I trained as a developmental and educational psychologist in Perth, Australia, where I also completed my PhD on the cognitive profile of autistic children, before becoming a Junior Research Fellow in Psychiatry at the University of Oxford, UK, and Lecturer in Experimental Psychology at the University of Bristol, UK. In 2009, I was appointed Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Research in Autism and Education (CRAE) at UCL Institute of Education, University College London, UK. I became Director of CRAE in 2013 and Professor of Autism Education in 2015. In 2017, I returned to Australia to take up the appointment of Professor in the Department of Educational Studies at Macquarie University.

Much of my research is focused on understanding the distinctive opportunities and challenges faced by autistic children, young people and adults, and tracing their impact on everyday life – at home, at school and out-and-about in the community. I have also been consistently dedicated both to ensuring that the outcomes of my research are as influential as possible in education policy-making and to enhancing public understanding of autism, its challenges and opportunities.