Left to right: Claire Austin, Registered Manager of the Northern Ireland Autism Centre in Carryduff, and Shirelle Stewart, Director of the National Autistic Society Northern Ireland.

The National Autistic Society Northern Ireland is celebrating 20 years of supporting and campaigning for the rights of autistic people and their families.

Our first Northern Ireland office opened in Belfast in 2005. Our support and services have continued to grow since then and now include a state-of-the-art centre in Carryduff, five volunteer-led branches across Northern Ireland, and groups and training for all stages of life.

The National Autistic Society Northern Ireland has driven vital improvements in healthcare, education and employment over the last 20 years, thanks to tireless campaigning alongside autistic people and their families. Most recently, our Forgotten Voices campaign called for immediate access to short breaks and residential care for families of autistic children and young people with high support needs.

We will host a special gala dinner at the Titanic Hotel in Belfast on Friday 17 October 2025 to celebrate the 20th anniversary with supporters.

Shirelle Stewart, Director of the National Autistic Society Northern Ireland, said: “We are delighted to be celebrating our 20th anniversary this year and reflecting on all the achievements we’ve made during this time. Our strength is in the depth of knowledge and training from our staff. Our team is so dedicated and committed to improving the lives and outcomes for autistic children and adults and providing support for their families.”

In 2019, the National Autistic Society Northern Ireland opened its autism centre in Carryduff. The first of its kind in Northern Ireland, the centre provides day services for autistic people with high support needs. It also offers programmes of support during evenings and weekends for autistic children, adults and their families.
 
Shirelle Stewart added: “At the heart of our centre is the day service for autistic adults with high support needs. It’s so important because families can break down if they don't get the kind of respite and support they need. Having such brilliant day provision and support allows the young adults to stay at home for a much longer period, and it really helps the family. It's so important to have that provision.

“We are absolutely delighted that in our 20th anniversary year we will be opening another new Autism centre in Randalstown, enabling us to provide much needed services to even more autistic people and their families. Looking ahead to the next 20 years, we would like to be able to offer similar services across Northern Ireland, and I hope to see more understanding, compassion and empathy for families like the ones we support.”

Our gala dinner takes place at the Titanic Hotel on Friday 17 October 2025. Individual tickets can be bought for £200 each on our website. A table for 10 people can be bought for £2,000 on our website.

Further information

• Buy tickets for our Gala Dinner – one person ticket.
• Buy tickets for our Gala Dinner – table of 10.
• Find out more about the National Autistic Society Northern Ireland.
• Read more about our Northern Ireland services.
• Read about our Northern Ireland Autism Centre.
• Subscribe to our Northern Ireland newsletter.