Collaboration spotlight: Friends of In Touch (and why this guest post mattered)

For Neurodiversity Celebration Week, Friends of In Touch handed their blog over to Divergent Thinking for a guest post: “Neurodiversity Celebration Week: the kind of support that changes a life”. 

If you know In Touch, you’ll know this already: they’re the opposite of performative. They’re local, steady, and human. They support emotionally and socially vulnerable autistic children and young people in the Borough of Eastleigh, and the goal is simple and powerful: reduce isolation, build confidence, and help young people feel more able to engage with education and social life. 

Why we’re spotlighting them

What actually changes outcomes is support that is consistent, specific, and delivered by people who understand autistic experience in real contexts. In Touch does that through individual and group interventions, with an emphasis on emotional wellbeing and social inclusion. 

What Friends of In Touch actually do (in plain terms)

They run multiple groups across ages, including:

• Junior Youth Group (9–13)

• Senior Youth Group (13–18)

• Holiday activities

• A Young Adult group (18–35) that offers ongoing social connection beyond school age 

That last point matters. A lot of support drops off a cliff after 18. Their model recognises that autistic people don’t stop needing community because a birthday happens.

Why Divergent Thinking partnered on this

We build neuroinclusion into workplaces and systems. But we also care about the community infrastructure that catches people early, before “potential” gets buried under anxiety, shame, and constant friction.

In Touch is part of the reason I built Divergent Thinking in the first place: because practical support beats motivational slogans every time.

If you want to read the guest post

Here it is again: Neurodiversity Celebration Week: the kind of support that changes a life. 

If you’re reading this as a parent, donor, or local ally

If you’re in a position to help, start here:

• Learn about the charity: About Friends of In Touch

• See what they run: Activities

• Explore current projects: Project Work

They’re a small charity doing high-trust work that’s hard to fund and easy to underestimate, until you see what it changes.