Connor Ward
(He/Him - Autistic)
Connor’s work in neurodiversity began through public speaking and sharing his lived experience of neurodivergence online, with the aim of helping people better understand the experiences of the autistic individuals around them. What began as a personal effort to increase empathy quickly grew into a thriving online community, where Connor found himself regularly engaging with thousands of neurodivergent people and their supporters.
Through these conversations, combined with his volunteering with the National Autistic Society and his studies in design, equity, diversity and inclusion (ED&I), and neurology, Connor developed a well-rounded understanding of neurodivergent experience from both lived and professional perspectives.
Building on this foundation, Connor moved into training and consultancy. His training work focuses on guiding organisations from limited or outdated understandings of neurodivergence towards a modern, practical and human-centred perspective. Alongside this, Connor is particularly passionate about developing new approaches that help organisations better understand neurodivergent experiences and embed accessibility into the way they design products, services, and workplaces.
Connor is a member of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training Steering Group for NHS England, helping shape the national mandatory training programme on autism and learning disability for health and social care professionals, reaching approximately one million learners. Co-production and inclusive design are central to this work, principles Connor actively champions when working with organisations to ensure lived experience voices are meaningfully represented.
He is particularly proud of his work with Brain in Hand, where he helped develop their co-production approach to building their coaching platform. This work contributed to the organisation winning a Burberry British Diversity Award in 2023, and Connor also received his first collaborator credit on a published research paper through the project.
Since 2018, Connor has worked closely with the Autism and ADHD Show, curating stages focused on lived experience speakers. Over the years, he has coached hundreds of neurodivergent speakers to develop their confidence and communication skills, while also broadening representation within the speaking community. He also shares his own insights with thousands of attendees annually.
Connor regularly speaks to a wide range of audiences, from large public events such as MCM Comic Con and Musical Con to professional conferences including the National Autistic Society’s Professionals Conference, tailoring his approach to engage each audience effectively.
Additionally, Connor regularly contributes to national and international media, using his expertise to help audiences better understand neurodivergence and lived experience. He has appeared across television and radio, including segments with BBC, ITV News, Channel 4, Sky News, and Al Jazeera.
Through his consultancy work, Connor works directly with organisations to identify how their products, services, and workplaces can become more accessible to neurodivergent people. Often this begins with small, practical improvements, while also exploring innovative ways to future-proof accessibility and inclusion.
Connor has worked with some of the world’s most recognisable brands and organisations, including Disney, Strictly Come Dancing, and the Department for Transport. He is also committed to influencing policy and legislation, contributing to work within Westminster and currently serving as a Neurodiversity Champion for UK Parliament. Most recently, he was invited to give evidence to the House of Lords select committee reviewing the Autism Act to help transform future policy.
Connor is deeply passionate about improving accessibility and inclusion. His work often begins with solutions that make life easier for himself, then expands to support the wider neurodivergent community, ultimately creating improvements that benefit everyone.
Rather than retrofitting accessibility into existing systems, Connor advocates for designing things properly from the start. If something does not work for neurodivergent people, he believes it likely was not working as well as it could for anyone.
Through these conversations, combined with his volunteering with the National Autistic Society and his studies in design, equity, diversity and inclusion (ED&I), and neurology, Connor developed a well-rounded understanding of neurodivergent experience from both lived and professional perspectives.
Building on this foundation, Connor moved into training and consultancy. His training work focuses on guiding organisations from limited or outdated understandings of neurodivergence towards a modern, practical and human-centred perspective. Alongside this, Connor is particularly passionate about developing new approaches that help organisations better understand neurodivergent experiences and embed accessibility into the way they design products, services, and workplaces.
Connor is a member of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training Steering Group for NHS England, helping shape the national mandatory training programme on autism and learning disability for health and social care professionals, reaching approximately one million learners. Co-production and inclusive design are central to this work, principles Connor actively champions when working with organisations to ensure lived experience voices are meaningfully represented.
He is particularly proud of his work with Brain in Hand, where he helped develop their co-production approach to building their coaching platform. This work contributed to the organisation winning a Burberry British Diversity Award in 2023, and Connor also received his first collaborator credit on a published research paper through the project.
Since 2018, Connor has worked closely with the Autism and ADHD Show, curating stages focused on lived experience speakers. Over the years, he has coached hundreds of neurodivergent speakers to develop their confidence and communication skills, while also broadening representation within the speaking community. He also shares his own insights with thousands of attendees annually.
Connor regularly speaks to a wide range of audiences, from large public events such as MCM Comic Con and Musical Con to professional conferences including the National Autistic Society’s Professionals Conference, tailoring his approach to engage each audience effectively.
Additionally, Connor regularly contributes to national and international media, using his expertise to help audiences better understand neurodivergence and lived experience. He has appeared across television and radio, including segments with BBC, ITV News, Channel 4, Sky News, and Al Jazeera.
Through his consultancy work, Connor works directly with organisations to identify how their products, services, and workplaces can become more accessible to neurodivergent people. Often this begins with small, practical improvements, while also exploring innovative ways to future-proof accessibility and inclusion.
Connor has worked with some of the world’s most recognisable brands and organisations, including Disney, Strictly Come Dancing, and the Department for Transport. He is also committed to influencing policy and legislation, contributing to work within Westminster and currently serving as a Neurodiversity Champion for UK Parliament. Most recently, he was invited to give evidence to the House of Lords select committee reviewing the Autism Act to help transform future policy.
Connor is deeply passionate about improving accessibility and inclusion. His work often begins with solutions that make life easier for himself, then expands to support the wider neurodivergent community, ultimately creating improvements that benefit everyone.
Rather than retrofitting accessibility into existing systems, Connor advocates for designing things properly from the start. If something does not work for neurodivergent people, he believes it likely was not working as well as it could for anyone.
