The founder of a UK autism charity is celebrating being honoured by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP).
Dr Anna Kennedy was recently selected as Top Autism Ambassador of the Year by the IAOTP.
The award was for her outstanding leadership, dedication and contributions to autistic children, parents of autistic children, professionals, media and all who are concerned with autism.
Dr Kennedy has more than 23 years of professional experience as an educator, mother and autism ambassador and campaigner after setting up a support group and later a charity in her name.
After diagnoses of asperger’s syndrome for Anna’s eight-year-old son and Autism for her five-year-old son, Anna and her husband Sean started an autism support group.
A stunning 275 families joined, sparking their idea to open a special school, a project they completed by remortgaging their home and raising a significant amount of funds.. Anna has now cofounded two schools and an adult vocational centre.
As the Chairperson and founder of Anna Kennedy Online Autism Charity, her team of volunteers actively incorporates workshops, training, legal advice, and speaking engagements across UK. Additionally, they update social media and the AnnaKennedyOnline website to remain current.
The President of IAOTP, Stephanie Cirami, commented: “We are honored to have Dr Anna Kennedy a part of the IAOTP family.
“She is brilliant at what she does, has tremendous foresight and her advocacy skills are unmatched. We know she is an amazing asset to our network of professionals. We are looking forward to meeting her at the Annual Awards Gala this year.”
Dr Kennedy is an active member of the autism community and serves as an ambassador for the Special Dreams Foundation, Includability and Born Anxious. She is a committee member of LOANI, Ladies of All Nations International Group, and a patron who supports DaisyChain, Square Peg Foundation, Kilmarock Horse Rescue, Autism Support Crawley, Cheshire Autism Practical Support and Hillingdon SEND. Throughout her illustrious career, Anna has received awards, accolades and was recognized worldwide for her commitment to raising autism awareness and helping those on the spectrum.
Looking back, Dr Kennedy attributes her success to Patrick and Angelo, her two sons, who have been the driving force of her charity. She believes it is important amongst a growing community to make help, support and advice available to all. When not working, she enjoys spending time with her family and sharing her journey to inspire others.
For the future, she will continue to fight hard for all diagnosed with autism, so their voices are heard and improve educational and other resources for individuals, families and care takers who are touched by autism.
Dr Kennedy’s biography, ‘Not Stupid’, her story of the struggles she faced while setting up a school for her boys and how she improved the quality of life for her sons and other children with autism, is available on Amazon.
For more information on Dr Anna Kennedy please visit: www.annakennedyonline.com
