Dyslexia Friendly Quality Mark
Meeting: Trust Board – Public Meeting
Date: 10 September 2025
Report Title: Dyslexia Friendly Quality Mark
Agenda Item: PUB25/09/26.1
Author: Emma Smith, Head of Information and Analytics
Lead Director: Steven Course, Chief Finance Officer
Purpose: Information/Noting
Assurance: Reasonable
Link to CQC domain:
- Caring
- Responsive
- Effective
- Well-led
- Safe
Link to EEAST Strategic Mission:
- Patient Mission
- Partnership Mission
- People Mission
Link to Strategic Risk:
- SR1 Demand and Capacity
- SR8 Staff Retention
Equality Impact Assessment: No negative impact identified
Previously considered by: The People Committee on the 12th February 2025. An update regarding the British Dyslexia Association’s Dyslexia Friendly Quality Mark was shared with the People Committee on 12 February 2025.
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide the Trust Board with an update on the progress of the British Dyslexia Association Dyslexia Friendly Quality Mark. This paper also outlines how the quality mark supports the Trust’s wider goals, values, and Corporate Strategy.
Recommendation: It is recommended that members of the Board read and note the contents of this report for information and assurance purposes.
Further reading with links is provided in the summary if members would like to see news articles and pages which demonstrate the impact of the role for our people. Additional reading materials, including links to relevant news articles and web pages that illustrate the role’s impact on our people, are provided in the summary for members who wish to explore further.
Executive Summary:
The Specialist Lecturer Practitioner (Well-being and Inclusion) (SLP) role was established in response to growing demand from neurodivergent learners within EEAST’s Education and Training Department. Nationally, it is estimated that 15–20% of the population is neurodivergent, with conditions including Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Visual Stress. At EEAST, approximately 20% of new recruits identify as neurodivergent, with Higher Education Institutions reporting 30–40% of paramedic students falling within this group.
Since its inception, the SLP role has supported over 350 individuals, providing tailored one-to-one support, advocacy, and collaboration across departments including Occupational Health, People Services, and Education. Prior to this, neurodivergent staff were referred externally for diagnostic assessments at a cost of £800 per person, often resulting in delays of 3–6 months before reasonable adjustments could be implemented.
In 2023, I introduced an in-house neurodivergent screening service as part of a spend-to-save initiative, investing £4,200 in specialist qualifications. This service has enabled timely support and adjustments, saving the Trust £280,000 over two years. The screening reports are now accepted by awarding bodies, DVLA test centres, and internal stakeholders, significantly improving accessibility and inclusion.
The Trust’s commitment to neurodiversity has been nationally recognised. EEAST became the first emergency service and NHS trust to achieve the British Dyslexia Association’s Bronze and subsequently Silver Quality Marks. In November 2024, EEAST was awarded the Inclusive Employer Award—another first for the sector. The Trust is working towards the Gold Quality Mark, with assessment planned for early 2026.
The SLP role also contributes to wider initiatives, including the creation of a widely accessed Empowerment Resource, enhancing existing services such as Access to Work, eye test vouchers, and functional skills support. EEAST’s leadership in neurodiversity has been shared across NHS system partners and ambulance services and has received recognition from national and local figures including the High Sheriff of Hertfordshire and His Majesty the King.
Externally, I also lead national work as the National Specific Learning Difficulties Advisor to the College of Paramedics and represent EEAST and the College of Paramedics at the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Dyslexia. In late September 2025, I will become the UK’s first dual-registered paramedic and Specialist Dyslexia Teacher.
This work sends a powerful message: being neurodivergent is no barrier to success. EEAST continues to lead the way in creating an inclusive environment where all individuals are empowered to thrive and build a Career for Life.
Introduction / Background:
The role of Specialist Lecturer Practitioner (Well-being and Inclusion) (SLP) was created due to increased demand from neurodivergent learners in the Education and Training Department. I commenced a substantive Band 7 role in February 2023 and was joined by Emily Watton (nee Taylor) in February 2024 on a two-year secondment (ending January 2026).
It is estimated nationally that 1 in 7 people is neurodivergent (approx. 15-20% of the UK population).
Neurodivergent refers to conditions (in education, the term Specific Learning Difficulties- SpLD is used) including:
- Dyslexia: difficulties with reading, writing, spelling, grammar, memory and organisation
- Dyspraxia: difficulties with movement and coordination
- Dyscalculia: difficulties with numbers
- Dysgraphia: physical difficulties with handwriting/typing
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): challenges with short attention span, lively and impulsive behaviour.
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): challenges with social skills and communication.
- Visual stress (also known as Irlen Syndrome): relates to the brains ability to interpret what the eye’s see (often co-occurs in 1 in 5 dyslexics).
Please note, although the above refers to difficulties for which the SLP role supports, neurodivergent people have invaluable strengths and abilities which are highly sought after by employers including British Intelligence Services (MI5 and GCHQ). 1 in 3 dyslexics for example are entrepreneurs and contribute £4.6 billion every year to the UK economy (Made by Dyslexia, 2025).
