Meet the Team
See who's guiding your journey
Dr Susannah Hughes
Co-Founder
Susannah is a Clinical Psychologist and an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society (BPS), registered with the HCPC. She worked in the NHS for over a decade, supporting individuals with neurodivergence, intellectual disabilities, mental health difficulties, and behaviours that challenge. During this time, she gained extensive experience providing both individual and group-based interventions with young people and adults. Since moving into independent practice, Susannah has specialised in Autism and ADHD services. She is fully trained and experienced in the use of recognised assessment tools including: Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R), Autism Clinical Interview for Adults (ACIA), Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule – Second Edition (ADOS-2), ADHD Clinical Evaluation (ACE/ACE+), QB Test interpretation. Alongside her clinical work, Susannah enjoys discovering offbeat podcasts, attempting recipes that rarely resemble the pictures, finding excuses to celebrate the little things, and keeping her plants alive (barely).
Anna Abrahams
Co-Founder
Anna is a Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist and qualified with distinction, and an award prize, in 2008. She has extensive therapeutic and diagnostic experience with paediatric and adult caseloads in the NHS, charity and independent sectors, including the UK's leading autism charity. Her core values are to treat each client and family as individuals, and to work collaboratively to ensure that sessions are tailored to each person’s specific needs. She has a specific interest in more subtle presentations of autism and in a neurodiversity affirming approach. Anna is trained and experienced in the use of all gold standard autism assessments including the Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI-R), Diagnostic Interview for Social Communication Disorders (DISCO), the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2), Ritvo Autism and Aspergers Diagnostic Scale (RAADS-R), Autism Clinical Interview for Adults (ACIA), and the ADHD Clinical Evaluation (ACE). Outside work, Anna hunts down great chocolate and loves doing sports.
Dr Laura Barnes
Laura is a Chartered Clinical Psychologist, registered with the HCPC. Since qualifying as a Clinical Psychologist, she has worked across both NHS and independent services. She now works solely in private practice and offers psychological therapies and assessment to a range of individuals. She has a particular interest in neurodevelopmental conditions and has extensive experience in offering specialist assessment of both autism and ADHD. She is trained to administer and code the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), the Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R) and the Autism Clinical Interview for Adults.
In her free time, Laura enjoys baking sourdough and exploring the countryside.
Fraiza Sword
Fraiza is a Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist with extensive experience working across the NHS and private practice since qualifying in 2008. She has developed specialist knowledge and skills in working with children, young people and adults with communication and swallowing needs. Fraiza has substantial experience in autism assessments and is trained and experienced in the use of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule – Second Edition (ADOS-2). She values autism assessments that not only explore challenges but also celebrate strengths, supporting individuals in understanding their unique profile. Her core value is to approach every assessment with curiosity and respect, recognizing each person’s unique strengths and experiences. Fraiza enjoys spending time with her family and friends, exploring new places through trekking and travel, and trying new restaurants.
Lily Scanlan
Lily is a Speech and Language Therapist and Neurodevelopmental Practitioner, registered with the UK Health Care Professions Council. Lily is also a certified member of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT). Lily qualified with a Master’s degree in Speech and Language Therapy, from City, University of London in 2019 and has been working as a Speech and Language Therapist in both the NHS and private practice. Lily is accredited to administer ‘gold standard’ diagnostic tools for the evaluation of neurodivergent children and adults; the Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R), the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule – Second Edition (ADOS-2), The Autism Clinical Interview for Adults (ACIA) the ADHD Child Evaluation for Young people and adults (ACE and ACE+) and The Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in Adults (DIVA-5). Lily is passionate about neuro-affirmative assessments across the life-span, and has a particular interest in assessing women and girls.Â
Lisa Massey
Lisa Massey qualified as a Speech and Language Therapist in 2000 and has worked in the NHS and in private practice across the age range, from early years to late adulthood. She has worked in a wide variety of settings, including neonatal units, preschool clinics, mainstream and special education schools and colleges, acute hospitals, rehabilitation units, outpatient clinics, nursing homes and clients’ homes Lisa has experience of providing assessment and therapy for children, adolescents, and adults with neurodivergence, as well as adults with acquired neurological communication, cognitive and/or swallowing difficulties. She aims to provide a neurodiversity-affirming, person-centred and evidenced based approach that celebrates individual strengths and empowers individuals to express themselves, connect with others, and engage meaningfully in their communities.
Karen Cooke
Karen Cooke is a highly experienced Speech and Language Therapist with 25 years of service in the NHS. She is a registered member of both the RCSLT (Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists) and the HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council). Karen has experience in assessing and supporting babies, children and young people through to older adults, covering a broad range of communication challenges, including stammering, deafness, DLD (developmental language disorder), learning difficulties, autism, ADHD and other neurodiverse needs. She was previously part of a multidisciplinary diagnostic team within a social communication clinic, contributing specialist expertise to assessment and intervention planning for children receiving a diagnosis of Autism. Karen’s practice is underpinned by a person-centred approach, integrating the values and emotional needs of families with a pragmatic focus on the client’s individual goals. Her work is dedicated to enabling people to develop effective communication skills, supporting their engagement in education, relationships, and wider aspects of daily life. When not working Karen likes planning mini adventures, eating interesting foods and trying to learn guitar.