Tom Ashworth - "An Awesome Artist with Autism"

Tom was referred to us from a great charity called Breaking Barriers who help young people with Autism, their parents and carers.

When Tom and his mum Yvonne came to our office to explore how we might work together we were astounded by Tom’s creative talent. Tom had completed a BA in Illustration at the University of Bolton in June 2018 and had spent the next 9 months isolated with no support from any organisation to help Tom commercialise his skills.

Through Ethical Recruitment's Talent and Skills checklist we established that Tom's ambition is to work for Marvel Comics, we encouraged him to keep that goal for the future. We recommended Tom join us on Pathway 2 Employment Academy where we could help develop Tom’s needs and goals into a freelance illustrator. We also found Tom has a passion for drawing pets which he has developed into a pet portrait service that generates regular income alongside his growing commercial illustration commissions.

Here is what Yvonne had to say

"Tom has come along way,  he is much more confident in speaking to people and will push himself outside his comfort zone now to gain new experiences. This is with the help you have given him, he trusts you and with your guidance and support this has enabled him to overcome a lot of fear and lack of understanding of how to approach and speak to people confidently.

Tom was quite lost and was giving up on his drawing skills that he had studied at university and was feeling he had wasted his time in gaining a degree in Illustration but with your help, he can see that he can turn this into a little business for himself. He did enjoy doing his first exhibition last Monday which he would not have had the confidence to do without your training and guidance.

The way you structure Tom's learning experience in small bite-size sessions is an ideal way for him to learn and with these small adjustments and the caring nature in which you are teaching Tom he is developing into a confident young man who values himself in society.

Thank you so much and I’m so glad I found you"

You can see Tom's work exhibited at All Souls Church Bolton, Astley Street, Bolton, BL1 8EY Mon - Fri 9.30 am till 4.30 pm.