Jessica Chudasama-Alloway (they/them)
“I grew up being made to believe that we were a strong family, and I was strong, intelligent and wise. I was meant to help other people, I wasn’t someone that should need help myself. When that mask slipped and I reached out, I eventually found that really I was a part of a wonderful, diverse community of Autistic people. I found that needing help doesn’t make you weak (blah blah, Chloe write it for me I’m just a Jessica I can’t do this 😅 – basically baby Jessica wasn’t allowed to need help. Bigger Jessica was crap. Auti Jessica sees how this is much better).”
– Jessica Chudasama-Alloway
Jessica (they/them) is an Aucademy CIC director. Jessica completed a degree in Psychology, and while a student discovered their Autistic identity, and was diagnosed in 2020.
Jessica met Chloe through the University of Kent Autistic group, and went on to facilitate and lead the Autistic Discovery Journey programme with new cohorts.
Jessica works on many initiatives as an Autistic expert, sometimes referred to as an “expert by experience”, and is knowledgeable about: Autistic experience; persistent drive for autonomy (PDA); the lived experience of hallucinations; disability and accessibility; use of health and social care services as a multiply disabled person.
Jessica can come to your school or organisation to do an environmental audit and discuss how you can improve the environment so it’s neurodivergent-friendly.
Due to Jessica’s background and involvement with Chloe’s work, Jessica has been supporting Aucademy CIC to deliver training on many topics.
Jessica also experiences synaesthesia, and typically sees neurodivergent people as regular shapes and colours – like a red square – and sees neurotypical people as irregular shapes – like a zig zag. This is a picture of Jessica in Adventures of Super Autie Gang, “diagnosing” non-autistic people before they sat down for the show (their “diagnosis” label was removed at the end of the show).
Here are some of the organisation’s Jessica has worked with or supported:
- Barnet Education and Learning Service
- Canterbury Cathedral
- Canterbury Christ Church University
- Channel 4
- Coca-Cola
- Download Festival
- DWP
- Kent and Medway Partnership Trust
- London Metropolitan Police
- Motability Foundation
- NatWest
- University of Kent
- Zuhlke Engineering
