What assistive technology helps dyslexic employees?

Text-to-speech, dictation software, spellcheckers, mind-mapping tools and scanning pens are the core aids; in the UK an Access to Work grant (up to £69,260 in 2026/27) funds them after a workplace needs assessment.

The core aids

Most reading-, writing- and proofreading-heavy tasks can be made easier with a handful of well-chosen tools. The British Dyslexia Association groups the usual kit like this:

• Text-to-speech. Reads documents and emails aloud so your employee can hear text rather than decode it on screen.
• Dictation (speech-to-text). Lets them write by speaking, which sidesteps slow or effortful typing and spelling.
• Spellcheckers and predictive text. Catch errors and suggest words as they go, so proofreading is less of a bottleneck.
• Mind-mapping software. Helps plan reports and structure thinking visually before drafting.
• Coloured overlays and screen tinting. Reduce visual stress for some readers.
• Reading or scanning pens and digital recorders. Scan printed text or capture meetings to replay later.

Who identifies and pays for it

Here is the context the bare software lists leave out: you rarely buy this blind. The right kit is usually picked out, and often part-funded, through a free workplace needs assessment arranged via Access to Work, the Department for Work and Pensions grant scheme. A workplace assessor watches how your employee actually works and recommends tools and training to match. The technology itself is usually the cheap part; the grant can cover specialist equipment, software and the training to use it, up to a cap of £69,260 for the 2026/27 financial year. No formal diagnosis is needed, so you should not gatekeep support behind a diagnostic report. Both the grant and your own duties turn on how the condition affects the person at work, not on a piece of paper.

What the grant will not do

Access to Work does not pay for the reasonable adjustments you are already legally required to make for a disabled employee. That duty sits with you under the Equality Act 2010 (section 20), and can itself include providing aids such as assistive software. Long-term dyslexia that has a substantial, long-term adverse effect on day-to-day activities can count as a disability for this purpose. In short, you cannot hand the legal duty to the grant; the grant tops up beyond what you owe anyway.

The other catch is the wait. The National Audit Office reported in February 2026 that applications awaiting a decision rose from 21,700 in March 2022 to 62,100 in March 2025, with average processing time up from 28 days to 66 days, peaking at 109 days in November 2025. So do not wait on the grant before doing anything. Free, built-in tools are good enough to start today: Microsoft Immersive Reader, dictation and read-aloud in Word and Windows, and the Speech features built into macOS and iOS all cost nothing.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.