collaborate with VCSE (Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise) and lived experience partners to deliver those activities
Activities support physical wellbeing

12
Transparency

We have open and honest conversations with patients and each other, and name the difficult things.

We are honest with patients about our decision-making
We have a regularly reviewed, co-produced charter that clearly sets out values and expectations
The organisation has a transparent, compassionate, safe and responsive complaints process
We are alert to how closed cultures can develop and take steps to avert this in partnership with people and families
Independent organisations and advocacy are welcomed onto the ward
We are transparent about the names, roles and responsibilities of everyone working on the ward

NHS ENGLAND

Culture of Care Programme

We are delighted to be a delivery partner for NHS England's Culture of Care Programme.

What is the Culture of Care Programme?

What will we be contributing to the programme?

The Culture of Care vision and development

Our role in the Culture of Care programme

What is Autism-informed care?

Culture of Care

Core Standards

Twelve core standards have been developed as part of the Culture of Care Programme. Find out more details about each of them below.

Lived experience

Safety

Relationships

Staff support

Equality

Avoiding harm

Needs led

Choice

Environment

Things to do

Therapeutic support

Transparency

Meet our team

Jill Corbyn

Molly Anderton

Antonia Aluko

Lucy Gilbert

Want to hear more about our work on the Culture of Care programme?

Training

Events

Booking Policy