At EEAST, recruitment data indicates that approximately 20% of new hires identify as neurodivergent. It is also common for neurodivergent conditions to co-occur—for example, Dyslexia and ADHD frequently present together. Furthermore, data from Higher Education Institutions consistently shows that between 30% and 40% of students enrolled in paramedic programmes are neurodivergent.
Following the completion of the Trust funded and supported Calibre Leadership Programme for Disabled Leaders, I proposed as part of our inclusivity plan that the British Dyslexia Association Quality Mark was included. With the support of Caroline Nwadu (former Head of Culture and Inclusivity), the Trust committed to work towards the silver award.
In the last 2 years, 352 of our people have been referred to the SLPs for support with their neurodivergence/ potential neurodivergence. We provide one to one support to our people, their line manager, Lecturer Practitioners and Education Managers. We advocate for their needs and collaborate across the Trust including with Occupational Health, People Services and the Associate Reasonable Adjustments Advisor.
Prior to the appointment of SLPs, the Trust, via the previous Occupational Health provider, referred all neurodivergent/ potential neurodivergent people to educational psychologists for diagnostic assessment, incurring a cost of £800 per person. In addition to the financial implications, this process often resulted in delays of approximately 3 to 6 months especially when reasonable adjustments were required.
The SLP role is a Band 7 post with no budget. Thanks to the support of Lynda Steele (former Deputy Director) and Cat Lovell (Head of Occupational Health) who supported and funded the spend to save initiative I proposed which required an investment of £4,200 in specialist qualifications, the neurodivergent screening service was introduced in 2023. This screening service anticipated the needs of our people by identifying specific neurodivergent traits and if the disability criteria was met, full support and reasonable adjustments could be implemented swiftly, instead of waiting 3-6 months for an Educational Psychologist report. The inhouse screening report has been accepted by our awarding organisations for our students, the DVLA test centres for our people undertaking their C1 driving tests and enabled our lecturer practitioners, managers and others to support our people. We were commended by the British Dyslexia Association for our approach.
The introduction of the neurodivergent screening service spend to save initiative has saved the Trust £280,000 in the last 2 years alone and will be an ongoing cost saving due to the Trust’s investment in the SLP role.
It is widely recognised throughout the NHS that there are significant delays in people accessing diagnosis with ADHD and Autism (3-5 years on average) and within primary and secondary education where children are not being diagnosed with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) including dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, ADHD and Autism and their needs are often not fully met.
As a direct result of the screening service, we can anticipate based on the traits identified and the impact on those individual’s lives day to day (as we are legally required to do by the Equality Act 2010) and can provide the support needed as if they were diagnosed through the earlier traditional routes. This approach has tackled the barriers some of our people have faced since childhood and given the opportunities to thrive in our inclusive trust. Additionally, this also enables our people to feel seen and valued.
Using educational technology, at no cost to the trust, I created an Empowerment Resource using Padlet. The resource has been accessed by 2,684 people since it was created 2 years ago and is being widely shared with my permission across our system partners in the NHS in the East of England Region. Neurodivergent people learn differently to neurotypical people and can experience challenges with academia including completing assignment deadlines on time, note taking and writing assignments, whereas in frontline operations this can impact our people by causing delays in completing clinical notes accurately, spelling and grammar errors and challenges with mental health and well-being.
This resource enables our people and beyond to access evidence-based information about their neurodivergence and provides them with empowerment tools to not just survive but thrive. The tools help with our support to work with their brain and not against it.
The SLP role enhances the Trust’s existing services including eye test vouchers, Access to Work support, well-being support, our Disability and Health passport and access to functional skills including English and Maths.
In October 2023 the Trust became the first emergency service and the first NHS trust in the UK to be awarded the Bronze Quality Mark and this was upgraded to the Silver Quality Mark in August 2024 with EEAST becoming the only organisation in the UK to achieve this status.
The Trust’s leadership in this area was further acknowledged in November 2024, when representatives from the British Dyslexia Association invited us to Surrey for a special awards presentation. During the event, EEAST was honoured with the Inclusive Employer Award—an achievement not previously attained by any other emergency service or NHS trust.
We are currently working towards the Gold Quality Mark and intend to pursue the assessment by the British Dyslexia Association in early 2026. We would like to thank Katie Burst (Head of Education) and Ant Kitchener (Deputy Chief Paramedic) for supporting us with securing the funding to pursue this assessment.
Collaboration and teamwork are an important attribute of working at EEAST and I have shared our expertise with other system partners across the East of England and ambulance services wanting advice on how to implement what we have done and how they can support their neurodivergent people. I have been invited and delivered presentations at the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust practice education event, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust Practice Education Conference and numerous virtual events for leaders, managers, people promise managers and educators.
