All About Appeer!

At Appeer, everyone "fits in". We offer a place where autistic girls and women can meet like-minded peers and truly be themselves. 


Appeer is a not for profit organisation run to benefit autistic girls and women, and those around them.  We are proudly lived-experience led, and we source neurodivergent input and talent at every opportunity. 


We provide online and in-person Sessions and Programmes which support A Positive PEER approach, through which autistic Girls, Teens and Women and their Parents/Carers can connect through sharing interests and receiving support. All our work is underpinned by our 6 key strands supporting life skills, social, emotional, and mental health and wellbeing, and promotes the understanding of autism.


In-person Sessions and Programmes are currently based in venues in Surrey and can be booked by families living in or close to Surrey. Online Groups and Activities can be accessed by those who live both within and nearby Surrey (although Surrey families may be prioritised in some Sessions due to funding restrictions).


Our current Programmes have been designed to support those who are diagnosed as being autistic or who are waiting for assessment for an autistic spectrum condition, who may also have other neurodivergent conditions. In the future we hope to expand our activities to support those with other primary neurodiverse conditions too, for example ADHD. 


We welcome applications from those who meet our admissions criteria, including those who identify as girls and women and/or those assigned female at birth who many be gender questioning and/or non binary (see our Admissions Policy). 


Our Offer includes:


Weekday Groups - Alternative Provision half day groups during term time for autistic girls aged 10-14 (Wednesday mornings), younger autistic teen girls aged 13 plus (Monday and Tuesday mornings) and autistic young women aged 16-25 on a Monday morning.  These Groups enable the Girls, Teens and Young Women to socialise and connect with peers, enjoy interests, receive support around their understanding of being autistic and their neurodiversity and to access life/work skill and SEMH  and wellbeing related activities. 

 

Monthly Girls Groups  - social interest groups for autistic girls aged between 7 and 12 and their parents/carers in Surrey.


Monthly Teen Group - social interest based group for autistic teenage girls aged 13-18 and their parents/carers in Surrey. Priority spaces are offered each month to families who attended the previous session, but then are opened to other families registered with Appeer.


Monthly Young Women's Group - social interest based group for autistic young women aged 18 - 35 to provide a space to connect with their peers in a low pressure environment.


Online Sessions - a range of facilitated build and share sessions suitable for autistic girls from 7 to 18 years.


Ad Hoc Sessions -social interest based sessions for autistic girls aged 7-12 and 13-18 which focus on baking, gaming, climbing, Arts/Crafts, animals and more taking place every month during weekends, school holidays and after school.


Explore Programmes - A range of bespoke programmes designed to support autistic girls and women e.g. our Teens Exploring Work programme which helps autistic teenage girls advocate for themselves in the workplace, connect with peers and get work experience.

 

Yoga Sessions - for parents and carers, for autistic women over the age of 16 who are attending the Monthly Teen Group.


Parent/carer Sessions - facilitated peer support alongside all our group sessions.


Events and Outreach - A  small number of presentations and talks for school and local authority staff around experiences of and support for, and with, autistic girls and women.



Please note, our current activities have been designed to support those who are suspected or diagnosed as being autistic who may also have other neurodiverse conditions. In the future we hope to expand our activities to support those with other neurodiverse conditions too e.g. ADHD. 

 



Our Mission

 

Appeer Community Interest Company has been set up to benefit autistic girls and women and those around, including families and professionals, due to a lack of support, provision and understanding available in this field. 

 

We are a not-for-profit organisation offering in-person and online activities. We currently primarily support families from Surrey and surrounding areas, although our online Sessions are available for any parent/carer of an autistic daughter to book. As our offering matures and further resources become available, we may have the capacity to benefit autistic females and those who support them throughout the UK and beyond. 

 

The company was named Appeer Community Interest Company because we facilitate our Groups and Sessions using a positive peer approach. This approach is integral to our ethos and enables autistic girls and women and those supporting them to recognise and connect with peers through our Activities. This is especially important because many from this community can be isolated without support.


Our Objectives


 

 1. To help support the personal, social, emotional, physical and mental health of autistic girls and women as well to help develop their work and life skills. 

 

 2. To help autistic  girls and women gain group membership and connect with peers who they may share some similarities and experiences with. 

   

3.  To help parents/carers and families of autistic girls and women access and share experiences, resources and advice from other parents/carers, professionals and           autistic girls/women.

   

4. To help professionals access and share experiences, resources and advice with and from parents/carers, autistic girls and women and other professionals.



In person on site sessions and programmes are currently based in venues in Surrey and can be booked by families living in or close to Surrey. Online groups and activities can be accessed by those who live both within and nearby Surrey (although Surrey families may be prioritised in some sessions due to funding restrictions).