Chloe Farahar (they/she) PhD
Autistic researcher, educator, and advocate
Dr Chloe Farahar is a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at the University of Kent (2021-2025) and founder of Aucademy CIC. Diagnosed as Autistic at age 32 after a lifetime of being told they were “weird”, “odd”, or “unapproachable”, Dr Farahar understands firsthand the challenges of navigating a world not designed for neurodivergent minds. It was only after realising they were Autistic that they found their “group of weird” – the Autistic community – and now works to help other Autistics find their place in the world too.
With over a decade of experience in education and advocacy, Dr Farahar specialises in improving understanding and support for neurodivergent individuals, particularly in healthcare and educational settings. Their work combines rigorous academic research with lived experience to create meaningful change in how institutions engage with and support Autistic people.
Current/Recent Roles
Dr Farahar is proud to be Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust’s Project Manager for activities across the Trust in service of Autistic people and people with a learning need (2025-).
As the Autistic Experience Lead for the BrightPath partnership (2024-2025) and Project Manager for Kent and Medway Partnership Trust’s Transforming Autistic Healthcare initiative (2024-2025), Dr Farahar develops and delivers training programmes that centre Autistic experiences and perspectives. They regularly consult with organisations including the NHS, Metropolitan Police, and educational institutions to improve their neurodiversity understanding and support systems.
Dr Farahar has served as a board member for several initiatives, including the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training trials and the Kent & Medway NHS Transforming Neurodiversity Support initiative. From 2023-2024, they were a specialist tutor on the National Autism Training Programme for NHS staff, an Autistic-led programme developed by Anna Freud and AT-Autism.
Research and Innovation
Dr Farahar completed their PhD in Social Psychology at the University of Kent, with research specifically focused on improving discourse around neurodivergence and “mental illness”. They were a post-doctoral researcher (2021-2025) on the Oxford-led ATTUNE project, exploring young people’s experiences of mental health and adverse childhood experiences through participatory arts-based research, with particular focus on innately neurodivergent young people.
They have theorised the Three-Dimensional Autistic Space framework as a better way to represent the diversity of the Autistic community, with a chapter on this framework due for publication in 2025. Dr Farahar is also the creator of innovative support programmes, including the Autistic Discovery Journey, which provides pre- and/or post-diagnostic support for Autistic individuals, teaching people how to be their authentically Autistic selves.
Creative Work and Advocacy
Dr Farahar created and uses Stigmaphrenia© (2012), a play about the neurodivergent nature of what is currently referred to as “madness” and “mental illness”, designed to improve public attitudes and, more importantly, perceptions of self. The play has been performed in the UK and educational establishments in the US. They also deliver workshops educating diverse audiences about the power of language and the need to move away from marginalising biomedical language.
Publications and Media
Dr Farahar has contributed chapters to several key publications, including The Neurodiversity Reader (2020), The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Autism Studies, and Lived Experiences of Ableism in Academia. They write about the importance of positive Autistic identity, culture, community, and spaces for well-being, with work published by UCL and other academic institutions.
Their collaborative work with Annette on academic ableism was featured in an interview with Meghan Ashburn of Not an Autism Mom, highlighting the challenges Autistic academics face in higher education.
Philosophy and Approach
Dr Farahar’s work emphasises the importance of Autistic identity, culture, and community in supporting individual well-being. Their approach combines academic rigour with compassionate understanding, always seeking collaborative opportunities to disseminate research, deliver training, and create positive change for the neurodivergent community.
Whether through academic research, practical training programmes, or creative expression, Dr Farahar remains committed to helping other Autistics find their authentic selves and their place in the world.
Dr Chloe Farahar’s published work:
Farahar, C. (2021, June 25). A rose by any other name would smell…of stigma (or, the psychologically important difference between being a “person with autism” or an Autistic person). Retrieved from Unit for Stigma Research, University College London: https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/stigma-research/2021/06/25/a-rose-by-any-other-name-would-smellof-stigma-or-the-psychologically-important-difference-between-being-a-person-with-autism-or-an-autistic-person-by-dr-chloe-farahar/
Farahar, C. (2021, May 13). How can we enable neurodivergent academics to thrive? Retrieved from London School of Economics and Political Science: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/highereducation/2021/05/13/how-can-we-enable-neurodivergent-academics-to-thrive/
Farahar, C. (2022). Chapter Nineteen – Autistic identity, culture, community, and space for wellbeing. In D. Milton, & S. Ryan (Eds.), The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Autism Studies (1st ed.). Routledge.
Farahar, C. (In Print 2025). The Farahar Three-Dimensional Autistic Space: Dismantling the ‘autism spectrum’ and centring observer bias in the missing, dismissing, and misdiagnosis of Autistic people. In R. S. Herbert (Ed.), Beyond Autistic stereotypes: New perspectives on identities, gender, and experience. Oxford University Press.
Farahar, C. T. (2019). Contact sans contact: Investigating a novel experiential intergroup contact approach to reducing mental health stigma. [Doctoral thesis, University of Kent]. Kent Academic Repository. Retrieved from https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/81290
Farahar, C., & Bishopp-Ford, L. (2020). Stigmaphrenia©: Reducing mental health stigma with a script about neurodiversity. In D. Milton (Ed.), The neurodiversity reader: Exploring concepts, lived experience and implications for practice. UK: Pavilion Publishing and Media Ltd.
Farahar, C., & Foster, A. (2021). #AutisticsInAcademia. In N. Brown (Ed.), Lived Experiences of Ableism in Academia: Strategies for Inclusion in Higher Education (pp. 197-215). Bristol, UK: Policy Press.
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SOME OF THE ORGANISATIONS WHO HAVE HOSTED TRAINING DELIVERED BY DR CHLOE FARAHAR:
- Albert-Ludwigs University of Freiburg
- AT-Autism
- Autism Education Trust (AET) Kent
- Barnet PRUs School
- BeYou
- Best Practice London 2025 conference
- BISnet
- Breakout Youth
- Broadstairs College
- Canterbury College
- Caremark (Thanet/Dover/Canterbury)
- Canterbury Christ Church University
- Channels and Choice/Sallygate School
- Derby PCT
- Eagle House
- Edgebury Primary School
- Euroclear
- Family Voice Surrey
- Haringey
- Health Education England
- Herne Bay High
- InTune
- Kent Fire & Rescue
- Kent and Medway Partnership Trust
- London School of Economics and Political Science
- MENCAP
- NAS East Renfrewshire
- NAS Surrey
- NeuroBears
- Neurodive
- New School of Psychotherapy & Counselling
- North East Autism Society
- Nurture Programme
- Nurture the Nook
- Pinpoint
- RCP – Faculty of General Adult Psychiatry Annual Conference
- Reframing Autism
- Royal Holloway
- SEND Family Instincts
- Sinclair Strong Consultants (NHS contracts for complex autism assessment in Kent and Medway)
- Sligo
- The Autistic Collective
- University of Exeter
- University of Hertfordshire
- University of Kent
- University of Portsmouth
- University of Warwick
- University of Westminster
- Vanguard School
- We Are With You
- Yellow Lady Bugs
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