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2025-12-31-accounts

Annual Report

& Impact Report 2025

For the year ended 31 December 2025 Autistic Girls Network · Registered Charity No. 1196655 (England & Wales) and SC054837 (Scotland)

A year of growth, community and proof that it did not have to be this way.

Autistic Girls Network · Annual Report & Impact Report 2025

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Contents

Reference and administrative information ............................................................................... 3 Foreword: CEO and Chair ........................................................................................................ 4 Objectives and activities ......................................................................................................... 6 Why this work matters ........................................................................................................... 8 Achievements and performance ............................................................................................10 2025 in numbers ...................................................................................................................12 2025 in words .......................................................................................................................14 Impact case study: youth voice and volunteering ....................................................................16 Our plans for 2026 and 2027 ..................................................................................................18 Financial review ....................................................................................................................19 Structure, governance and management ................................................................................21 Statement of trustees’ responsibilities ....................................................................................21 Independent Examiner’s report ..............................................................................................21 Statement of Financial Activities ............................................................................................23 Balance Sheet .......................................................................................................................24 Notes to the financial statements ...........................................................................................25

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Reference and administrative information

Detail Information
Charity name Autistic Girls Network
Other name used AGN
Registered charity number 1196655 (England and Wales)
Scottish charity number SC054837 (registered December 2025)
Legal structure Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), Foundation Model
Governing document CIO Constitution adopted 18 November 2021
Principal address 68 South Green Drive, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 9HP
Independent examiner HSL Accountancy Solutions Ltd, Enterprise House, 4-6 Thorne Road,
Doncaster, DN1 2HS
Chief Executive Officer Cathy Wassell

Trustees

The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of approval of this report were:

Trustee Office Notes
Victoria Jane May Chair
Elliot George Wassell Treasurer
Clare Jane McDonald Secretary
Claire Lesley Farmer
Warda Ahmed Farah
Andrew James McDonald Resigned 27 Jan 2026
Emily Katharine Burke
Laura Riach
Ayo Sokale Resigned 5 June 2026

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Foreword

Introduction from our CEO

Last year I wrote that “each year seems bigger than the last, and 2025 is no exception.” When I was writing that report at the end of 2024, I still did not imagine everything we would go on to achieve.

The biggest change of all, and certainly the biggest impact on my own working hours, was the launch of The Haven, our online provision for neurodivergent girls and non-binary young people aged 12 to 17. Interest and demand have been off the scale, and I have to keep reminding myself that we must grow slowly and sustainably to protect our current cohort. The need was never in doubt, with so many neurodivergent young people crashed out of the education system, and that is exactly why we felt we had to launch. It tripled our number of employees, and in our very first term we had interest from Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Denmark, South Africa, Dubai, the US, Canada and Australia. We have onboarded learners who had been out of school for five years and they are now happily attending, so we are delighted with the results in such a short time.

Our involvement in the PINS programme (Partnership for Neurodiversity in Schools) also grew, from 3 Local Authorities in 2024 to 10 in 2025. This year we had schools who actively wanted to be involved, which was heartwarming to see. Demand for our non-PINS training across education, health and social care grew considerably too, and we will need to expand our team of neurodivergent trainers in 2026.

We significantly grew our face to face support group presence around the UK, opened our first group in Wales, and a few days before Christmas became a registered charity in Scotland, with plans to open groups there in 2026.

We have big ambitions for 2026 and beyond and, judging by 2025, anything could happen. We are fully aware of the very difficult conditions surrounding trust and foundation grants for small charities, set against a cost of living crisis, and we are sad for the fellow small charities who did not survive 2025.

Cathy Wassell, CEO

A word from our Chair

2025 was a year of extraordinary achievements for Autistic Girls Network, including the birth of The Haven, which was merely a dream at this point in 2024. Our communities are extensive and evergrowing.

A community of volunteers, managed by Gina (a role funded for two years by The Fore), has been transformational in what we can deliver and how broad our reach is, as well as a reservoir of talent and ideas for graphics, design and written pieces. Gina onboarded as many people as she could, with a robust strategy to maintain our safeguarding, training and support.

Fundraising, overseen by our colleague Charlie, is ever challenging in the current financial landscape but continues at pace. We are always thrilled by the creative ideas our community uses to raise money and awareness. Spring and summer bring the marathons and half marathons, and I am

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always delighted by how many places we fill. We have increased our direct donations, and we continue to honour the memory of those for whom we have received donations in memorial.

We have a bank of highly skilled mentors and trainers who deliver our work into schools, peer to peer groups, face to face groups, conferences and businesses. They are entirely wonderful, embodying AGN to the core, and it has been a privilege to sit alongside many of them on recruitment panels and at conferences. Thank you for the insight and passion you bring.

