Autism friendly volunteer volunteer jobs in London

CEO

• Salary for FTE: £62,000 - £75,000 dependant on experience
• 38 hours a week over 5 days (flexibility for right candidate)
• Home-based with travel for events and meetings

Reporting into the Board of Trustees, we are seeking an inspirational CEO for the PDA Society, who can lead with humility and curiosity, empowering and supporting our staff along the journey. They will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the charity and its staff and volunteers, and will oversee the development of our training products, research and support services, whilst ensuring sustainable growth in impact and income.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join a trusted enterprise within the PDA community with a strong mission and a committed, values driven team. The successful candidate will be passionate about improving the lives of PDAers and their families. You will be energetic, creative and bring new ideas for enhancing the charity’s reputation, through nurturing existing relationships and developing new ones to achieve the charities goals. Our ideal candidate will have lived experience of autism, PDA or other neurodivergence although this is not essential.

Closing date for applications: Midnight on 22nd April 2026

Interviews with Trustees:  April / May 2026

The Squad Club is looking for an enthusiastic and creative Club Leader to run our Juniors Club (ages 15–25) on Thursday evenings in Wimbledon, SW19.

This is a part‑time, fixed‑term role (8 hours per week, 40 weeks a year) paid at £13.85 per hour, with a mix of onsite and remote working.

The Squad is a small, volunteer‑run charity supporting young people and adults with learning disabilities through fun, inclusive weekly social clubs. Our members come to Squad to make friends, try new activities, build confidence, and enjoy a safe space where they can truly be themselves. Our clubs also give families and carers vital respite time.

About the Role

We’re looking for someone who can plan and deliver engaging weekly sessions, lead our Thursday night club, and work closely with volunteers, families, and our Operations Manager. You’ll help shape our annual programme, champion member voice, and make sure every session is safe, inclusive, and full of opportunities for learning and fun.

This role includes:

• Planning and delivering a varied programme of activities
• Leading the Thursday evening Juniors Club session
• Supporting and developing volunteers
• Communicating with families, referral partners, and the wider team
• Acting as a safeguarding lead for the Juniors Club
• Helping with admin, record‑keeping, and occasional community fundraising
• Joining off‑site trips and activities when needed

Who We’re Looking For

Someone who is:

• Creative and confident planning activities
• Experienced working with young people with additional needs (youth work or similar)
• Friendly, adaptable, and great with people
• Organised, reliable, and able to manage their own workload
• Committed to inclusion, safeguarding, and disability awareness
• Comfortable using Google Workspace and learning new systems

Experience in small charities or volunteer‑led settings is helpful but not essential if you have strong transferable skills.

This is a fantastic role for someone who loves working directly with young people, enjoys planning fun and meaningful activities, and wants to make a real difference in a small, community‑focused charity.

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: £13.85 per hour

Benefits:

• Flexitime
• Work from home

Communications Assistant

• 15 hours per week at £15.00 an hour (Actual salary £11,700 - FTE £27,300)
• Hours may be worked flexibly over a minimum of 3 days a week
• Home based with occasional prearranged in person meetings

The Communications Assistant will provide hands-on support to the Communications Manager in the ideation, creation and delivery of our regular external communications. This includes helping to grow our social media following, creating and scheduling content, sourcing and designing images, providing copywriting support, and responding to comments across our channels. The role will also involve drafting and scheduling newsletters and providing administrative support with our databases.

This is a 15‑hour‑per‑week role, with the potential to grow in the future. Ideally, we are looking for someone who can spread their hours across the week to support consistent content delivery, but we are open to discussing alternative working patterns for the right candidate.

The successful candidate will have experience in a communications, marketing or social media role. They will be proficient in Adobe Illustrator and have basic video editing and/or animation skills. Strong copywriting skills and the ability to adapt tone of voice for different channels are essential, as is confidence using Mailchimp or similar email marketing platforms.

We are a busy remote team, and this role offers plenty of scope to work autonomously and flexibly. You’ll gain experience across a wide range of areas and develop your skills in a supportive, hands‑on environment, with opportunities to contribute to the creative direction of our communications.

Closing date: 19th April 2026

Interviews: 29th April 2026

Make a real difference to families every day

Are you passionate about supporting families and giving children the best start in life?

We’re looking for a Family Support and Activities Coordinator to join our friendly and committed team. This is a varied, hands-on role where no two days are the same. You’ll work directly with families in their homes and communities, coordinate volunteers, and plan engaging activities for young children and parents.

About the role

You’ll support families with young children who may be facing challenges such as isolation, low confidence, or complex needs. At the same time, you’ll design and deliver fun, development-focused activities and groups that help children thrive and parents feel more confident.

A key part of this role is delivering sessions during school holidays, when families often need additional support. Your work will help ensure continuity of care and reduce isolation during these times.

You’ll also:

• Assess family needs and provide tailored support
• Match and support volunteers working with families
• Plan and deliver stay-and-play sessions, workshops, and activities
• Build strong relationships with local partners, schools, and services
• Promote our work in the community and support outreach efforts

Around 70% of your time will be spent out in the community, including home visits and delivering groups.

About you

We’re looking for someone who is:

• Experienced in working with children and families (e.g. schools, nurseries, family services or similar)
• Confident delivering group activities or workshops
• Warm, approachable, and able to build trust with a wide range of people
• Organised and able to manage a varied workload independently
• A strong communicator with good written and IT skills

Why join us?

At Home-Start, you’ll be part of a supportive team making a genuine difference in families’ lives. We offer:

• A meaningful and rewarding role in the community
• Ongoing training and development opportunities
• A flexible, supportive working environment
• The chance to shape activities and support that truly meet families’ needs

Apply now

If you’re passionate about supporting families and want a role where you can see the impact of your work every day, we’d love to hear from you.

Join Our Team: Make a Difference in Education!

Are you passionate about transforming the lives of vulnerable young people? We're an innovative education charity and creative school dedicated to supporting London’s most at-risk young people. Through our holistic approach, we empower students to thrive academically, socially, physically, and emotionally in a nurturing community.

At TCW, we pride ourselves on being a sector-leading alternative school, rated Outstanding by Ofsted in every category: Quality of Education, Leadership and Management, Behaviour and Attitudes, Personal Development and Sixth Form. Since 1999, we’ve been refining a unique, creative approach to education that celebrates individuality and helps every student thrive. As Ofsted (2025) wrote:

“The Complete Works transforms pupils’ lives for the better.”

Our Approach: We offer a unique blend of personalised group and one-to-one lessons, combined with creative projects and comprehensive wellbeing support. Over the past 25 years, our team has helped thousands of young people regain their confidence, earn valuable qualifications, and grow into successful, happy adults.

The Role: We are seeking passionate and creative people to teach one-to-one lessons with young people across London, working both in students’ homes and other public spaces. You do not need to be a qualified teacher, we will provide your training. Our students have high needs including SEN, medical needs, and SEMH, making mainstream school unsuitable. The work is varied, challenging, and immensely rewarding. You’ll be backed by a dedicated office education team, including a QTS teacher who will mentor you, as well as specialists in safeguarding, wellbeing, and interventions. Your mission: to inspire your students to learn creatively, grow in confidence, and achieve academically.

What We Offer:

• Competitive pay rates with regular progression
• A culture of promotion from within (our senior leadership team all started in entry level positions)
• Ongoing professional development, tailored to your ambitions and interests
• Regular socials and staff clubs, a supportive and friendly culture
• Competitive Pension scheme
• Mental Health and Wellbeing Facilities and Support from our in house Wellbeing Team
• Access to hundreds of company discounts, including gym membership, cinema tickets and fashion.
• Excellent work life balance - school holidays.
• The chance to positively influence the lives of vulnerable children
• Flexibility to develop your role based on your strengths and interests.

Requirements:

• Legal right to work in the UK.
• Enhanced DBS Certificate and Overseas Police Clearances (if applicable).
• Two professional reference checks.
• Experience working with young people, ideally with SEN or SEMH.
• Willingness to teach English, Maths and Science up to KS3 or KS4 level, with support.
• GCSE in Maths/English/Science at C or above.

