27 November 2025 - 28 November 2025
9:00AM - 4:45PM
Durham University Business School, Waterside Building
Registration essential
The Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Association and Durham University Business School invite academic researchers, business owners, support professionals and policymakers to come together and explore neurodivergent entrepreneurship. Leading researchers will share their latest work in the area, ND business owners will be sharing their stories, and we will hear from network professionals and supporters about how neurodivergent entrepreneurship can be best celebrated, showcased and nurtured.
Morning Session
09.00 – 09:30 Coffee
Informal networking over coffee to help participants meet and greet.
Executive Hub Lounge, 4th Floor
09:30 – 09:45 Welcome & Opening Remarks
Rob EdwardsCEO, Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Association
Professor Pablo MuñozDurham University Business School
09:45 – 10:15 Keynote Address
Nicola Jayne Little
Founder, Impact & Vision Director, Celebrate Difference
10:20 – 11:00 Interactive Workshop: "Switch the Pitch"
Dr Catherine BrentnallManchester Metropolitan University
Dr Kayleigh WatsonNorthumbria University.
What are the implications if pitching is the typical option for business owners looking for finance, or for students and academics wanting to share their business ideas?
When does it not play to neurodivergent strengths?
What are the exclusionary possibilities?
Participants will consider problems with, and neuro-inclusive alternatives to, traditional ‘Dragons’ Den’ business pitching.
11:00 – 11:30 Networking Coffee Break
Participants mingle, exchange ideas, and talk to exhibitors.
Late Morning Session
11.30 - 11.55 Keynote Address (online): How Autistic thinking can reshape how we tackle complex challenges
Dr Sharon Zivkovic
Founder and CEO of the social enterprise Community Capacity Builders.
12:00 – 12:30 Panel Discussion: “Bridging Research, Policy & Practice”
Panellists from academia, government, and business share insights on how neurodivergent talents are transforming innovation. Q&A follows.
Chair: Professor Deborah Riby, Co-Director, Centre for Neurodiversity & Development, Durham University
Panellists: Dr Neil Alexander-Passe, Author, school leader and Inclusion Expert at the Department for Education (UK). Author of forthcoming book “The Mind and Motivations of Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs” (early 2026) (online)
Dr Syeda Nimra Batool, Lecturer – Entrepreneurship & Innovation, School of Business and Management, Royal Holloway University of London
Ed James, Co-Founder, Neuro-Inclusive Connections Empowerment (NICE) Squad, Lloyds Banking Group
Nicola Jayne Little, Celebrate Difference
Jiaxuan Xie, Founder, CrystalStim & PhD Researcher, University of Aberdeen
12:30 – 13:30 Networking Lunch
An opportunity to connect further in an informal setting with views over the city.
Afternoon Session
13:30 – 14:00 Reimagining Entrepreneurship Through a Neurodivergent Lens (online)
Andreia Morgado
Founder, IMPACTsci
14:00 – 14:30 Keynote Address: The Entrepreneur's Wellbeing Paradox: Flourishing and Suffering in Entrepreneurship
Dr Ute Stephan
Professor of Entrepreneurship, King’s College London
14:35 – 15:05 Towards a Neurodiversity-informed Second Wave of Research on Neurodivergent Entrepreneurship
Lucy Griffiths
Autistic entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, author and doctoral researcher at Swansea University.
15:05 – 15:35 Refreshments & Informal Networking
15:35 – 16:00 Keynote Address: Designing Learning that works for Neurodivergent Minds
Sascha Evans
Founder & Creative Director, We the Creators
Late Afternoon Session
16:00 – 16:30 Disability & Neuro-inclusion for Entrepreneurs: An update after the Lilac Review
David Hall
Social Sustainability, Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds’ long-standing commitment to disability inclusion for colleagues laid the foundation for powerful partnerships that spotlight the challenges faced by disabled entrepreneurs.
As a key enabler of the government-backed Lilac Review, Lloyds are playing a leading role in helping advance equity for disabled-led businesses across the UK, earning international recognition in the process.
16:30 – 17:15 Panel Discussion: "The Power of Coaching for Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs"
Chair: Claire Butcher, Head of Coaching & Training, Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Association
Panellists:
Danielle Cudjoe-Michalski, Founder & Director, Thinking Light Coach
Regina Casteleijn-Osorno, Doctoral Researcher at Turku University, School of Economics, and a certified LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® facilitator
Suzy Jackson, The Technicolour Project
Evening Dinner (optional)
An informal evening gathering so in-person delegates can see Durham.