The biggest achievement of the year has been The Haven. It has been a labour of love, guts and commitment, driven by a need we saw within our community. Having an online learning provision already up and running has exceeded all expectations. We have appointed a Head Teacher, a SENCO, three subject leads in Maths, English and Science, and have two more cross-curricular teachers about to join this spring. The learners are thriving and their work is inspirational. Watch this space as we move towards full Ofsted Accreditation for The Haven.

It is an absolute joy to work with the Board of Trustees at AGN. Everyone is an expert by experience, either of being neurodivergent or of supporting a child who is, and at least four board members have published books or research papers on the autistic experience, with our CEO also a best-selling author. The board is hugely committed, hard-working and stable, with room to grow as we expand our reach.

The numbers in this report speak for themselves. Our tiny charity is punching well above its weight, our voice is being heard in all the right spaces, and none of it could be done without our brilliant CEO Cathy, who has been the driving force behind our progress. I would like to thank her personally, and on behalf of the whole board and our wider community.

I believe we are truly living the words of our mission: “to support autistic women, girls and their families by providing education, resources and community, helping them develop a positive sense of self.” Thank you to everyone who contributes to the work we do.

Vicki May, Chair · March 2026

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Objectives and activities

Our charitable purposes

Autistic Girls Network exists to advance the education of, and relieve need amongst, autistic girls and their families and carers in the United Kingdom. In particular, our objects are:

In our governing document the expression “autistic girls” includes girls with autism and related conditions, diagnosed and undiagnosed, and is inclusive of trans and gender non-binary children.

Public benefit

Public benefit is at the heart of everything we do. Our mission is to support and improve the lives of autistic girls and their families and the people supporting them. The charity promotes an affirmative attitude to neurodiversity and campaigns both to ensure autistic people get the support they need and to promote positive identities for autistic people. This is critical given the unacceptably low rates of diagnosis, inadequacies in support mechanisms and poor life outcomes faced by autistic females.

A major part of our activities consists of operating a closed Facebook group and social media platform. This provides public benefit in the form of support, information, signposting to relevant sources of help, and opportunities for community and mutual support amongst our members.

The charity also serves the public benefit through developing support materials, offering training and workshops, speaking at conferences, organising webinars and participating in autism research. We offer face to face autistic groups for girls across the United Kingdom, creating invaluable opportunities to meet up and develop important life skills. There is a severe lack of such groups, and research indicates that autistic people can find it easier to build community with their autistic peers. The charity also continues its peer support and post-diagnostic mentoring services.

In September 2025 the charity launched The Haven, its online school, providing structured, autismaffirming online education for autistic young people. The charity also benefits autistic people by involving autistic people in positions of leadership: over half of the board of trustees and executives are neurodivergent themselves, and AGN actively seeks to give opportunities to autistic people to volunteer.

In setting our objectives and planning our activities, the trustees have given careful consideration to the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance.

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Volunteers

The charity continues to benefit enormously from the contribution of volunteers, particularly in group facilitation, peer support, administrative support and community engagement. In 2025 we collaborated with over 100 volunteers. In accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102), the value of this contribution is not included in the financial statements.

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Why this work matters

In the year we launched The Haven, the picture has not changed enough. Autistic girls and genderdiverse young people in the UK are still diagnosed years later than boys, still misread as anxious, manipulative or “just sensitive” for most of their childhood, and still arriving at our door in crisis. The clinical evidence has moved on. The system that meets them has not.

The diagnostic gap is real and well documented. Girls are diagnosed on average 1.5 to 3 years later than boys, and an estimated 80 per cent of autistic girls remain undiagnosed at 18 (McCrossin, 2022). Behind that figure sits a much longer waiting list: around 224,000 people in England were waiting for an autism assessment as of 2025, with women and girls heavily over-represented among the adults still trying to get one. Late or missed diagnosis is not a clerical problem. It is a mental health crisis with a long fuse.

When a girl spends her childhood being told she is anxious, attention-seeking, manipulative or simply hysterical (a word still reserved almost exclusively for women), she learns to mask. She mirrors the children around her, suppresses her sensory needs, performs the version of herself adults seem to want, and pays for it later. An autistic girl having a meltdown gets labelled emotional. A girl who avoids messy play because the texture is unbearable is praised for being neat and tidy. The autistic traits are there. The framework to recognise them is not.

The cost shows up in mental health data that gets harder to read every year. Around 70 per cent of autistic children and young people meet the criteria for at least one mental health condition, and 41 per cent for two or more, compared with around one in five children in the general population (NHS Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2023). Autistic young people are up to 28 times more likely to think about or attempt suicide than their non-autistic peers. New research from the University of Cambridge and Bournemouth University, published in Autism in Adulthood (2025) and the largest UK study of its kind, found that nearly one in four autistic people had attempted suicide, that women and gender minorities were disproportionately over-represented among those who could not access support, and that being overlooked for diagnosis in childhood was one of the strongest predictors of suicidal feelings in adulthood. Women without a co-occurring learning disability, the exact cohort AGN exists to serve, remain the group most at risk.