Pay:

• From £28,361.02

Training:

• Induction Day: One full day (9:00 am – 3:45 pm).
• Induction Training Sessions: Five Tuesday afternoons (4:30 – 6:00 pm).
• Ongoing Professional Development: Weekly sessions on Thursday afternoons (4:30 – 6:00 pm).

Ready to make a real impact? Apply now and be part of a team that's changing lives through education!

TCW Values:

We believe our students deserve a broad range of role models, reflecting the diversity of our society. Therefore we welcome applications from those of all backgrounds, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions.

The Complete Works school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 2020. Any job offer will be conditional on the satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks, including an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check and barred list check.

Please note that we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK.

Join our Psychology and Therapy Hub (PATH) and make a meaningful difference in everyday life for adoptive, kinship and care-experienced families. We’re recruiting an Occupational Therapist with specialist expertise in sensory processing/sensory integration and attachment-informed practice to deliver practical, trauma-informed assessment and intervention that strengthens regulation, participation and connection. 

• Make a difference that families feel every day: co-produce practical strategies that support calmer routines, better sleep, smoother transitions and greater participation at home, school and in the community. 

• Bring specialist sensory expertise: assess sensory processing and regulation needs and translate findings into clear, realistic plans for parents/carers and partner professionals. 

• Work at the sensory–attachment interface: use a trauma- and attachment-informed lens to understand behaviour and build felt safety and co-regulation alongside sensory strategies. 

• Thrive in an MDT: contribute an OT perspective to formulation-led work within PATH, collaborating with psychology and therapy colleagues to create joined-up support. 

• Flexible, UK-wide reach: deliver support primarily online with occasional travel for team days, training or commissioned work (as required and agreed). 

You’ll need: 

• HCPC registration as an Occupational Therapist. 

• Strong experience supporting children/young people and their parents/carers (including complex presentations). 

• Proven skills in sensory processing assessment and intervention, including regulation strategies, activity adaptation and environmental modification. 

• Confidence working in an attachment- and trauma-informed way with adoptive/kinship/care-experienced families (or closely related work). 

• Excellent communication and report-writing skills, able to translate specialist thinking into practical, non-judgemental guidance that families can use. 

ROLE PROFILE

JOB TITLE:

Occupational Therapist

ACCOUNTABLE TO:

Clinical Lead

RESPONSIBLE TO:

Clinical Director

HOURS OF WORK:

Full time / Part time

LOCATION:

Remote working with travel flexibility

DURATION:

Permanent

SALARY / GRADE:

Grade 8 - £43.471

KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

•      Clinical Director and PATH Clinical Lead
•      PATH team
•      AUK staff
•      Children and adults accessing our services
•      Referrers and external agencies as appropriate

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

The Occupational Therapist (Sensory & Attachment) will deliver high-quality, trauma-informed occupational therapy assessment and intervention to families with a history of adoption, kinship care and long-term fostering. The postholder will bring advanced expertise in sensory processing/sensory integration and the impact of early adversity, attachment disruption and developmental trauma on regulation, participation and family life. The role will work as part of a multidisciplinary team (MDT) within PATH, contributing to formulation-led support, practical strategies and therapeutic approaches that strengthen safety, connection, and everyday functioning at home, school and in the community.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

·Provide specialist assessment and intervention where sensory processing differences interact with attachment needs, developmental trauma, neurodiversity and emotional/behavioural presentations.

·Co-produce practical, strengths-based support plans with parents/carers and, where appropriate, the child/young person; provide clear strategies that are realistic for family life.

·Deliver evidence-informed interventions (1:1 and group-based as appropriate) including sensory-based regulation strategies, activity adaptation, routine design, environmental modification and caregiver coaching.

·Integrate attachment- and trauma-informed principles (e.g., PACE/connection-based approaches) into OT recommendations, ensuring strategies support safety, relational connection and felt security.

·Contribute to MDT formulation and case discussions, offering an occupational therapy perspective on function, participation, sensory-motor development and regulation

·Prepare high-quality written outputs including assessment summaries, recommendations, letters and reports suitable for families and professionals; contribute to documentation required for commissioning/regulated service evidence as needed.

