For decades autism was thought to be mostly a boys' condition. Diagnostic frameworks, research studies, and clinical training were all built around a male-centred model. Many women grow up feeling "different" without knowing why, only to discover in adulthood, sometimes after years of misdiagnoses, they were autistic all along. Autistic women may have arrived "fashionably late," but we are changing the narrative with grace.

Joint signatory in Autism Action letter to Wes Streeting about the delay in the publication of Learning from Lives and Deaths report (LEDER).

I was proud to be invited by the charity Autism Action to the Houses of Parliament event about suicide in autistic people. I stand in solidarity with Autism Action because autistic people deserve action.

It was a pleasure to co-author the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) information leaflet on autism and mental health, published this week. I enjoyed working with our experts by experience, and have been touched by the feedback from the neurodivergent community, professionals, and National Autistic Society (NAS) Ambassador Chris Packham.

If you're autistic and visiting a psychiatrist for your mental wellbeing, you should expect them to understand your autism to best meet your needs. That's why I consider it a privilege to participate in the National Autism Training Programme for Psychiatrists, developed and delivered by the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) both in person and online, tailored to psychiatrists nationwide.

Astonishingly, this was the first time autistic women had made the agenda. I presented on autism and mental health in women, and participated in a podcast. There is so much more to be done.

Featured in the Spring 2024 edition of RCPsych Insight magazine, in an article titled "Why autism is every psychiatrist's business". I was interviewed alongside Conor, our Autism Champion, about recent College developments including the National Autism Training Programme and the forthcoming Position Statement on Autism.

To mark World Autism Acceptance Week (2nd–8th April 2024), I gave a presentation to staff at the CQC about autistic women. At my NHS hospital, neurodivergent people can now access a newly designed, quiet waiting room - a peaceful place for others too, and a quality improvement project co-produced with autistic people.

I was invited to write about myths in autism, but instead I outlined five truths based on my clinical experience: we're not all "on the spectrum"; language matters; autism affects women too; autistic people don't lack empathy; and autistic employees are talented.