National Autistic Society

The National Autistic Society is funded through UK government grants and voluntary contributions. The Chief Executive as of 2026 is Caroline Stevens. She took over from Mark Lever in 2019, after being Chief Executive at Kids for six years.

History

The organisation was founded on 23 January 1962 as the Society for Psychotic Children by parents of autistic children living in the area, with the assistance of a member from the Spastics Society (later Scope). Its origins were as a self-help group involving both parents and professionals. It was renamed the Society for Autistic Children later that year, the National Society for Autistic Children in 1966, and the National Autistic Society in 1975.

In 1963, Gerald Gasson, a parent and member of the executive committee, designed the primary symbol for autism: a puzzle piece with a picture of a crying child inside of it, which was first used as logo by the NAS itself. In 1965, The Society School for Autistic Children was established, later renamed as the Sybil Elgar School after their first principal. It was described as "the first of its kind in the UK, and, it is thought, the world", and quickly became an example for how autistic people should be taught, and influenced the TEACCH methods in the US.