For 17 years I've been a single mother to two autistic young people, one who had epilepsy and one who has intellectual and learning disabilities. I've also written 12 books for Jessica Kingsley Publishers (JKP), run workshops for families and frontline staff and speak at conferences. My focus is largely on proactive relationships and sexuality education in autism and intellectual disability. However, a growing area of my work is advising schools and colleges about sexualised behaviours of concern.

The Churchill Fellowship is a fantastic opportunity for me to explore how the challenge of sexualised behaviours is addressed in other Western countries. My goal is to develop standardised guidance for families and frontline staff to address the issue and prevent specialist referral. My aim is to work with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Crucially, I want to impact degree-level and other training for health and social care staff, for example learning disability nurses and social workers.

The research will culminate in a book for JKP titled What to do about Sexualised Behaviour in Autism and Intellectual Disability, as well as articles for key journals.