None of this is inherent to being autistic. Depression is not part of the autism diagnostic criteria. The Royal College of Psychiatrists has been consistent on the point: the drivers are external. A lack of timely, appropriate support. Environments not designed for autistic nervous systems. Bullying, victimisation and the slow erosion of self-worth that comes from being misread for years on end. These are fixable factors, which is also why it is so painful to watch policy move in the wrong direction.

As we write, the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 has just become law, and the Schools White Paper, “Every Child Achieving and Thriving”, was published in February. The proposals introduce a new tiered system of Targeted, Targeted Plus and Specialist support, statutory Individual Support Plans for an estimated 1.4 million pupils with SEND who do not currently hold an EHCP, with full implementation pushed back to 2029, and EHCP reform not before September 2030. Some of this we welcome. Much of it concerns us. EHCPs are being explicitly narrowed to “the most complex needs”, while the families we support are already being told their daughter’s needs are not complex

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enough, even when she has not been in school for a year. We will be reading the detail, training around it and campaigning throughout the implementation phase, because the gap between policy intent and the lived experience of an autistic 13-year-old in 2030 is exactly the gap our work exists to close.

Demand for what we do is growing fast. Our Facebook community is now over 35,000 strong and still expanding daily. Our training is being commissioned across Local Authorities, NHS services, schools, parent carer forums and corporates. The Haven launched in September 2025 and has onboarded young people who had not been in education for up to five years, some of whom had not left their bedrooms for months. Our position has not changed. We are neurodivergent-led, neuroaffirming, on the side of families rather than systems, and committed to earlier recognition, better support and the kind of community where an autistic girl can stop pretending to be someone else.

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Achievements and performance

What difference are we making?

The clearest measure is the change we see in young people themselves. Through our face to face groups, young people make connections in their own communities, often for the first time with peers who experience the world the way they do. Many arrive convinced they are broken. They leave understanding that they simply have a different operating system, and that there is nothing wrong with that. We have watched girls who could not turn on a camera at their first Haven session become the loudest voice in a group six months later. We have seen non-speaking learners become expressive. We have seen young people who were entirely disengaged from learning re-engage within weeks of starting our Back to Balance course.

“The AGN Facebook group is an online lifeline on a human scale, for myself, my two autistic teens and my whole family. I don’t know what we would have done without it.” Parent, AGN Facebook group

Our autistic facilitators and educators are part of that change, and they benefit from it too. For many it is the first time they have worked alongside other autistic people, and the impact is mutual. Loneliness, bullying and depression are all reported by autistic people at significantly higher rates than in the general population. Our groups are a small, deliberate antidote to all three, and we extend them through social events that encourage young people to build friendships beyond the venue itself.

“It went exactly as I had hoped. For the first time, she didn’t have to hide. She came away feeling like she isn’t the loneliest girl in the world.”

Parent of a 13-year-old attendee

Through groups we also build practical knowledge. Money management is a recurring focus, because autistic young people are particularly vulnerable to financial exploitation, online scams and the predatory edge of consumer credit, and most have never been taught how to spot any of it. Through our knowledge hub, webinars and family conversations, we help parents and carers make small, sensory-aware adjustments at home that benefit the whole household and reduce the daily pressure on the young person to mask. Through our Difference Not Deficit assemblies, we reach whole school communities, not just the autistic pupils within them, because the environment around the young person has to shift if the young person is going to.

“Meeting AGN was one of the most pivotal moments in my career. I have learnt more from them than in all my other experiences as a parent and teacher.” Claire Cockroft, SENCo

And then there is The Haven. The feedback from learners, parents and our neurodivergent teachers, the children speaking after months of silence, the parents writing to say their daughter is back, has made every late night of building it worth it. The work continues.

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“To say we are amazed is an understatement. The biggest thing M has said is that she trusts you all. You say something will happen and it does. You say there’s no pressure for certain things and there isn’t. It has been a great start for her.”

Parent, The Haven

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2025 in numbers

A snapshot of a year in which a very small team reached a very large number of people.

----- Start of picture text -----
34,244 5.6M+ 250,000
members in our Facebook community social media accounts reached people reached via website resources
353 96% 273
young people in face to face groups felt happier after group sessions face to face group sessions run
291 94% 212
mentoring sessions delivered felt more positive about being autistic autistic adults in peer support
34 3,000+ 59
school staff trained, across 200+
new learners onboarded at The Haven Difference Not Deficit assemblies
schools
----- End of picture text -----

Everything we did in 2025, in full

2025 in words

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Our Facebook support group

In 2025 we reviewed 9,116 membership requests, declined 3,381, and welcomed 6,287 new members, bringing the total to 34,244 people. There were 7,899 posts across the year and over 25,633 active members. Our membership now spans the globe:

Country Members
United Kingdom 29,484
United States 2,244
Australia 812
Canada 380
Ireland 361
New Zealand 137
Netherlands 47
Germany 45
South Africa 41
Sweden 40

Our social media

Beyond the support group itself, our content reached and grew audiences across every major platform:

Platform 2025
Facebook page accounts reached 3,715,806
Facebook page followers 43,796
Instagram followers 40,600
Instagram post views 1,170,000
LinkedIn post views 777,646
LinkedIn followers 25,455
YouTube subscribers 3,270

Our training

We created and delivered training for 38 organisations, including:

Through PINS (the Partnership for Neurodiversity in Schools programme), we were commissioned by 10 Local Authorities on this Department for Education funded scheme for the 2025/6 academic year, delivering 66 training sessions for primary school staff and 59 whole-school neurodiversity

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assemblies across England. We now have a tested virtual model for these assemblies at both primary and secondary stage, so we can begin rolling them out everywhere.

Parent workshops

We ran 11 workshops for parents in 2025, and we will be creating more workshops, training and resources for parents in 2026.

Volunteers

We collaborated with over 100 volunteers in 2025: facilitating groups, moderating our very busy Facebook group, designing our popular resources, and creating social media, blogs, articles and videos. Some volunteers also ran sessions at The Haven, from Animals in History to yoga, mentoring and flexibility training. We value our volunteers hugely. They are critically important, and we are always looking for more, both for our groups and family workshops and for The Haven, whether that is an art or cooking club, or another idea entirely. Our Volunteer Coordinator would also love to find volunteers to set up a trial of AGN Circles, our new venture to give our groups long-term sustainability.

Youth Advisory Board

One part of AGN born in 2025, and entirely volunteer-run, is our wonderful Youth Advisory Board. Its 27 members, all aged 13 to 18, are an important voice in the direction we take, and we hope they will become more important still as we grow. We always look forward to hearing what they have to say.

Our team

Having welcomed Gina, our part-time Volunteer Coordinator, we then welcomed Jane, Mehnaz and Audrey, our educators at The Haven, and Tammy, our SENCO, all before the end of 2025.

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VOLUNTEERING AND YOUTH VOICE · IMPACT CASE STUDY

From dropping out at 15 to leading youth voice at 18

How a neuro-affirming volunteering pathway turned a young person the education system had lost into a confident advocate, project lead and future social-policy professional.

The need we address

Autistic girls and gender-diverse young people are routinely missed, misread and let down by the systems meant to support them. Many mask their distress for years, are told they are simply anxious or manipulative, and eventually reach crisis. When they fall out of education, support too often falls away with them, leaving capable young people isolated at exactly the point they most need connection and purpose.

Isla’s experience is typical of the young people we exist for. She is an 18-year-old AuDHDer, a physically disabled young adult carer with lived experience of mental illness. As she puts it: “At the age of 15, I dropped out of school due to having struggled for a very long time in an environment that wasn’t supportive of my neurodivergence. After leaving school and not receiving any support, I threw myself into voluntary work and it was revolutionary for me.”

What we did

AGN offered Isla a genuinely neuro-affirming volunteering pathway, not a one-off task but a route to grow. We welcomed her onto our Youth Advisory Board, then into the role of Support Assistant, trusting her with real responsibility and amplifying her work through our national platform and reach.

We backed her ideas rather than slotting her into ours. Isla is now supporting a project to connect AGN’s in-person groups for autistic young people aged 13 to 18, and creating a newsletter that lets groups share what they have been doing and puts youth voice at its centre. Crucially, the project is designed to be continually shaped by young people themselves.

The difference, in her words, was being met as she is: “I have felt listened to, respected and valued. I feel that my struggles are recognised and accommodated without a fight, and my strengths are celebrated. I don’t feel pressure to fit myself into a neurotypical mould, and this allows me to flourish.”

Outcomes

Area Change
Confidence Moved from leaving education without support to a paid role and a leading part in a
national project.
Community Found belonging and purpose, and is now building that same connection for other
isolated young people.
Youth voice Created a newsletter hub that amplifies marginalised young people’s voices and is
shaped by young people.
Progression Starts a sociology degree this September, aiming to work in social policy and
advocate for young people.
Experience Gained meaningful work experience and skills in a supported, accommodating
environment.

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“Volunteering makes you more confident and gives you a community and a purpose. It has changed my life, and I know it can do the same for you.”

Isla (she/they), AGN Youth Advisory Board and Support Assistant

Why this matters for funders

Isla’s story is not a happy accident. It is what a neurodivergent-led, neuro-affirming model produces when it is properly resourced. The same approach that re-engaged Isla helps non-speaking young people find their voice, helps isolated young people make their first friendships, and helps families move from crisis to advocacy.

Investment in AGN does three things at once. It transforms the trajectory of individual young people the system has written off. It builds youth-led infrastructure, such as Isla’s newsletter, that strengthens our national network of groups and reaches more families. And it develops the next generation of neurodivergent advocates and professionals, like Isla, who will go on to change the very systems that failed them. We currently run 20 face to face groups around the country and have the demand and the model to run many more. Funding is the constraint, not capability.

