Why would I need one? You may not need one! Intervention is more important than diagnosis at every stage of a young person’s education and in many cases that intervention will not depend on a formal diagnosis – many schools will carry out informal screeners or assessments and plan interventions accordingly. Importantly, you do not require a formal diagnosis of dyslexia to qualify for exam access arrangements, provided the adjustments necessary have already been in place for your child under normal working conditions. Click here for more information on access arrangements.

There are, however, some very good reasons for seeking a formal diagnosis for dyslexia:

1. Dyslexia is a heterogeneous condition, and the underlying causes can vary from person to person – assessment helps identify the specific cognitive features that are affecting performance, so these can be targeted more accurately with support.

2. A diagnostic report includes a detailed analysis of a child’s strengths and weaknesses which not only helps parents, carers and teachers support your child appropriately, but helps your child understand their own difficulties and appreciate their strengths. It also includes a set of recommendations for school and home to ensure ongoing support is targeted and effective.

3. Many dyslexic learners have developed effective strategies that mask some of their difficulties, as a result of which, effective support is delayed. These difficulties often emerge at a late stage (at secondary school and even in some cases at university) once confidence has been damaged and the attainment gap with peers has widened. A diagnosis for these learners can be helpful to ensure timely, effective help.

4. It may not be dyslexia causing the difficulties, but assessment will help identify other cognitive features that are affecting performance eg memory, attention, processing speed etc. 

5. A formal diagnosis is necessary to secure some funding e.g., Disability Student’s Allowance (DSA) at university.  

A specialist dyslexia tutor has been trained on a BDA approved course to deliver teaching using specialist techniques specifically designed and structured to help people with dyslexia and unique to qualified specialists. A teaching programme will be based upon an initial assessment of the learner’s strengths and difficulties and as such content and materials are tailored precisely to the needs of individual students. 

For a dyslexic learner, the teaching is likely to focus on some of the following areas of vulnerability:

Phonological awareness – discerning and discriminating the sounds of speech

Phonics – learning how those sounds correspond to letters and letter combinations

Word reading – learning words by sight or by sounding out and blending unfamiliar words

Vocabulary development

Reading accuracy and fluency – learning to read accurately at an appropriate pace and with expression, to aid comprehension

Reading comprehension – reading and understanding, but also learning to self-monitor and develop strategies to increase understanding

Spelling – to develop effective strategies to spell correctly and consistently

Writing – letter formation and written expression (idea generation and expression, planning, sentence structure, syntax, grammar, vocabulary)  

Metacognition – perhaps a poorly understood but important element of learning; understanding how one learns, being able to set goals, ask questions to monitor one’s own progress/understanding and reflect on aspects of performance to continually improve so a learner can take charge of their own learning and build confidence.

A series of non-standardised assessments of reading, writing and spelling will help you and your child better understand where they most need targeted help. A short report will advise on support that can be provided at home and inform any intervention school or a tutor is able to provide.