About Aspens

Supporting People to Live Their Best Lives

Aspens is a specialist charity supporting children, young people, adults and families living with learning disabilities, autism and complex needs. Working across Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Brighton & Hove, Bexley and parts of Surrey, the organisation delivers a broad range of personalised services designed to help people lead fulfilling, independent and connected lives.

Established in 2017 through the merger of Autism Sussex and The Pepenbury Project, Aspens brings together more than a century of combined experience in specialist disability support. While the organisation has evolved over time, its purpose has remained consistent: to provide high-quality support that enables people to achieve their goals, strengthen their independence and participate fully in their communities.

Today, Aspens supports more than 2100 children, adults and family members and works with around 30 local authority commissioners across the South East.

A Lifelong Approach to Support

Aspens is distinctive in the breadth of its offer. Rather than focusing solely on children’s or adult services, the organisation provides support across the life journey, recognising that individuals and families often require different forms of support at different stages of life.

This whole-family approach enables Aspens to build lasting relationships and deliver support that is responsive, personalised and centred around individual outcomes.

What Aspens Provides

Adult Services

Aspens delivers a wide range of services for adults with learning disabilities, autism and complex needs, including:

  • Supported living

  • Residential care

  • Community outreach

  • Day opportunities

  • Positive Behaviour Support (PBS)

These services are designed to promote independence, enhance wellbeing and help people remain active members of their communities.

Children's Services

Aspens provides specialist support for children and young people through:

  • Short breaks and respite services

  • Children's residential care

  • After-school clubs

  • Holiday activities and schemes

  • Buddy programmes and community support

These services provide valuable opportunities for children to develop confidence and independence while offering practical support to families.

Family Services

Aspens recognises the vital role families play and offers a range of dedicated support services, including:

  • Parent support programmes

  • Sibling support

  • Specialist autism services

  • Neurodevelopment support

  • Behavioural advice and guidance

This integrated approach helps families navigate challenges, access appropriate support and build resilience.

Scale, Reach and Impact

Aspens is one of the larger specialist disability charities operating across the South East of England, with an annual income of approximately £20 million and a workforce of more than 700 colleagues.

The organisation operates across a diverse portfolio of services and locations, ranging from community-based support and residential provision to specialist family services and respite programmes. Alongside its care and support services, Aspens also manages community facilities and retail operations which contribute to its wider charitable impact.

This scale enables the organisation to combine local responsiveness with the capability, expertise and infrastructure required to deliver complex services across multiple communities.

Quality and Excellence

Aspens is committed to delivering safe, effective and person-centred services that help people achieve positive outcomes.

The organisation has developed a strong reputation for its autism expertise, Positive Behaviour Support practice and family-centred approach. It continues to invest in quality improvement, leadership development and service innovation to ensure that support remains responsive to the needs of the people and communities it serves.

Recent achievements have included Outstanding Ofsted recognition for one of its children's short break services, alongside national recognition for its Positive Behaviour Support expertise.

Culture and Values

At the heart of Aspens is a commitment to putting people first.

The organisation strives to create a culture that is inclusive, compassionate and collaborative, where colleagues work together to deliver the highest possible standards of support. Relationships, respect and partnership are central to how services are designed and delivered, with a strong emphasis on listening to and involving the people who use them.

This commitment extends beyond service delivery, shaping how Aspens engages with families, communities, commissioners and wider stakeholders.