This case study is drawn from Isla’s own words, shared with her consent.

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Our plans for 2026 and 2027

Founding and running AGN has never been boring, and we still have big plans to make it the kind of through-life support and validation we want it to be. One important step is building connections in the local areas where we run groups, so that we can create supportive communities that last, right from the moment a child joins one of our groups and on through into employment and beyond. We will need help with this, because it is much bigger than us, but we think it is very doable and well worth doing. We would welcome yours.

Our priorities for the coming two years are:

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Financial review

Overview

2025 was a year of continued growth for the charity. Total income for the year was £397,886 (2024: £216,773), generated from donations, grants, training, group subscriptions, mentoring and the initial term of the Online School. Total expenditure was £296,543 (2024: £133,355), reflecting increased staffing, programme delivery and the development of new services.

The charity recorded a net surplus of £101,343, which reflects income received in advance of planned 2026 delivery and the early-stage growth profile of several programmes, including multiyear restricted grants that will be spent in 2026 and 2027.

Income

Unrestricted income totalled £208,538, driven by donations, training income, group subscriptions and Online School fees. Restricted income totalled £189,348, supporting our groups, peer support and mentoring programmes.

Expenditure

Expenditure increased in line with the charity’s growth, including a full year of staffing costs (with the CEO moving to a full-time paid role and the Fundraising Lead in post for the full year), expansion of our face to face groups and peer support programmes, establishment and delivery of the first term of the Online School, and increased training delivery to schools and professionals.

The Online School

The Haven launched in September 2025 and therefore generated income and incurred expenditure for only part of the year. The 2025 financial results represent the initial term, with full-year delivery planned for 2026. Fees received in advance of sessions falling after the year end are treated as deferred income.

Scotland

In December 2025 we registered as a charity in Scotland, and although we did not begin any work in Scotland during 2025 we have plans to set up groups and offer school training in 2026, funded by the money donated to Eugenia’s Fund in her memory.

Funds and reserves

At 31 December 2025 total funds were £253,414 (2024: £152,071), comprising unrestricted funds of £113,563 and restricted funds of £139,851. Restricted funds include multi-year grants where expenditure will fall in 2026 and 2027.

The charity is in a period of significant growth, with staffing and service delivery expected to expand materially in 2026. For this reason, the trustees base the reserves target on projected expenditure for the coming year rather than historic expenditure. Based on the 2026 budget, the minimum reserves requirement is approximately £70,000, equivalent to around three months of projected unrestricted operating costs. At 31 December 2025 the charity held unrestricted reserves of £113,563 and was therefore in line with its reserves target. There were no funds materially in deficit.

Going concern

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The trustees have reviewed the charity’s financial position, reserves and budget for the next 12 months. Based on this review, the trustees consider it appropriate to prepare the accounts on a going concern basis. The trustees continue to monitor financial and operational performance as part of normal oversight.

Principal funding sources and risks

The charity’s principal sources of funds during the year were unrestricted donations, training income, Online School fees, and restricted grants supporting our groups, peer support and mentoring programmes. The principal risk facing the charity is the difficult funding environment for small charities; the trustees manage this through diversifying income across donations, training, grants and Online School fees, and by maintaining reserves in line with the policy above. The charity does not hold investments and so has no investment policy.

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Structure, governance and management

Autistic Girls Network is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Foundation Model), registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (number 1196655) and governed by a CIO Constitution adopted on 18 November 2021. In December 2025 the charity also registered as a charity in Scotland with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR), charity number SC054837. The charity is managed by its board of trustees.

The majority of the current trustees are the initial trustees appointed in the Constitution. Further trustees have been appointed by the trustee body in session. New trustees must meet the eligibility criteria in the Constitution, and the charity must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO. Over half of the board and executive team are neurodivergent themselves, and all are experts by experience, either of being neurodivergent or of supporting a neurodivergent child.

The trustees are responsible for the strategic direction and governance of the charity. Day-to-day management is delegated to the Chief Executive Officer, Cathy Wassell, who leads the staff team. During the year the charity grew its staff team significantly, including educators and a SENCO for The Haven, and a Volunteer Coordinator.

Statement of trustees’ responsibilities

The trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of its incoming resources and application of resources for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to: select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently; observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP (FRS 102); make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approval

This report, combining the Trustees’ Annual Report and the Impact Report for the year ended 31 December 2025, was approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf:

Clare McDonald, Secretary Date: 8 June 2026 Date: 8 June 2026

Elliot Wassell, Treasurer

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Independent examiner’s report

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Autistic Girls Network (the charity) for the year ended 31 December 2025.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent examiner's report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a “true and fair view” and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner's statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

Mr Heera Singh FMAAT HSL Accountancy Solutions Ltd Enterprise House 4-6 Thorne Road Doncaster DN1 2HS

Date: 10/06/2026

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Statement of Financial Activities

For the year ended 31 December 2025. All amounts in £.

