Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2025

We're celebrating Neurodiversity Celebration Week at UCL with a round-up of educational resources, support for students and staff, and events around the faculty.

An open letter from Catherine Brown, Equity Lead for Disability and Neurodivergence

"At times, all of us come to work with some significant additional pressures and burdens, and all of us encounter barriers that could stand in the way of our flourishing or success. Some of our community experience this more acutely, and for more sustained periods, than others – and might be made to feel that they have to fight for conditions that afford them the best chance of success – or simply, dignity.

Many of these colleagues are enduring this quietly, with a professional exterior – at greater cost to themselves. This is why I applied for the role of Equity Lead. I see my role as one which advocates, champions, questions – and, sometimes, gently pushes – until we have equality of opportunity for all individuals the Equality Act (2010) was passed to protect."

"'Nothing about us, without us!' is still crucial for me. In 2025, I would like to raise awareness, and to develop training, on a wider variety of health conditions, disabilities and overcoming associated barriers in the workplace. This will need to be relevant, informative and to represent the authentic, lived experience.

You can, and should, be seen, heard and appreciated at IOE and in UCL."

What we're doing in this area

Exploring autistic people’s journeys to career success and fulfilment

Many autistic people who want to work face challenges when finding and maintaining meaningful employment. Researchers from the Centre for Research in Autism and Education (CRAE) interviewed 18 autistic adults on what career success means to them, and their journeys in achieving it.

The interviews emphasised the importance of:

• lifelong, tailored support to enable autistic employees to succeed,
• more inclusive workplaces that actively promote inclusivity, and
• ensuring sustainable and fulfilling career paths for autistic individuals, beyond the initial hiring stage.

Myths and facts about accessibility

On the IOE Blog, Leda Kamenopoulou and Ben Watson break down six common misconceptions about accessibility.

They write about the importance of recognising that accessibility begins with empathy, and should take into account physical spaces, digital platforms and live teaching delivery.

Why do neurodivergent people face pressures to mask at work?

Research shows that "masking", hiding one’s traits during social interaction, is particularly common for neurodivergent people.

It was found to be an adaptive response against any potential negative social and employment outcomes, particularly the unique pressures reported by both non-autistic and autistic neurodivergent people.

The research underscores the need for employers to foster more inclusive practices in the workplace that better includes neurodiverse people, including comprehensive training on neurodiversity and masking, and mental health support for all employees, such as through reasonable adjustments or occupational therapy.

Supporting teachers and parents to understand, identify and support dyscalculia

A toolkit developed by IOE researchers shares information on supporting children with dyscalculia, which is defined as a persistent difficulty in understanding numbers and can affect anyone, regardless of age or ability.

The toolkit is designed to raise awareness of dyscalculia and mathematical learning difficulties and includes links to short courses, presentations and blogs.

Making autism research accessible to teachers

How can teachers access and make use of evidence that comes from university-based research? This research project aims to make research in autism education more accessible for educators in the classroom to better influence practice and pedagogy.

Hearing from our UCL community...

Brian Irvine is a Research Fellow and Communications Officer at CRAE. His research explores the superior perceptual capacity of autistic people, and seeks to reframe our academic dialogue on autism in terms of gain, rather than deficit. 

Outside of UCL, he also provides support and supervision for Specialist (Autism) Mentors.

Maureen Brittain is a Specific Learning Difficulties (Dyslexia) MA alumna, class of 2023.

She came to UCL to gain professional qualifications to practice as a specialist teacher and dyslexia assessor.

Events

Exam Season Toolkit: Sleeping Better with Neurodivergence

17 March 2025, 5:30 – 6:30 pm

Guy Meadows, a leading sleep expert, will help participants learn innovative techniques to help improve your sleep. This online session will cover how neurodiverse traits can influence sleep and the common sleep difficulties experienced by neurodivergent individuals.

Anxiety: Beat it and Regain Peace

Enrol from 3 March – 16 April 2025

This course aims to empower and support participants with knowledge to help understand what anxiety is and where it comes from, including an explanation of anxiety triggers and help to recognise one's own.

London International Conference on Inclusive Education (LICIE)

28 – 30 July 2025

Come along this global conference showcasing the latest research on inclusive education around the world – hosted by the UCL Centre for Inclusive Education.

Support for students and staff

• Support for disabled and neurodivergent students
• Join the neurodivergent staff network
• Disability equality resources for staff and managers
• Teaching toolkit: Supporting neurodiversity in education
• The sunflower lanyard: Invisible disability scheme
• Digital accessibility services at UCL

Image

Alessandro Biascioli via Adobe Stock.