Carol joined the Board of Directors in July 2019. She is also Chair of the Safeguarding Board.
Carol has worked with autistic people and their families for over 35 years, working in the voluntary and local authority sectors.
She started her career working for the City of Westminster, in a small specialist day service, then spent 12 years working for the Wirral Autistic Society, five years of which were spent establishing their training and development services. In 1996, she moved to Bromley Autistic Trust as Chief Executive where she developed their residential, day and supported living services and established a thriving family support service.
Carol joined The National Autistic Society (NAS) in 2001, and in 2010, she was appointed as the Director of the Centre for Autism. The aim of the centre is to promote innovation, excellence and understanding across the autism sector and to provide a hub for greater collaboration both UK wide and internationally. Carols is responsible for the NAS’s diagnostic services, autism accreditation, research, autism expertise and quality assurance across the NAS’s schools and services.
Carol is the chair of the editorial board of the NAS’ professional conference. She has contributed to a number of publications, and has trained and presented at conferences nationally and internationally. She is the UK representative of Autism Europe and chaired the scientific committee of the XI Autism-Europe International Congress. Carol is on the editorial board of the International Journal “Autism”, and is a spokesperson on autism related issues for the NAS. Carol has a particular interest in autism across the lifespan including old age, autism in women and girls, safeguarding and learn when things go wrong, and the criminal justice system.