Unrestricted Restricted Total 2025 Total 2024
Income and endowments from:
Donations and voluntary income 67,447 56,145 123,592 68,742
Grants 4,000 133,203 137,203 121,996
Online School fee income 63,642 63,642
Other income 73,449 73,449 26,035
Total income 208,538 189,348 397,886 216,773
Expenditure on:
Raising funds 6,763 967 7,730 10,419
Groups 58,905 58,905 49,269
Development and training delivery 15,761 4,618 20,379 19,067
Online School 85,258 85,258
Other charitable activities 80,809 43,462 124,271 54,600
Total expenditure 188,591 107,952 296,543 133,355
Net income / movement in funds 19,947 81,396 101,343 83,418
Total funds brought forward 93,616 58,455 152,071 68,653
Total funds carried forward 113,563 139,851 253,414 152,071

All income and expenditure derives from continuing operations. The charity has no recognised gains or losses other than the net movement in funds, no endowment funds, and no transfers between funds in the year.

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Balance Sheet

As at 31 December 2025. All amounts in £.

Note Unrestricted Restricted Total 2025 Total 2024
Current assets
Debtors 10 13,544 13,544 34,164
Cash at bank and in hand 12 163,274 139,851 303,125 133,108
Total current assets 176,818 139,851 316,669 167,272
Creditors: amounts falling due within one
year
11 (63,255) (63,255) (15,201)
Net current assets 113,563 139,851 253,414 152,071
Total net assets 113,563 139,851 253,414 152,071
Funds of the charity
Restricted income funds 13 139,851 139,851 58,455
Unrestricted funds 13 113,563 113,563 93,616
Total funds 113,563 139,851 253,414 152,071

The charity held no fixed assets at the year end. Cash at bank and in hand is presented as £303,125.

Approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf:

Elliot Wassell, Treasurer Date: 8 June 2026

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Notes to the financial statements

1. Basis of preparation

The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention, with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated. They have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), issued on 16 July 2014, with FRS 102, and with the Charities Act 2011. The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102. The accounts are prepared on a going concern basis; there are no material uncertainties about the charity’s ability to continue. No changes to accounting policies or estimates, and no material prior-year errors, were identified in the period.

2. Accounting policies

Income. Income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities when the charity becomes entitled to the resources, it is more likely than not that the resources will be received, and the monetary value can be measured reliably. Grants and donations are recognised when the income recognition criteria are met; performance-related grants are recognised only to the extent that the charity has provided the specified goods or services. Gift Aid is recognised when there is a valid declaration from the donor.

Online School income. Online School income represents fees charged for the delivery of structured online educational sessions. Income is recognised as the service is delivered. Fees received in advance are treated as deferred income until the related sessions take place.

Expenditure and support costs. Liabilities are recognised where it is more likely than not that there is a legal or constructive obligation, and the amount can be measured with reasonable certainty. Support costs have been allocated to natural categories rather than activity categories, as permitted by the FRS 102 SORP for smaller charities. Governance costs comprise the costs of public accountability and compliance.

Volunteers. The value of voluntary help received is not included in the accounts but is described in this report. Donated goods, facilities and services are recognised at fair value where this can be measured reliably.

Assets and liabilities. Tangible fixed assets are capitalised where they can be used for more than one year and cost at least £1,000, and are valued at cost. Debtors and creditors are measured at settlement amount. Basic financial instruments are accounted for in accordance with the FRS 102 SORP. The charity holds no investments.

Other policies. Government grants are recognised when the income recognition criteria are met. Legacies are recognised when receipt is probable and the amount can be measured reliably; the charity received no legacies in the year. Membership and group subscriptions are recognised as income from charitable activities where they give a right to services. Donated goods, facilities and services are recognised at fair value where this can be measured reliably. There were no changes to accounting policies or estimates, and no material prior-year errors, in the period.

3. Analysis of income

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Unrestricted Restricted Total 2025 Total 2024
Donations and gifts 56,816 47,358 104,174 43,058
Gift Aid 10,631 2,487 13,118 4,383
Donated goods, facilities and services 6,300 6,300 21,301
Donations and voluntary income 67,447 56,145 123,592 68,742
Grants 4,000 133,203 137,203 121,996
Online School – registration 6,526 6,526
Online School – fees 57,116 57,116
Group subscriptions 5,063 5,063 7,927
Sales of AGN products 5,288 5,288 1,801
Training income 52,798 52,798 15,597
Other income 10,300 10,300 710
Total income 208,538 189,348 397,886 216,773

All income in the prior year was unrestricted except for Grant income of £117,196 and related inkind income of £18,300.

