'Attention to detail' in your appraisal: 4 ways to respond

UK employment tribunals issued 517 judgments involving neurodivergent conditions in 2025, up 95% in five years (Irwin Mitchell, February 2026). Dyslexia is among the most cited conditions. And the trigger, across many of these cases, is the same: a performance review comment about communication quality or accuracy that the employer recorded as neutral feedback and the employee was expected to accept and try harder on.

The M&S tribunal found that five separate appraisal criteria used to score a dyslexic employee were direct effects of her dyslexia. The employer treated them as neutral performance observations for over two years. It cost £53,855 (Jandu v Marks and Spencer, Employment Tribunal, 2022). You can read the full breakdown of what M&S got wrong and what you can learn from it.

This article is about the specific scenario most dyslexic employees face at some point in their careers. You're in a performance review, or you've received the written output of one, and "attention to detail" is marked down. You have dyslexia. What do you do?

What "attention to detail" actually measures

Most appraisal frameworks don't define what "attention to detail" means. When managers score it, they're typically looking at email error rates, document accuracy, proofreading quality, written output speed, and the general impression of written communication.

Every one of those is directly affected by dyslexia. Dyslexia affects phonological processing and working memory. Both are required for accurate written output under time pressure. The BDA's Code of Practice for Employers states it plainly:

That guidance applies to appraisals, not just redundancy scoring. Scoring a dyslexic employee on any of these criteria, without any adjustment, is already a potential failure to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010.

Senior roles tend to make this worse. At director level, you're producing more written output, communicating with more stakeholders, and your written work is more visible. The assumption is often that you've "managed" your way to a senior role, so you must be fine. The Equality Act doesn't distinguish by seniority. The duty to adjust is the same at every level.

If "attention to detail," "communication clarity," "written accuracy," or "errors in work" appears in your appraisal and you have dyslexia, that score is not neutral. It's challengeable.

1 Before the rating is recorded

This is the best position to be in. If you know your performance review is coming up and you have dyslexia, you can set the terms before any score is written.

A week before the meeting, send a short email to your line manager and copy HR. You don't need to go into your personal history or explain everything. One paragraph:

Send it. Keep a copy with the date and time visible. That email triggers the employer's duty to make reasonable adjustments. It's also the document that turns "I told them" into written evidence if anything goes wrong later.

Then in the meeting, if any criterion touching written accuracy comes up, refer back to the email directly. "As I mentioned in my email, this is a dyslexia-affected function. Has the scoring been adjusted to account for that?" You don't need to apologise for asking. Ask directly and wait for the answer.

If your employer says they'll take it into account but doesn't change anything in writing, follow up by email after the meeting. "Just to confirm our discussion: I raised my dyslexia in relation to the written accuracy criteria, and you indicated this would be considered. Can you confirm what adjustment will be made to the score?"

The written disclosure email, sent before the review, is the single most valuable thing you can do. It costs two minutes to write and creates the paper trail that makes everything else easier.

2 After the rating is already in your record

You didn't send the email in advance. The review happened. The comment is recorded.

Send the email now. Today if possible, this week if not. The date matters: the earlier you raise it, the stronger your position. But late is still better than never.

The BDA's guidance on performance reviews is clear: "If an employee believes dyslexia is at the root of their difficulties, they should disclose this to their manager, and this should be taken into account during performance reviews" (British Dyslexia Association, bdadyslexia.org.uk, 2024). A disclosure after the fact still triggers the employer's duty.

The M&S case confirms this. Rita Jandu raised her dyslexia during the redundancy consultation and again at appeal. Both times the employer said the process wasn't about her dyslexia. Both times the tribunal ruled those dismissals were a violation of the Equality Act.

Your email, written after the fact, should be factual and brief:

Frame it as a formal reasonable adjustment request. That framing puts the obligation on your employer to respond substantively, and creates a record of their response.

Getting it in writing within 48 hours of receiving the appraisal puts you in almost the same position as the proactive email. Later is not ideal. But the duty still applies.

3 If adjustments have never been offered

This is the most common pattern. You've been in the role for years, compensating for dyslexia through extra effort. Your employer has never offered formal support. The appraisal comment arrives and, for the first time, there's something on paper.

The appraisal comment is actually an opportunity here. It's concrete evidence that the absence of adjustments has a measurable effect on your performance record.

The right move is to request a workplace needs assessment. A specialist carries out a workplace needs assessment (WNA) to document how your dyslexia affects your specific role and what adjustments would help. In the UK, Access to Work can fund it. The Access to Work calculator shows you what you could claim, including the WNA itself.

The assessment produces a formal written report. That report does something your own email can't: it converts general disclosure into specific, documented adjustment requests. It tells your employer, from an independent specialist, that certain tasks are affected, and what provision is appropriate.

At director level, where you're likely producing a high volume of written output across many formats, the WNA report is especially useful. It gives you a defensible basis for requesting adjustments without having to re-explain your dyslexia to every new manager.

If you're not sure how to frame the request for a WNA to your employer, the reasonable adjustments builder generates a draft request letter based on your specific challenges, in about two minutes.

A workplace needs assessment doesn't just help going forward. It creates the formal documentation that converts an informal challenge into a structured, evidenced adjustment request, with an independent specialist's name on it.

4 When your employer dismisses the challenge

You've raised your dyslexia. You've linked it to the specific criteria. Your employer has responded with something like: "the process was fair," "everyone was scored the same way," or "this isn't related to your dyslexia."

That response is the beginning of an escalation route.

Get the dismissal in writing. If it was said verbally, send an email that confirms the conversation: "Following our discussion on [date], I understand your position is that my dyslexia is not relevant to the criteria I was scored on. I want to note that I disagree with this, and I'd like to formally register my concern." You're creating the record.

Then contact ACAS. ACAS early conciliation is free and required before any employment tribunal claim can proceed. It's confidential. Many cases resolve here without ever reaching a tribunal. Contact details: acas.org.uk or 0300 123 1100.

And understand what the tribunal route looks like. UK employment tribunals have no compensation cap for disability discrimination. The M&S award was £53,855. The Borg-Neal v Lloyds Banking Group award was £470k: a figure that large because the tribunal calculated that the employee, aged 59 at the time of dismissal, was unlikely to secure comparable employment again (Borg-Neal v Lloyds Banking Group, Employment Tribunal 2023; award published February 2024). Your circumstances would determine any award differently. The point is the ceiling doesn't exist.

The employer doesn't need to have acted with intent. The test under the Equality Act 2010 is whether a provision, criterion, or practice put a disabled employee at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled colleagues. An "attention to detail" criterion that was never adjusted for dyslexia meets that test, if you told them and they did nothing.

If your employer refuses to re-assess a criterion that directly measures a dyslexia-affected function, and you told them your dyslexia was the cause, that refusal in writing is evidence. Consult ACAS before assuming there's nothing you can do.

The call

Send the email today. One factual paragraph: the date of the appraisal, the specific criterion, the connection to your dyslexia, and the legal basis. Keep a copy. See what comes back.

Most employers, faced with a written disclosure that references the Equality Act, will respond. They'll adjust the score, offer a follow-up meeting, refer you to occupational health, or commission a workplace needs assessment. Any of those moves the situation forward.

The ones who don't respond, or who respond by dismissing the connection, have told you something useful. You know where you stand. You have the written record you need. And ACAS is a free phone call away.

The disclosure decision guide can help you think through the timing and approach if you haven't formally disclosed yet. The adjustments builder will draft the specific letter if you need a starting point.