Venue: Marco Pierre White Steakhouse & Grill.
Delegates should check their emails to reserve their place.
09:00 – 09:30 Coffee
09:00 – 09:30 Creating a Neuroinclusive Publishing Environment - Lived Experiences and Calls for Change
Join the team at Emerald Publishing as they host a breakfast session in which attendees are invited to share experiences of the academic publishing process, and discuss how publishers can better support neurodivergent researchers, authors, reviewers and editors throughout their publishing journey from submission through to peer review and publication.
This breakfast session is open to anyone interested in the discussions, including those who are not attending NEA25.
09:30 – 10:00 My Business Journey as a Neurodivergent Founder
Zoe Atterbury (online) & Ash Dorman (in-person)
Founder, Bloom Cycle
10:00 – 10:30 Our journey as neurodivergent founders
Sharlene Rudd & Vikki Nolan
Co-Founders & Directors, Role Resolve Therapy
10:30 – 11:15 Coffee Break & Networking
11:15 – 11:45 Business Beyond the Box: Lived Experience of Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs
This 30-minute panel will spotlight the lived realities of running a business as a neurodivergent entrepreneur — not just the successes, but the unlearning, adapting, and emotional labour involved.
Facilitated by Liza Knight of the MINT Business Club, the session will include three core questions and space for audience input if time allows. We’re centring real-world experience, not just polished narratives.
Jill Harper-Hill
Charlotte Noon
Alan Sawyers
11:45 – 12:15 Keynote Address (online)
Dr Maureen Dunne
Globally-renowned cognitive scientist, neurodiversity expert, global keynote speaker, and neurodistinct business leader and entrepreneur. Author of ‘The Neurodiversity Edge‘.
12:15 – 13:15 Networking Lunch
13:15 – 14:15 Keynote Address (online)
Alex Partridge
Founder, Neurodiversity Champion and host of Award-Winning Podcast, ADHD Chatter
A virtual fireside chat with Rob Edwards, CEO, Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Association.
14:15 – 14:45 Gaming & Deception
Dr Tom Nicholson
Assistant Professor of Mental Health Nursing at Northumbria University and an international keynote-speaker, trainer, and advocate for Neurodiversity.
Blood on the Clocktower [BOTC] is a complex social deduction board game which requires players to socially deceive whilst also utilising complex intersection gameplay mechanics. This talk explores an upcoming project exploring the experiences of neurodivergent players of BOTC and how neurodivergent players navigate the game.
Social deduction games like BOTC have cultivated global, neurodiversity-rich communities that provide belonging, confidence-building, and creativity. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some neurodivergent individuals perform at high levels within BOTC and develop useful skills for wider life. This may challenge some historic beliefs around neurodiversity and deception; however, academic research has not yet captured:
A) How gameplay shapes interpersonal connection;
B) Why BOTC attracts so many neurodivergent players;
C) What unique skills neurodivergent players bring to social deduction games;
D) How independent game companies can better understand and support their communities;
E) How game-based socialisation supports wellbeing and identity expression.
14:45 – 15:15 Networking & Refreshments
15:15 – 15:55 Panel Discussion: "Supporting Neurodivergent Academics and the Future of Neurodivergent Entrepreneurship Research"
The panel will explore:
* The challenges and opportunities facing neurodivergent academics in research and publishing* How the research ecosystem can better support neurodivergent scholars* The future directions of neurodivergent entrepreneurship research – including lived experience, spiky profiles, and beyond-clinical approaches* Ways publishers, institutions, and funders can foster inclusion and impact
Chair: Vicky Williams, CEO, Emerald Publishing
Jo Howorth, ActuateYou Ltd
Dr Vicky Mountford-Brown, Northumbria University
Professor Pablo Muñoz, Durham University Business School
Professor Ute Stephan, King’s College London
Professor Johan Wiklund, Syracuse University (online)
16:00 – 16:45 Closing Plenary & Call to Action
A final session that synthesizes the conference insights, highlights collaborative opportunities, and issues a call to action for academic, policy, and business leaders.
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