4. Government grants

Income from government sources during the year was £24,926 (2024: £48,365), comprising: Coventry & Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust £3,626; Heart of England Community Foundation Fairer Futures £14,400; PCC West Midlands £4,000; Ramsgate Town Council £1,500; Suffolk County Council Locality Grant £900; and Warwickshire County Council £500. The Heart of England

Community Foundation Fairer Futures grant carries a condition that the funds are spent, and agreed reporting requirements met, by 14 November 2027. The Heart of England Community Foundation IM Community grant was required to be spent by 5 December 2025 and was fully spent in the year.

5. Donated goods, facilities and services

2025 2024
Use of property 4,800 4,600
Other 1,500 16,501
Total 6,300 21,101

Donated goods, facilities and services are valued at fair value. The value of the donation is included in donations and voluntary income, and the equivalent cost included in the relevant expenditure category. The charity also benefits from the services of volunteers, which in accordance with the FRS 102 SORP are not recognised in the accounts.

6. Analysis of expenditure

Unrestricted Restricted Total 2025 Total 2024
Raising funds:
Platform processing fees 527
Advertising and marketing 12,796 967 13,763 8,892
Bidwriting (freelance) 990 990 1,000
Allocation to Online School (7,023) (7,023)
Total raising funds 6,763 967 7,730 10,419

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Unrestricted Restricted Total 2025 Total 2024
Groups:
Room hire 10,857 10,857 7,026
Facilitators and mentors 2,150 40,458 42,608 36,243
Other group expenses 978 7,590 8,568 6,000
Allocation to Online School (3,128) (3,128)
Total groups 58,905 58,905 49,269
Development and training delivery:
Development of content 724 724 105
Training delivery 14,047 2,980 17,027 800
External training courses 1,355 1,638 2,993 16,845
Website development 4,289 4,289 1,317
Allocation to Online School (4,654) (4,654)
Total development and training delivery 15,761 4,618 20,379 19,067
Online School:
School staff costs 45,161 45,161
Freelance tutors 4,220 4,220
Consultancy 19,240 19,240
Allocation of central costs 16,637 16,637
Total Online School 85,258 85,258
Other:
Cost of products sold, printing and postage 2,634 165 2,799 207
Accountancy 800 800 600
Insurance 2,498 2,498 413
Other general charity costs 23,789 1,460 25,249 4,825
IT software and consumables 9,534 308 9,842 9,431
Other staff costs 43,386 41,529 84,915 39,124
Allocation to Online School (1,832) (1,832)
Total other 80,809 43,462 124,271 54,600
TOTAL EXPENDITURE 188,591 107,952 296,543 133,355

The Online School was established part-way through the year. Costs initially recorded in other categories have been reallocated to the Online School line (shown as “Allocation to Online School”), together with a share of central support costs, so that the full cost of the Online School is reflected in its total.

7. Net income and independent examination

Net income for the year is stated after charging the independent examiner’s fee of £800 (2024: £600). No other fees were paid to the independent examiner.

8. Staff costs

2025 2024
Salaries and wages 122,633 37,315
Social security costs 2,748
Pension costs (defined contribution) 4,694 1,809

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2025 2024
Total staff costs 130,075 39,124

The average head count during the year was 4 (2024: 1), across fundraising, charitable activities, governance and other. No employee received total benefits (excluding employer pension costs) of more than £60,000. The total amount paid to key management personnel was £61,409 (2024: £37,565).

9. Pension costs

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities as an expense were £4,694 (2024: £1,809). The liability and expense are allocated to unrestricted funds unless specifically covered by a restricted fund.

10. Debtors and prepayments

2025 2024
Trade debtors 13,544 34,100
Prepayments and accrued income 64
Total 13,544 34,164

11. Creditors and deferred income

Amounts falling due within one year 2025 2024
Accruals and deferred income 48,025 12,073
Taxation and social security 13,595 2,991
Other creditors 1,635 137
Total 63,255 15,201

Deferred income relates to training income and Online School fees received in advance of services to be provided in the following year. The deferred income balance moved from £11,473 at the start of the year to £47,225 at the year end (£47,225 added in the period and £11,473 released to income).

12. Cash at bank and in hand

2025 2024
Short term deposits 121,522
Cash at bank and on hand 181,603 133,108
Total 303,125 133,108

13. Charity funds

Movements on material funds are set out below. Transfers between funds and gains and losses were nil for all funds. Restricted funds are held for the specific purposes shown; unrestricted funds are available for the general purposes of the charity.

