Tech Fund, ADA vs UK law: 7 dyslexia questions answered

This week's news cycle covered a lot of ground: a £470,000 tribunal award, a dictation tool review, and a profession deep-dive on accountants. None of those articles had room for the follow-up questions readers actually asked. These seven fill the gaps.

Q1: Does a "mild" dyslexia assessment result affect my Access to Work claim?

No, and the confusion here comes from mixing up two different tests. The Equality Act 2010 asks whether your dyslexia has a substantial, long-term effect on your work. That's the legal test your employer applies, not Access to Work.

Access to Work is a funding scheme, not a disability test. You don't need a diagnosis at all to apply, let alone a specific severity grade (gov.uk Access to Work guidance, 2026). A caseworker asks what your dyslexia costs you at work, in time or in money, not what adjective a psychologist used on page one of your report.

If your assessment used standardised tests and still concluded functional difficulties despite a "mild" label, that's usable evidence either way. Caseworkers see the word "mild" routinely. It doesn't trigger an automatic decline.

Don't let a "mild" label stop you from applying. Describe the barrier, not the grade on the report.

Q2: What's the real difference between UK and US law on dyslexia at work?

Both countries protect you, but the mechanics differ. The Equality Act 2010 defines disability as an impairment with a substantial and long-term adverse effect on day-to-day activities. Substantial means more than minor or trivial.

The Americans with Disabilities Act, amended by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, asks whether an impairment substantially limits a major life activity. The EEOC's own guidance names dyslexia directly as a qualifying learning disability.

The bigger practical difference is remedy. A UK employment tribunal can award unlimited compensation, covering financial loss and injury to feelings, as the £470,000 Lloyds case this week showed. In the US, compensatory and punitive damages under the ADA are capped by employer size: from $50,000 for smaller employers up to $300,000 for those with 500 or more staff (EEOC, Civil Rights Act 1991 caps). Time limits also differ: EEOC charges must be filed within 180 days of the incident, or 300 days in states with a local fair employment agency (EEOC, 2026). UK tribunal claims must be lodged within three months less a day of the discriminatory act (Employment Tribunals Act 1996, s.7), though ACAS early conciliation pauses that clock.

If you're weighing whether a claim is worth pursuing, know your system's cap and filing deadline before you start. They shape what's realistic.

Q3: Can my employer make me get reassessed to check if I "still" have dyslexia?

There's no legal mechanism forcing a repeat assessment, and dyslexia isn't the kind of condition that resolves. The British Dyslexia Association describes it as a lifelong difference in how the brain processes written language, present from birth, not a condition graded on a sliding scale that shifts year to year.

An employer can request updated medical evidence, and you can agree to a fresh occupational health referral if you want to. But under the Equality Act 2010, the duty to adjust doesn't pause while everyone waits for a new report. It continues from the point your employer first knew.

Agree to a repeat assessment if you want to, but say in writing that your current adjustments continue in the meantime.

Q4: Does the Access to Work Tech Fund only cover Dragon and Read&Write?

No. The Tech Fund pays 100% of the cost of assistive technology, software or hardware, for employees who've been in a role under six weeks (DWP Access to Work factsheet, 2026). Dragon and Read&Write get named most often because they're the most requested, not because they're the only options.

The fund also covers screen-reading software, mind-mapping tools for planning written work, adapted keyboards, and larger monitors, where a caseworker agrees they address a specific barrier. What it funds depends on the barrier you describe in your application, not a fixed list. Apply through the same Access to Work portal; caseworkers assess Tech Fund requests using the same six-week new-starter rule regardless of employer size. The Access to Work calculator walks through what to ask for based on your role and difficulties.

Don't limit your Tech Fund request to the two tools everyone mentions. Name the actual task that's slow, and ask for what fixes it.

Q5: I'm starting a graduate accountancy role. Should I disclose dyslexia in my application?

Under Section 60 of the Equality Act 2010, employers can't ask health or disability questions before making an offer, except in narrow exceptions like assessing your ability to do an intrinsic part of the job. That means you can wait.

For most graduate schemes, the strongest timing is after you accept the offer and before your start date. That's also when structured onboarding makes it easiest to get software and adjustments in place before intensive training weeks begin. AAT, the professional body for accounting technicians, has an active neurodiversity policy and reports rising numbers of trainees disclosing early, specifically to access training-stage support (AAT, 2025). Equality Act protections apply from your first day, even during probation, so waiting until after the offer doesn't weaken your protection once you've disclosed.

If a fixed induction programme is involved, arriving with Dragon or Read&Write already installed matters more than it would in a role with a slower ramp-up. The disclosure decision guide walks through the timing question for your specific situation.

If you're joining a graduate scheme, disclose after the offer, before day one. The training weeks are when the adjustment pays off most.

Q6: Does the Lloyds ruling only cover people who blurt things out, or could it apply to other dyslexia-linked mistakes?

The legal principle in Borg-Neal is broader than the specific facts. Section 15 of the Equality Act 2010 covers unfavourable treatment because of something arising in consequence of a disability, not just speech. That could include a typo in a client email, a missed formatting rule, or a slower turnaround on a time-pressured task, provided you can show the link to your dyslexia (Hill Dickinson case analysis, 2026).

The catch is evidence. Borg-Neal had medical evidence connecting his dyslexia to how he processes questions under pressure. The case took roughly three years from the original 2020 incident to the 2024 remedy judgment (Hill Dickinson case analysis, 2026), a reminder that Section 15 claims are rarely quick, even when the tribunal ultimately agrees with you. A written note from occupational health, your GP, or your original diagnostic assessment, describing the specific mechanism, is what turns "I made a mistake" into a Section 15 claim if you're disciplined for it.

If a performance issue at work is genuinely linked to your dyslexia, get that link documented in writing before you need it, not after.

Q7: Can I ask for written instructions instead of verbal ones without telling my manager I have dyslexia?

You can ask informally, and many managers will simply agree without asking why. The catch is that the Equality Act 2010's duty to adjust only becomes legally enforceable once your employer knows, or ought reasonably to know, about a disability, not just a preference.

A request like "could you send that in an email too?" works day to day but creates no legal backing if it's later withdrawn. A version like "I process written information more reliably than verbal instructions, which relates to a long-term condition" keeps things general while still putting your employer on notice. Employment solicitors call this constructive notice: you don't have to say the word dyslexia for the clock to start, but you do have to describe something disability-related, not just a personal preference (ACAS guidance, 2025). The masking cost calculator is worth a look if you're weighing how much unpaid effort you're already spending working around this without naming it.

Informal requests work short-term. If you want Equality Act protection behind them, say enough to put your employer on notice, even without naming dyslexia.

What this week's news adds up to

Every one of these questions traces back to the same idea. The label on your assessment, the tool everyone talks about, and the specific facts of a headline case all matter less than the substance of the barrier itself.

"Mild" doesn't stop an Access to Work claim. Dragon and Read&Write aren't the only tools the Tech Fund pays for. A £470,000 tribunal case about speech applies just as well to a typo, if you can show the link.

The call: stop letting other people's shorthand describe your situation. Describe the actual barrier in your own words, in writing, whether you're applying for funding, requesting adjustments, or documenting a case for a dispute.

Write down the actual barrier before your next conversation about adjustments, funding, or a dispute. Specificity is what each of these situations rewards.