“The talk by @SparkleClass was amazing, one of the best I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen hundreds over the years).”
Paul Waring, freelance developer
“Everyone needs to hear this talk.”
Sarah Longes, photographer
“I was fortunate enough to watch Rachel’s talk on Woman in Tech, on Thurs 7th May. From a point of view of someone who had suffered with mental health, for most of my adult life, I found her talk incredibly useful. Although I don’t work in a ‘tech’ environment, I could relate to so much to what Rachel said. She was honest, engaging, funny and really accurate in describing how some people react to neurodiverse employees and co-workers. I would strongly recommend Rachel, as an insightful, professional and knowledgeable coach and advisor in the field of neurodiversity. She helps take the shame and the stigma away from mental health issues and will help bridge the gap, which is often felt, between people who just don’t understand and the people who are simply misunderstood.”
Juliet Marsh, Founder, Cotswolds Clean & Shine
“Thank you Rachel for delivering an amazing talk at the MOT event in Manchester on 11th February. Thoroughly engaging and a superb presentation style mixed with well-timed and well-chosen humor. If you get the chance to hear Rachel speak take the opportunity!”
Darryl Kennedy, founder, Spike 95
“Rachel, thank you for your excellent presentation. I found it fascinating, insightful and fun. As someone who recognises that they are somewhere on the spectrum, I found the graphic illustrating the various traits really helpful. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with us.”
Pete, in a comment on my talk notes
“A brave talk from @SparkleClass on her struggle with Autism and how it is often misunderstood.”
Christy McCorry, Quality Engineering & Testing Recruitment Consultant
“You absolutely smashed it Rachel.”
MOT meet-up attendee [anonymous by request]
“I really was touched by how honestly (and vulnerably) you displayed yourstruggle with autism. Shed a human light to an issue often misunderstood. I was really taken away by the courage and vulnerability of your talk. Thanks for being so honest and I resonated with the labels so much. Well done!! You’re an inspiration”
Sayed Ali Jaffery, software testing professional
“It was the best talk I saw all year. Not only was it interesting and informative but it was also engaging and fun.
You clearly know how to engage with an audience. And how importantly, not just how to teach people, but how to dispel and re-educate the things people thought they knew, which is much harder. You have an energy and style that fits perfectly with the tone of your talk such that you can convey serious matters without losing the lightheartedness that people need when engaging with tougher topics.
You aimed high, and you did it!”
Conference attendee [anonymous by request]
“The talk was not just informative but also personal, funny and incredibly moving.
Explaining mental strife is increasingly hard to in a society that has trouble seeing disability as something that needs to be spoken about. We continue to miss out on strong speakers who can make us ‘feel’ and, more importantly, really inform in a joyful way about the difficulties faced on a personal journey.
I would recommend Rachel as a speaker to any group, she displays a sense of herself and understanding that is rarely seen on the speaker’s circuit. I take joy in knowing that Rachel is now helping others turn their disabilities into strengths.”
Hugo Finley, consultant
“This is the most fabulous talk! If you haven’t seen this here, make the chance to see it somewhere else!”
“My hands-down favourite talk from the entire weekend!”
Jon Spriggs, technical consultant, Fujitsu
“Brilliant and compassionate talk. Helped me think about things in a different way.”
Terence Eden, Head of Open Technology, NHSX
“Brilliant talk and hugely insightful. I learned and laughed so much listening to Rachel’s story. Thank you for sharing.”
Anna Dodson, Software Engineer, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and organiser at Women in Tech Nottingham
“Absolutely brilliant! Humourous, compassionate and thought-provoking.”
James Tait, software engineer
“Rachel’s talk ‘The power of change – learning to live as a “weirdo”‘ was really quite amazing. It’s a difficult thing to talk about mental health, especially to those of us who aren’t very close to it to understand what it’s like, but Rachel knocked it out of the park with a great illustration of what autism can be like in terms of the reality of the spectrum and the many different effects it can have.
We started with a bit of humour and a funny title, but she took us through a journey of autism, ADHD, depression, and spun a really intriguing story. There was a great mix of humour alongside this serious topic. I’d urge you to see this talk if you’re able to catch it again!”
Jamie Tanna, software engineer, Capital One
“Rachel’s heart-warming talk presented the topic in a very authentic and relevant fashion, much beyond the usual media hype around this including stereotypical representation such as “Rain Man”. It was the best non-technical I have seen at this year’s OggCamp.”
OggCamp attendee [anonymous by request]
“I’d like to say thank you for your talk this morning. Its the first time in a long time I’ve heard someone talk about autism which made me think ‘You get it! This is how I think and feel and deal with the world too!'”
David Purse, QA technician
“Was a truly amazing talk!”
Gary Williams, DevOps engineer
“Just watched @SparkleClass do a talk about “learning to live as a weirdo” and oh my wow. She talked about her experience being autistic and living with ADHD and depression. So compelling and funny and emotional. Absolutely superb.”
Carol Gilabert, developer, Capital One and organiser at Tech Nottingham and Women in Tech Nottingham
“Thank you for sharing your very personal and emotive journey Rachel. You had us all transfixed and you even caused our first ever standing ovation!”
Duncan Nisbet, organiser, Liverpool Tester Gathering
“You rocked the place Rachel.”
Matthew Parker, tester, manager and coach
“An absolutely wonderful talk on neurodiversity and being a ‘weirdo’. “
Alina Apine
“Very meaningful talk about living with autism and depression. Really helped me to understand autism in a more detailed way.”
Jessica Yates
“Easily the best talk of #BCMCR9. Amazing.”
Richard Pearson, technical architect
Just saw an excellent and thought-provoking talk by Rachel Morgan-Trimmer about what accessibility means and how to build it in to what you do.
Lucy Bridges, software engineer
“Rachel’s talk was funny, insightful and left a lasting message: almost every improvement you make for a particular group helps everyone outside that group as well.”
Alice Bailey, Contract Software Development Consultant, ECOM
“Rachel’s talk was truly inspiring.”
Billy Watson, Senior Front End Developer, Absurd
“I found Rachel’s talk on accessibility refreshing because it wasn’t the usual talk on accessible websites and how to work with screen readers but instead how helping people with mental illnesses and neurodevelopmental disorders can help those people and impact a larger audience as well. Rachel’s talk was a welcome change to the norm and it was great to see someone breaking boundaries, talking about the unspoken in a charismatic and humorous way. Rachel’s very relatable and I look forward to seeing her speak again in the future.”
Katherine Cory, web designer and developer
“I just wanted to drop you a quick line to say how much I loved your talk.
Your talk really struck a chord with me when you were describing how we should trust the needs and requests of others; I loved your story about the Poldark photo.
Thanks again – and please keep inspiring people!”
John Goodwin, senior UI engineer at Manchester Airports Group
“Powerful and moving talk on what it means to be truly accessible and how adaptations can benefit everyone. Thanks to Rachel Morgan-Trimmer.”
Sally, software engineer
“Brilliant presentation from Rachel Morgan-Trimmer at #UpFrontConf Lots of useful practical info on accessibility.”
Claire Worthington, front end developer and digital marketer
“Great talk on accessibility, lots of laughs so far “Autism…. being on the spectrum”
Grant Bodie, IT recruiter, Forward Role Recruitment
“Watching a fellow member of the tribe presenting at @upfrontconf Rachel Morgan-Trimmer is doing an amazing job at educating people on accessibility #UpFrontConf #ADHD #ActuallyAutistic”
SPACE Stockport
If you’d like me to speak at your next event, get in touch.
Sparkle Class 