AUTISM FORWARD CIO
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Mission Statement
We provide funding for adults on the autistic spectrum allowing them to access specialised mentoring services to aid their access to employment and employability. We raise employer and public awareness of autistic talent and the important strengths and skills that autistic employees can bring to the workplace. The objects of the charity are the promotion of social inclusion for the public benefit amongst people aged eighteen or over who are excluded from society, or parts of society, due to an autism spectrum condition, to relieve the needs of such people and assist them to integrate into society and achieve their potential as individuals after they leave education, in particular but not exclusively through funding the provision of: (a) pre-employment support, including social skills and other relevant training which enhances employability; (b) coaching, mentoring, advice and support in relation to employability; (c) providing specialist skills and awareness training and workshops relating to employability; (d) facilitating access to a range of social and leisure activities; and (e) action to increase public and employer awareness of such disabilities and conditions and promote steps that can be taken to facilitate such social inclusion through employment.
About This Cause
The charity raises funds to fund specialist employment related mentoring and workshops for autistic adults who are actively seeking paid or voluntary employment. The mentoring and workshops are provided by independent specialist mentors who have proven experience of providing employment related mentoring to autistic adults. The mentor partners are entirely independent of the charity and the charity carries out due diligence in relation to each proposed mentor partner in accordance with the Charity Commission “Know Your Partner” guidelines to verify their experience, good standing and suitability. The charity has put in place processes to obtain regular feedback from grant holders and mentors in relation to the mentoring provided and their progress to monitor the use of the charity’s funds and outcomes and demonstrate the public benefit derived from the funding of the specialist mentoring and workshops. The charity also reviews each mentor partner annually to check they continue to meet the good standing and other relevant requirements of the “Know Your Partner” guidelines. The charity is currently working with thirteen independent specialist mentor partners and organisations across the country and we are actively seeking out more potential mentor partners in new geographical areas of the country. We always seek to ensure that the support we fund is in line with the requirements and values of the autistic community and we recognise the importance of including autistic people at all levels of our organisation. Helen Needham, who is autistic herself, joined our Board of Trustees in 2020 and an increasing number of the specialist employment mentors we work with are also autistic. We seek regular feedback from the autistic job seekers we support to ensure that the support we fund is of value to them. We also use our social media and newsletters to promote the work and events of autistic and neurodivergent led organisations such as Neurodiversity in Law, GAIN, AutAngel and Me.Decoded and Merseyside Autistic Adults Group. We also fund regular Peer Support meetings which are run by our mentor partner, AS Mentoring. We liaise with employers, universities and colleges to raise awareness of the strengths and needs of autistic people, promoting employment opportunities for autistic people across the UK. We have created a network of employers and continue to hold roundtables for employers, which have been attended by representatives from over 80 different organisations, including employers, universities and researchers. These provide a forum for HR and Diversity & Inclusion teams to meet with autistic employees and professionals to discuss how employers can improve recruitment processes and implement initiatives to improve opportunities and inclusion for autistic people. Since launching in 2018, we have supported over 300 autistic people into employment in a wide range of careers. The charity is currently funding specialist one-to-one support for around 130 autistic job seekers to help them prepare for, find and maintain paid or voluntary employment and to improve their social inclusion, support which they would not otherwise have been able to access. The number of new grant applications from autistic job seekers has continued to increase, with the largest ever number being awarded this financial year. We will continue to extend grants for existing beneficiaries who are engaging well with support and making progress towards employment. We are continuing to see successful outcomes for our job seekers across a wide range of sectors and are now being actively sought out by employers to signpost services to support and attract neurodivergent talent. We are also continuing to expand our connections and to work with other charities and to promote the work of neurodivergent led groups such as Neurodiversity in Business, the Legal Neurodiversity Network and GAIN to improve inclusion and employment outcomes for autistic people. We have also offered to contribute to the Buckland Review of Autism Employment and we hope that this leads to real and lasting improvement in the employment opportunities for autistic people.