·Support families to understand the sensory, neurodevelopmental and trauma/attachment factors that may underpin behaviour and distress, and to implement strategies safely.

·Maintain accurate, timely records in line with organisational policies, data protection and confidentiality requirements.

·Contribute to the development of resources (e.g., guides, webinars, workshops) that translate specialist OT knowledge into accessible tools for families and professionals.

·Contribute to delivery of training in your specialist area (sensory processing, regulation, sensory-attachment interface) internally and externally.

·Actively manage a caseload, prioritising risk and complexity, and working within agreed service pathways, timescales and outcome measures.

CRITERIA

Knowledge and Experience

•  Significant experience working with children and young people and their parents/carers.

•  Experience delivering assessment and intervention for sensory processing differences and regulation needs.

•  Experience delivering remote/online OT interventions and caregiver coaching.

•  Experience of group work (parents/carers and/or young people).

•  Experience of working with adopted children, previously looked-after children, kinship or long-term foster families (or closely related settings).

•  Strong understanding of attachment, developmental trauma and the impact of early adversity on regulation, behaviour and participation.

•  Ability to integrate sensory strategies with relational/attachment-informed approaches.

•  Training/experience in DDP, PACE, NVR, therapeutic parenting or other attachment-informed models.

•  Expert knowledge of sensory processing and sensory-based regulation strategies.

•   Ability to differentiate sensory needs from (and understand overlap with) trauma responses, anxiety, and neurodevelopmental differences.

•  Sensory Integration training (e.g., postgraduate modules) and/or recognised competency frameworks.

•  Knowledge of neurodevelopmental profiles (e.g., autism, ADHD, DLD, FASD) and how these can interact with trauma/attachment and sensory processing.

•  Ability to provide accessible psychoeducation to families and partner professionals.

Qualifications and Education

   •Degree/diploma in Occupational Therapy.

   •     Current HCPC registration as an Occupational Therapist. Postgraduate       training/qualification relevant to sensory integration, sensory processing or advanced   paediatric OT practice.

•  Evidence of continuing professional development (Essential)

•  Training in a range of therapeutic modalities e.g. DDP, Theraplay, BUSS model, Sensory Attachment Intervention (Essential)

Skills and Abilities

   •         Experience of working within an MDT and contributing an OT perspective to shared          formulations and plans.

•Leadership and support skills

•Group work skills

•A reflective and empowering approach

•Strong application of theory

•Creativity and innovative approach to service delivery

•A commitment to the voice of children and families

Accountability

•Consultant Clinical Psychologist

•Responsible for maintaining own professional standards

•Responsible for delivering practice within the policies and standards of the charity

Behaviours

•Demonstrates commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion in all aspects of role at      all times.

•Contributes to an open and honest culture

•Supports, encourages, and motivates colleagues.

•Encourages challenge, creativity and innovation.

•Leads by example.

•Values transparency and consistency.

•Understands the role of individual and collective accountability.

•Actively contributes to Adoption UK’s mission.

•Has a clear understanding of other colleagues’ roles and responsibilities

•Shares skills and knowledge.

•Promotes Cross Functional team working.

•Offers outstanding service to members.

•Takes pride in Adoption UK and promotes its values in all interactions with external stakeholders.

•Identifies and uses the most appropriate form of communication.

•Communicates clearly, seeking clarity when unclear and valuing the opinion of others.

•Treats colleagues and other stakeholders with respect, honesty, fairness and courtesy

•Is responsive to colleagues, third party professionals and service users.

•Takes pride in own development.

•Enthusiastic and committed to achieving high standards and meeting agreed objectives.

•Takes an active interest in recognising professional and personal development needs and priorities within Adoption UK.

This role profile is a guide to the nature of the work required and may involve other such duties as deemed necessary by the Organisation. It is not wholly comprehensive or restrictive. The role profile will be reviewed with the post-holder at significant points for the Organisation.

Postholder is expected to abide by all organisational policies, codes of conduct and practice, and to work within a framework of equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practice.