Awareness of dyspraxia is useful, but it doesn’t change much on its own. So we’ve put together our Dyspraxia Reasonable Adjustments Example Guide, for managers and employees to use together when working out what would help.
Dyspraxia (also known as developmental coordination disorder, or DCD) affects physical coordination and planning, but as the NHS guide to dyspraxia in adults explains, it can also affect organisation, time management, memory and learning. Many people with dyspraxia go undiagnosed or unsupported at work.
The right adjustments make a real difference, and this guide is meant to make them easier to put in place.
What the guide does
The Dyspraxia Reasonable Adjustments Example Guide is a list of practical ways workplaces can support employees with dyspraxia.
Instead of vague advice like “be patient” or “offer support”, this guide gives clear examples of what support can actually look like in practice, from tools and adaptations to ways of working that reduce barriers and improve accessibility.
It’s broken down by common challenges, such as:
- Managing time and workload
- Physical organisation and coordination
- Memory and information processing
- Getting around the working environment
- Communication and meetings
- Recruitment and onboarding
Each section includes a short explanation of the challenge, followed by specific, practical adjustments, such as:
- Using visual schedules or shared task trackers to support time management
- Allowing extra time for note-taking or paperwork, particularly in meetings or training
- Providing voice-to-text software or allowing verbal instructions instead of written ones
- Making sure walkways and desks are clear of trip hazards or clutter
- Reducing tasks that involve high levels of manual dexterity where possible
- Allowing flexibility with tasks that require handwriting or manual form completion
All adjustments are written in a neutral tone, so they can be raised by either the employee or the manager. The idea is that you use it to talk things through early, before problems build up. If you’d like more ideas across other conditions, see our wider list of reasonable adjustment examples for managers.
Why adjustments matter
People with dyspraxia often face challenges that aren’t immediately visible. Finding time management harder, bumping into things, feeling exhausted after getting through a busy office, or finding it hard to take accurate meeting notes are all real barriers that can affect performance and wellbeing, but they’re often misread as carelessness or disorganisation. Our guide to how neurodiversity shows up at work explores this in more detail.
When those differences are recognised and supported, employees with dyspraxia are far better placed to do their best work.
The benefits go beyond the individual. Inclusive workplaces see better engagement, higher retention and more diverse thinking, and adjustments made for one employee often help others too. Adjustments are also part of an employer’s duties under the Equality Act 2010, which we cover in reasonable adjustments: your legal responsibilities.
What’s inside the guide?
The guide includes practical ideas for:
- Planning and prioritising tasks
- Using digital tools for reminders and note-taking
- Reducing physical demands where appropriate
- Providing clear, consistent instructions
- Making spaces easier to get around
- Supporting people during recruitment, onboarding and training
Each adjustment includes a short description of how and why it helps, so managers understand the reasoning and employees have something to point to when asking for support. For new starters, it works well alongside our onboarding checklist for neurodivergent employees.
It’s useful for:
- Line managers supporting a team member with dyspraxia
- HR professionals carrying out workplace assessments
- Dyspraxic employees preparing for a support conversation
- Organisations looking to improve their approach to neuroinclusion
If you’re an employee preparing to talk to your manager, our disclosure templates can help you start the conversation. Some costs, such as specialist equipment or software, may also be covered by the government’s Access to Work scheme.
A flexible, real-world tool
This isn’t a one-size-fits-all checklist. Every person’s experience of dyspraxia is different. Some employees may only need one or two small changes, while others may benefit from a more tailored plan.
Treat it as a starting point for spotting barriers and talking about solutions.
Like all our resources, it’s based on what we’ve seen work in practice, in offices, remote teams and hybrid setups.
Download the guide
You can download our Dyspraxia Reasonable Adjustments Example Guide here:
Download the Dyspraxia Reasonable Adjustments Example Guide (PDF)
How Enna can help
Sometimes a guide isn’t enough and it helps to bring in someone with experience. Our workplace needs assessments look at an individual’s role and recommend the adjustments most likely to help. Alongside that, workplace coaching gives employees with dyspraxia one-to-one help with organisation, time management and confidence at work.
If you’re in HR or manage people, our Reasonable Adjustments: Putting It into Practice workshop is about getting adjustments working day to day, not just written into policy. You can book a call to talk about your team.
