Joey, Planned Projects Assistant

Having started out as an Apprentice Technical Admin at NCHA in 2018, Joey was promoted to Admin Assistant for Property Services. In January 2025, Joey progressed his career further by joining the Retrofit team as their new Planned Projects Assistant.

I was born and raised in Nottingham from a close-knit Christian family. My mum realised early on that I was struggling to engage with people. While other children were communicating, I was still non-verbal. I had an assessment and was diagnosed with autism when I was around seven years old.

Inclusivity and autism

In the early stages of puberty, I strived to be sociable, but it was difficult. There was a battle between my extrovert personality wanting to make friends and my autism. Social practices that people without autism knew how to do naturally, took me more time to learn. 

Personal space was a big issue – I would physically stand too close to people, and I couldn’t gauge what was socially appropriate between a formal handshake or a hug. Although I found it hard, I had to experience those mistakes to learn my place in the world.

Feeling included is so important to me, but I still struggle to put myself in others’ shoes. A lot of people assume that all autistic people prefer to be alone, but my personality means I crave social interaction, it’s just taken me a while to navigate how to do it.

My mum was open about my struggles which helped as I always knew there were things to overcome. In the 90s, autism was swept under the carpet unless you hunted out the information. It was only later in life I was able to mould myself into the person I wanted to be.

Navigating challenges

Knowing my triggers has helped me prepare for working life as not every day is plain sailing. I can remove myself from situations at work when needed, which is my best coping mechanism.

NCHA has been extremely supportive as they ask: ‘How do you work best?’ and they listen to the answer. We’re a Disability Confident employer, and it’s important to tailor situations on a case-by-case basis as every person with disabilities’ experience is different.

Stereotypes are misconstrued as autism is a wide spectrum. There are different ways people handle it on a daily basis. My advice is to never assume you know what’s best for a person with a disability. Always ask and listen to the person so you can tailor support and practices to their specific needs.

Developing my career at NCHA

I’m ready for my next career challenge and to meet new people! The Retrofit team have made me feel like part of their family. There’s a lot of new information to take in, but I’ve always wanted to be part of a project responsible for new change. Longer term, I’d like to pursue a Construction Design and Management certification and eventually work towards becoming a Technical Inspector.

My aim is to always be a person who is reliable and someone people can turn to. Most of all, I want every NCHA team member to be acknowledged for their hard work because we’re all worthwhile.