Movements in the current reporting period (2025)

Fund Purpose b/fwd Income Expend. c/fwd
Lifeways support Stratford groups 3,585 16,425 (12,879) 7,131
CWPT Peer support mentoring 11,047 5,126 (11,652) 4,521
Awards for All 3 new girls groups 930 (930)
Rethink Mental Illness Talking Therapies project 1,257 1,250 (2,507)

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Fund Purpose b/fwd Income Expend. c/fwd
Tesco Stratford groups 501 (501)
John Coates Charitable Trust Post-diagnostic mentoring 7,905 (7,905)
National Grid Fund 2 Stratford employability 2,790 (2,790)
Birmingham Fairer Futures Birmingham groups & peer
support
10,940 14,400 (12,691) 12,649
Birmingham IM Community Fund Birmingham group 3,000 (3,000)
United Way Local Giving Chester group 1,500 (1,500)
The Fore Volunteer coordinator 15,000 15,000 (10,790) 19,210
Belstead Ganzoni Lowestoft group 2,500 (875) 1,625
Skipton Charitable Foundation Starter kits for girls groups 5,600 (3,343) 2,257
HOE CF – S Birmingham Friends Institute Facilitators, S Birmingham 9–
12
1,820 (595) 1,225
Baron Davenport’s Birmingham groups
employability
500 (125) 375
Charles & Elsie Sykes Pontefract group 5,000 (3,102) 1,898
E F Bulmer 2 Hereford groups 10,000 (4,361) 5,639
William A Cadbury Charitable Trust Birmingham peer support 8,000 (2,336) 5,664
Women in Business Two Ridings Scarborough group 5,000 (2,334) 2,666
Young Futures Fund (ASDA) Chester group 993 (993)
Hereford Community Foundation Hereford group 9–12 5,000 (2,094) 2,906
Ashworth Charitable Trust Stratford groups 3,000 (859) 2,141
Simon Gibson Charitable Trust Lowestoft group 5,000 (1,853) 3,147
National Lottery Community Fund Hereford groups (two years) 15,989 (4,163) 11,826
Warwickshire CC Stratford groups 500 (125) 375
Ramsgate Town Council Thanet group 1,500 (1,122) 378
Forvis Mazars Abergavenny group 5,000 (1,717) 3,283
PCC West Midlands S Birmingham 13–18 group 4,000 (2,463) 1,537
Eugenia’s Fund Scotland 39,943 39,943
Kent CF – Albert Burns Trust Thanet peer support 3,000 (846) 2,154
Sheldon Trust Stratford peer support 4,000 (4,000)
Suffolk CC Locality Grant Lowestoft group 900 (900)
Big Give Match Fund Cornwall group 9,902 (2,601) 7,301
Total restricted funds 58,455 189,348 (107,952) 139,851
General (unrestricted) fund Operations and reserves 93,616 208,538 (188,591) 113,563
Total funds 152,071 397,886 (296,543) 253,414

Movements in the prior reporting period (2024)

Fund Purpose b/fwd Income Expend. c/fwd
Fat Beehive Grant Website development 40 (40)
Lifeways support Stratford groups 2,912 13,561 (12,888) 3,585
Warwickshire CC Stratford groups 968 (968)
CWPT Peer support mentoring 3,485 44,865 (37,303) 11,047

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Fund Purpose b/fwd Income Expend. c/fwd
National Grid Keeping Warm project 6,406 (6,406)
Boshier Grant Post-diagnostic mentoring 21,628 (21,628)
Awards for All 3 new girls groups 20,000 (19,070) 930
Access Post-diagnostic mentoring 5,000 (5,000)
Rethink Mental Illness Talking Therapies project 5,000 (3,743) 1,257
Tesco Stratford groups 1,000 (499) 501
John Coates Charitable Trust Post-diagnostic mentoring 10,000 (2,095) 7,905
National Grid Fund 2 Stratford employability 3,370 (580) 2,790
Birmingham Fairer Futures Birmingham groups & peer
support
14,000 (3,060) 10,940
Birmingham IM Community Fund Birmingham group 3,000 3,000
United Way Local Giving Chester group 1,500 1,500
The Fore Volunteer coordinator 15,000 15,000
Total restricted funds 36,439 136,296 (114,280) 58,455
General (unrestricted) fund Operations and reserves 32,214 80,477 (19,075) 93,616
Total funds 68,653 216,773 (133,355) 152,071

14. Trustee remuneration and related party transactions

Trustee remuneration. No trustee received any remuneration or other benefits from an employment with the charity, or with a related entity, in respect of their role as a trustee during the year (2024: none).

Trustees’ expenses. No trustee expenses were reimbursed in the year (2024: £24 reimbursed to one trustee in respect of a leaving token of gratitude).

Related party transactions. Cathy Wassell, the charity’s Chief Executive Officer, is the spouse of Elliot Wassell, a trustee and the charity’s Treasurer. During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with her:

Cathy Wassell — CEO and spouse of a trustee 2025 2024
Remuneration 61,409 37,565
Reimbursement of charity expenditure incurred on the charity’s behalf 10,653 5,156

There were no outstanding balances at the year end, no provisions for bad debts and no amounts written off. No guarantees were given or received, and there were no special terms, conditions or security attaching to these transactions. The Chief Executive Officer’s remuneration was determined by the trustees, excluding the connected trustee, in line with the charity’s policies. There were no other related party transactions requiring disclosure.

Autistic Girls Network · Charity No. 1196655 (England & Wales) and SC054837 (Scotland) ·

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