Happy Autistic Lady partners with Guild of Students for first-ever Autism Acceptance Campaign at University of Birmingham.
Iveta Pudilova (22), University of Birmingham Alumna, is the CEO & Co-Founder of Happy Autistic Lady LTD; a multi-award-winning marketing and consultancy business, committed to creating student spaces where neurodiversity is celebrated. Recently, after competing against more than 400 other entries, Iveta won the Inclusivity Award at the regional Inspirational Youth Awards 2024. This award largely acknowledged Happy Autistic Lady campaigns that raise awareness about autism and neurodiversity at UK universities.
Happy Autistic Lady directly addresses a key problem universities face: disabled students are less likely to access employment after graduation, and 37% of autistic students alone drop out due to a lack of support and inclusion, that’s up to 8,000 students each year. Happy Autistic Lady delivers training, workshops, and creative campaigns that empower neurodivergent individuals and raise awareness about invisible disabilities.
Happy Autistic Lady is a member of the University’s start-up incubator and has a fully neurodivergent workforce, including two other University of Birmingham Alumni supporting the business, Sarah and Rosie. As a local start-up whose roots can be traced to the incredible community at the University of Birmingham, the team thoroughly enjoyed working with the Guild of Students on the first-ever Autism Acceptance Campaign.
Thanks to the support of Dean Turner – Welfare and Community Officer – and Aoife O’Driscoll-Paton -Disabled Students’ Officer- the campaign includes 1,100 branded awareness badges for students and staff members. The badges provide a simple yet effective tool for self-expression and advocacy. The aim is for the University of Birmingham’s 5,000+ disabled and neurodivergent students to feel empowered by their identities and gain the support and understanding they need without having to repeat themselves each time. The badges will be available to students and staff at the Guild of Students from June.
The campaign also consists of educational social media content and infographic posters displayed around campus and student accommodation highlighting definitions, important statistics, how to (and not to) respond when someone shares they are neurodivergent, and tips on supporting your neurodivergent friends and classmates! A few include meeting in sensory-friendly spaces, providing agendas in advance for team meetings, and using clear, direct language. Happy Autistic Lady is now looking to partner with other schools and businesses in the region and continue to promote acceptance and awareness about neurodivergence.
Happy Autistic Lady is now looking to partner with other schools and student’s unions to create acceptance campaigns for Autism Awareness Month, ADHD Awareness Month, Disability History Month, and others.
Iveta Pudilova, CEO and Co-Founder of Happy Autistic Lady commented:
“As a small family-owned business and a University of Birmingham alumna, we were delighted to be back on campus. It was great working with the Guild of Students to foster a more supportive environment and seeing the officers’ commitment to student inclusion! When a student told me that Happy Autistic Lady made them “feel so empowered and proud of being a disabled UoB student”, I knew that our work is valuable and needed.’’
Dean Turner, Welfare and Community Officer and Aoife O’Driscoll-Paton, Disabled Students’ Officer agreed:
“We’re so pleased to announce the launch of our Invisible Disabilities Campaign, which aims to provide a platform to open conversations about hidden disabilities and neurodivergence.
As a part of this campaign, which forms a part of the Guild’s ongoing EDI strategy and cultural education work, we’ve had the fantastic opportunity to collaborate with the Happy Autistic Lady, a new start-up run by Birmingham Alumni.
Through these collaborative efforts, we’ve identified key messaging and worked on the creation of various resources, including a selection of badges which are intended to raise awareness of different invisible disabilities.
We really hope you like the badges, which will be available to collect from the Guild in the coming weeks.”
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