In 2024, we were visited at Welwyn Garden City Training Centre by the High Sheriff of Hertfordshire, Liz Green OBE, MStJ, DL as part of our Neurodiversity Celebration Week and her commitment to champion literacy. We were able to share our work and its impact on our people and the High Sheriff was able to hear first hand from our students and Education Team.
Outside of the Trust, I volunteer as the first National Specific Learning Difficulties Advisor to the College of Paramedics and am leading the College through the British Dyslexia Association Quality Mark. Our inclusive and innovative work at EEAST is being shared for the benefit of all ambulance services around the UK. Since it was announced in 2023 of our bronze Quality Mark, three other ambulance services started working towards the Quality Mark.
In June, I was invited to the All-Parliamentary Party Group (APPG) on Dyslexia at the House of Commons and was the only employer representative. This will be meeting quarterly over the next 2 years. Later this month, I have also been invited to the House of Lords to share our findings and journey.
In May, I had the unexpected honour of being invited by His Majesty the King to Buckingham Palace for a Garden Party and it was with immense pride that I shared our journey with HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh.
Later this month, despite this being 2025 and with the Equality Act being passed in 2010, I become the first dual-registered paramedic and Specialist Dyslexia Teacher with the British Dyslexia Association in the UK and it is my sincere hope and aspiration that every ambulance trust will invest in it’s own SLP’s to support their people from induction to retirement with their neurodivergent needs and aspirations like we have at EEAST.
As I approach my 11th year in the ambulance service and two decades as a teacher, it has been an incredible honour to be referred to as a role model and to lead and be given the opportunity to drive innovative and inclusive work, using my own dyslexic thinking. I know that our innovation and leadership will send a powerful message that being neurodivergent is no barrier to achieving your aspirations and as a Trust we will provide the support and empowerment tools to thrive, have a Career for Life and contribute to a lifesaving service which is driven to providing exceptional patient care every single day.
Two weeks ago this comment was put on the public trust Facebook page following my invitation to Buckingham Palace and the impact of the SLP role is evident:
Beth-Louise Jenner: 1000% deserved. The man who helped me realise my full potential and kick-started my upward journey. Wouldn't be where I am without him.
I would like to thank Heather Morgan (Deputy Head of Clinical Education) for her exceptional support since I started in post and her continued championship of neurodivergence and specific learning difficulties support.
Key Issues / Risks:
The SLP role is being utilised across the whole trust, not solely in education and training as it was intended. We are a service of approx. 6,000 employees and volunteers and the demand for the support we provide is rapidly increasing. Without investment in further SLP and support roles, there is a risk to the level of support that can be provided for the need that has been identified.
Options:
N/A
How does this report link with EEAST’s vision, purpose and values?
Accountable
- The creation and implementation of the Specialist Lecturer Practitioner (SLP) role demonstrates a proactive response to the needs of neurodivergent staff and learners, ensuring the Trust meets its legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010.
- The introduction of the neurodivergent screening service as a spend-to-save initiative reflects responsible financial stewardship, saving the Trust £280,000 over two years.
- This paper transparently outlines the challenges, costs, and impact of previous diagnostic pathways, showing a commitment to continuous improvement and responsible decision-making.
Excellent
- EEAST is the first emergency service and NHS trust to achieve both the Bronze and Silver British Dyslexia Association Quality Marks, with work underway to achieve Gold, demonstrating sector-leading practice.
- The SLP role has enhanced service delivery, reduced delays in support, and improved outcomes for neurodivergent individuals, contributing to a more inclusive and high-performing workforce.
- The Empowerment Resource, accessed by over 2,600 individuals, showcases innovation and excellence in educational support using technology at no cost to the Trust.
Respectful
- This paper highlights how the Trust recognises and values neurodivergent individuals, ensuring they are supported, understood, and empowered to thrive.
- The collaborative approach across departments and with external partners reflects a culture of inclusion and mutual respect.
- The Trust’s leadership in neurodiversity has been nationally recognised, reinforcing its commitment to creating a respectful and supportive environment for all.
Summary:
The SLP role contribute directly to the four key strategic missions of EEAST:
Patient Mission
- Builds trust and better communication with diverse patient populations
People Mission
- Creates a more inclusive and supportive working environment
- Promotes wellbeing, morale, and retention
- Enhances staff experience and helps attract and retain a more diverse workforce.
Partnership Mission
- Builds bridges between the Trust and the neurodivergent community
- Supports collaboration with system partners where we all collectively to contribute to the patient experience
- Enables effective signposting for our people and patients
Productivity Mission
- Fosters staff engagement and loyalty by supporting identity and belonging
- Encourages innovation through diverse perspectives
- Contributes to a reputation of EEAST as an inclusive employer
Links to further information about the impact of the SLP role and the Dyslexia Quality Mark is available here:
From... - East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust | Facebook
From paramedic to palace: Dyslexia advocate raises awareness to new heights | EEAST
EEAST honoured for ‘pioneering’ work to create inclusive workplace | EEAST
East of England Ambulance Service gets dyslexia support award - BBC News
