Thomas Marston

My name is Thomas and I have had autism and speech and language difficulties since birth. I am involved with both the CDA leadership course and the Community Journalism project. I am passionate about campaigning for Disabled people to be in work, which includes supporting employers to understand the value of employing people with autism like me. I have produced a cartoon that shows the difficulties I have had finding employment and have shown it during various online meetings.

I worked for a cosmetics company called Clarity for 6 years, doing various jobs including moving boxes around the factory, labelling products and screwing caps onto bottles. Unfortunately, I lost that job when people were laid off during the pandemic. It’s the only job I’ve ever had that gave me regular employment.

This year I have been participating in the CDA leadership programme, which started in April and runs until March 2022. Its aim is to support Disabled people to become leaders in their chosen field. Me and another Leader are focusing on employment. By the end of the course, we will have developed a presentation that will be used to explain Disabled people’s employment challenges to Camden Council, local employers, schools and other significant groups. We plan to also work with those bodies to find solutions.

My hobbies include dancing and exploring London which help me relax.