Lorna Wing

Who Lorna Wing is

Lorna Wing OBE, MD, FRCPsych (7 October 1928 – 6 June 2014) was a British psychiatrist and autism researcher who died at the age of 85. She studied medicine at University College Hospital Medical School, London, and was appointed in the mid-1960s to the Social Psychiatry Unit at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, where she worked until retirement. In 1962 she co-founded what became the UK National Autistic Society, and in 1991 she and Judith Gould co-founded the Centre for Social and Communication Disorders, later renamed the Lorna Wing Centre for Autism. She is best known for pioneering the concept of the autism spectrum, developing the 'triad of impairments' framework, and for her 1981 paper introducing Asperger syndrome to the English-speaking medical community. NOTE: Lorna Wing is deceased and cannot be a currently quoted press voice; any recent press references are likely retrospective.

References for this biography

1. 1.Lorna Wing OBE, MD, FRCPsych – BJPsych Bulletin obituary (PubMed Central) — Career history, co-founding of NAS, co-founding of Centre for Social and Communication Disorders, death at age 85
2. 2.Lorna Wing – The Lancet obituary, 2014 — Co-founding of NAS in 1962, DISCO diagnostic tool, Lorna Wing Centre for Autism
3. 3.Lorna Wing OBE, MD, FRCPsych – BJPsych Bulletin, Cambridge Core — Institute of Psychiatry career, NAS formation, Centre for Social and Communication Disorders, renaming to Lorna Wing Centre for Autism
4. 4.Dr. Lorna Wing: Pioneering psychiatrist in autism research – Telangana Journal of Psychiatry, 2025 — Triad of impairments, Asperger syndrome paper (1981), DISCO, epidemiological contributions, NAS founding

Notable achievements

• Co-founded the UK National Autistic Society in 1962 with other parents of autistic children. Source ↗
• Co-founded the Centre for Social and Communication Disorders in 1991 (renamed the Lorna Wing Centre for Autism in 2008) with Judith Gould. Source ↗
• Developed the 'triad of impairments' framework and co-developed the Diagnostic Interview for Social and Communication Disorders (DISCO). Source ↗
• Published the landmark 1981 paper 'Asperger's Syndrome: A Clinical Account' in Psychological Medicine, introducing the concept to the English medical community. Source ↗

What Lorna Wing has said

• “The term was coined in the 1980s by psychiatrist Dr Lorna Wing, whose work transformed how autism was understood in the UK.”

  psychiatrist · Learning disability & autism · 30 Sept 2026 · Why it’s time to rethink the notion of an autism ‘spectrum’ ↗

• “His work was lost for decades but in 1980 it was rediscovered by British psychiatrist Dr Lorna Wing.”

  British psychiatrist · Learning disability & autism · 27 Aug 2026 · His research on autism was compassionate – how could Hans Asperger have collaborated with the Nazis? ↗

• “a young psychiatrist, Lorna Wing, who was familiar with Kanner's work and also had an autistic child”

  psychiatrist · Learning disability & autism · 27 Aug 2026 · Michael Baron obituary ↗

Where Lorna Wing has been quoted

1. Why understanding autism means looking beyond spoken language – two autistic researchers of communication explaintheconversation.com · 30 Sept 2026
2. Why it’s time to rethink the notion of an autism ‘spectrum’theconversation.com · 30 Sept 2026
3. His research on autism was compassionate – how could Hans Asperger have collaborated with the Nazis?theguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
4. Michael Baron obituarytheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Related media coverage

Recent UK press coverage of their topics — not necessarily citing them directly.

• Wiltshire SEND Reform Plan approved by Department for Education: Parents and carers invited to webinar to find out moreWiltshire Council
• Have your say on proposed changes to post-16 SEND transportCumberland Council
• Buddy Walk helping support people with Down’s SyndromeABC27

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.autism.org.uk/lorna-wing-centrepublished here ↗

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.