Just like their logo,
they leave autistic people behind
What did they do?
In 2022 Maria Cook (Chair of Autism Support Crawley) was informed that there was sexual abuse of an autistic person.
Instead of reporting to the authorities, as she should have done under the protection of vulnerable people she contacted the autistic person's employer, breaching confidentiality and ethics.
AutismSupportCrawley failed in it's duty under safeguarding.
In the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, messages from the autism support Crawley board were leaked where autistic people were called names, and ridiculed by staff.
In 2023 the charity received £3,476 in donations from the public, but paid out over £4000 in 'wages', despite advertising that they are a "voluntary" lead charity!
Since 2019, Autism support Crawley have claimed to be 'the' voice for autistic people and their families in Crawley and the surrounding areas.
Despite taking funds directed for autistic people, they refused to support any autistic person, instead directing funds for parents and carers.
There's not a problem with this per se, but wouldn't you expect a charity called 'autism support crawley' to support autistic people in Crawley?
Click the images to download our posters
So... what did we do?
Discover how we advocated for change at Autism Support Crawley's AGM in 2022, leading to modifications in their charity registration. Your involvement can make a lasting impact on the lives of individuals with autism by ensuring our voices are heard against charities and organisations that claim to speak for us, but instead silence us.
Together, we can raise awareness, promote acceptance, and support those in need with autism.
In 2024 we were informed by a board member in the charity that there was another event. We thank them for their support in sending information to us. As part of our campaign we launched a small leafleting campaign at the event, and a cyber-protest where we bought the charity's domains (and at the time of writing, rank higher in google than them).
Part of this campaign lead to almost 200 site visits, and a few disclosures from members and ex-members, cementing a bullying culture at the charity. Thank you to everyone who spoke to us.
