With the ending of the Wrexham Eisteddfod 2025 it is the perfect time to look back on our time on the Eisteddfod field.
We started the week on Monday 4th August at The Dome in Wrexham Village at the Welsh Local Government Association networking event in conjunction with the Welsh Strategic Migration Partnership at 15:30-16:30. Under the theme of Supporting Communities we shared the importance of engagement and participation for us as a team and how we strive to ensure that the voice of the Neurodivergent community permeates our work.
The session was introduced by Councillor Nia Jeffreys from Gwynedd Council on behalf of the Welsh Local Government Association before Sioned Thomas from the team gave a presentation with Frances Rees sharing our resources and answering questions from the audience.
We took the opportunity to launch our ‘Call to Action,’ inviting Welsh speakers to share their voices and experience with us. Here is a link to our Get Involved page to express your interest in working with us: NeurodivergenceWales.org/en/get-involved/
Whether you’re neurodivergent, a professional, a parent or carer, or any combination of these, we’d love to hear from you.
It was encouraging to see several Welsh local council leaders in the audience along with the Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government. It was also great to share the space with our colleagues from the North Wales Integrated Autism Service, Wrexham Council and the Wales Strategic Migration Partnership. A perfect example of the collaboration we do as a team.
On Wednesday 6th August, Sioned Thomas took part in a Thinking Differently event with the Welsh Women’s Institute at 10:30-11:30 at their stand on the field.
The WI’s ‘Thinking Differently: Autistic and ADHD Women and Girls’ campaign seeks to raise awareness of autism and ADHD in women and girls and calls for action to improve the diagnosis process and to increase the provision of support available to them. It is also seeking to address and challenge stereotypes about autistic women and women with ADHD and calling for investment in research into the female presentation of autism and ADHD. Further information about the campaign can be found here: https://www.thewi.org.uk/campaigns/key-and-current-campaigns/thinking-differently
Sioned took part in a question-and-answer panel on behalf of the team to share information about our work, access to information and services for autistic and ADHD women in Wales and the importance of ensuring that the voice of autistic and ADHD people is heard. It was a privilege to share the panel with Non Parry and Vicky Powner sharing their lived experiences under the leadership of Heledd Fychan MS.
Thank you, Wrexham Eisteddfod, for the opportunity to share our work and raise awareness of neurodivergence, until next time!
