Case study: Adjustments for an employee with dyslexia

An individual had worked in the department for a few years in various administrative jobs, but had always felt uncomfortable with written work. They themselves had wondered whether they might have dyslexia and their line manager encouraged them to seek further advice. 

The individual approached HR and met with the Disabled Persons Officer (DPO) to discuss more about dyslexia. The individual used some recommended online dyslexia resources to find out more, and when the online tests confirmed that some of their experiences might indicate dyslexia, the individual and DPO agreed that a formal assessment by a trained psychologist would be the next step. 

The report from this assessment recommended a number of adjustments. These included tuition by a specialist dyslexia tutor who would look at the job and strategies the employee could use, software (TextHelp, Mindmapping and a ruler software – and training with a specialist tutor to use effectively), and a briefing for team members to better understand dyslexia. 

The individual began to benefit immensely from the tuition. They realised that it was not that they could not work effectively, but that they worked differently because of the dyslexia, and that they needed to receive information and work in a way that best suited them and their skills.
 
We checked with the tutors about the individual’s progress, and tuition ended after six months, by mutual agreement of the individual and the tutor.

The business benefited because we have a more confident and motivated member of staff who wants to learn and improve their skills at work. Their sickness absence reduced. The managers better understand dyslexia and will hopefully have the confidence and skills to help other members of staff if needed in the future.  We also hold occasional general information sessions about dyslexia open to anyone in the department.

(www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk)