Research & Creative Projects

Autistic [Neuro]Queer Pioneers was my Practice as Research PhD at the University of Kent. The project explored the experiences of Autistic women and non-binary people through participatory workshops, creative practice and performance.

Working alongside Autistic participants, the project explored identity, belonging, community, masking, self-discovery and the challenges of navigating a world that is often not designed for neurodivergent people. The research brought together lived experience, participatory autism studies and performance-making to create new ways of understanding and communicating Autistic experiences.

The project included the development of creative workshops, community events and original performances, including Adventures of Super Autie Grrl and Super Autie Gang.

Many of the ideas that shape AHA!, my training, and my current work with Autistic, ADHD and AuDHD people have their roots in this research.

ATTUNE is a major interdisciplinary research project exploring young people's experiences of adverse childhood experiences, mental health and wellbeing. As a Post-Doctoral Research Associate on ATTUNE, I have worked with creative, participatory and co-produced methods to support young people in sharing their experiences in ways that are meaningful and accessible to them.

My role has included designing and managing multi-site creative workshops and focus groups with young people aged 11 to 17, facilitating Young People's Advisory Groups, and supervising participatory film-making projects led by neurodivergent young people. I have also co-authored publications, contributed to national dissemination, and supported project evaluation and reporting.

As part of ATTUNE, I led and co-designed the Alternative Prospectus with two neurodivergent young people. The resource responds to findings from our creative focus groups and analysis, where school and college environments were often described by young people as stressful, harmful or difficult to navigate. Using artwork created by young people, alongside quotes and themes from the research, the Alternative Prospectus imagines what more supportive, inclusive and compassionate educational environments could look like. It is designed as a creative resource for schools, colleges and policy makers.

ATTUNE has deepened my work around trauma-informed practice, youth voice, co-production, mental health and the role of creative methods in supporting complex conversations.

From 2021 to 2025, I developed and delivered creative educational programmes for Autistic and neurodivergent young people in partnership with Barnet Education and Learning Services. This work included an Autistic peer mentoring programme, a young people's Autistic social group, and a self-discovery programme supporting young Autistic people to better understand themselves, their experiences and their needs.

I designed and managed the peer mentoring programme, including recruiting, supporting and coordinating a team of Autistic mentors and content creators. I also led the development of mentoring resources for schools and youth services. Alongside the youth programmes, I provided consultancy and training for teachers, teaching assistants, psychologists and other professionals supporting Autistic young people. The work included workshops, creative assemblies and youth conferences designed to promote inclusion, wellbeing, self-understanding and neurodiversity-informed practice.

Playing A/Part was a participatory arts and research project led by Professor Nicola Shaughnessy, exploring the experiences, creativity and wellbeing of Autistic girls and young people through drama, movement, sound, storytelling and creative practice.

I was involved in Playing A/Part across several stages of the project. My involvement began with the 2018 pilot programme with Autistic women and non-binary people, which helped inform the development of the wider project.

I later worked as a creative practitioner, steering committee member and contributor to the design of workshop content. I also supported the development of the Playing A/Part Prospero toolkit educational programme, including writing scripts for peer practitioners in a later version of the programme facilitated and delivered by neurodivergent young people.

I also ran a young people's advisory group, where neurodivergent young people shared feedback that helped shape the online programme.

Playing A/Part has been an important part of my practice, shaping how I think about neurodivergent-led facilitation, peer education, creative participation and making space for different ways of communicating, learning and being.

Imagining Autism was led by Professor Nicola Shaughnessy and Dr Melissa Trimingham. I worked across selected outreach and related phases as a practitioner and Autistic consultant.

Imagining Autism uses immersive theatre, play, sensory environments and creative practice with Autistic children and young people. The outreach work explored how drama and participatory arts can support communication, confidence, imagination and connection without expecting Autistic children to communicate or participate in neurotypical ways.

My role included work as a creative practitioner and Autistic consultant, contributing to neurodiversity-informed approaches to participation, access and sensory experience.

More recently, I have also contributed consultancy to PANDA, a related Imagining Autism outreach project that may develop further in the future.

This work has shaped how I design workshops, learning environments and support spaces that meet people where they are and make room for different ways of communicating, engaging and being.