Dyslexia Success

23/02/2022

Worrying proposal from the UK Government.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/feb/22/fears-that-minimum-grades-for-student-loans-in-england-could-narrow-access?fbclid=IwAR0EyNm2ziMKr4QEog83f10_Cj1u3yyA1yZBukCDIV8wjiLx082Cnn5qqPY

If you know anyone who has a dyslexic child and worried about this and how it may affect them please get in tough to discuss assessment and/or tutoring to help.

Government to consult on making eligibility for finance dependent on strong exam grades

22/06/2021

Hi everyone. I hope this post finds you all safe and well.

If you know anyone who is going to university in September and has dyslexia, they can apply for funding to help them with their studying. The funding is called Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). To apply they will need a diagnostic assessment that has been carried out either by a specialist teacher who has an Assessment Practicing Certificate (APC) or from a Psychologist registered with the Health Care Practitioner Council (HCPC).

If they have already had an assessment you can check if the person who did the assessment had an APC by checking the SASC web site here: https://sasc.org.uk/Assessors.aspx

If they don’t have a suitable assessment, I am currently taking bookings for diagnostic assessments. I am also available for dyslexia screenings, assessments for all ages, tutoring and training about assistive technology. Please feel free to contact me for details (either via messenger on FB, email at [email protected], [email protected] or 07877 234 190).

Thank you for your time

David Matkin

SASC Website

27/11/2020

Just heard from Dyslexia Box that the equipment that Access To Work (ATW) has provided started to ship and will be arriving soon. Once I get to grips with the items I will be posting reviews.

13/11/2020

My Facebook has been hacked. If you get a message with a video link and the message "Is this you in the video" don't open it. I've changed my passwords so hopefully, this will stop soon. Have a great weekend. David

30/10/2020

Free stuff!
If you struggle with visual stress and get blurry moving text or distortions as you read you may have visual stress. One thing that can help is coloured overlays. Text Help has a built-in overlay function – but it’s an expensive program. Fantastic – but expensive. Let me be clear here I love Text Help and it has many more tools than just an overlay function - but that’s all you need read on.

There is a new option that I have found out about called “Color Veil” (it’s not English so hence the wrong spelling of colour). They have a version that sits on your computer and a version that can travel with you on a memory stick. I have not tried the mobile one yet but the desktop version does what it is intended for and relatively well.

The picture is a screenshot with it on and off side by side. You can choose the colour you want and it remembers it once it’s been set to the correct colour for you. You can choose any colour at all and can make small changes to get it just right.

If you would like me to post a desk top tour showing how to install it and use it let me know here or message us.

Here is the link both mobile and desktop versions are on the same page and they are both free. Please note that they are free as they are sponsored by another program so you will see advertising.

www.aurelitec.com/colorveil/windows/download/

If you would like a screening for Irlen/Visual Stress please get in touch. We will do a full Irlen Screening and help you find the right Irlen overlay. If lenses would be beneficial we can refer you on for a lens assessment.

19/10/2020

Calling all Adults:

It’s a tough time – so many people have had a change of job forced on them. It’s a stressful time for everyone and it’s not easy at the moment. If you think you may have dyslexia and are concerned about job security or being able to do an office type job from home. There are things that can make office-based work much more manageable for a dyslexic. Software that can help to make life much easier. Software that lets you talk and it types for you. Software that helps you proofread or check those nasty homophones that sound like each other that you’re never really sure which one to use (Like to two and too or weather whether and weather [as in to weather the ram – or cut his bits off in casual English]). Now is a great time to be looking at upskilling. To develop your reading and writing skills and even learn some of the basics of this type of software.

Now I know what you are thinking.
• That costs money!
• That needs training!
• I’ve not got time as it is!

And you are partly right on all 3! Except that using these tools will save you time, money and make you more productive. It’s just a different way of working and using these tools can make you much more independent. This can increase confidence and productivity.

If you are already in work and are worried that you can’t keep up or are about to start your own business and worry about the paperwork side of things you can apply for Access to Work. A service from the government that offers to pay for from 80 to 100% of costs needed to meet the specific needs of workers with long-term learning difficulties or other disabilities. If you have been employed for more than 6 weeks your employer will be expected to pay up to 20% of the costs. This is not the case if you are self-employed they pay 100% of the costs if you are a sole trader. They will also pay for training on the software and cover the cost of tuition and training for things like organisation skills. I’ve not long gone through the process myself to help me set up my own company. This is available to anyone employed or self-employed. It is not means-tested or dependent on other income or status.

You need to have had an assessment to prove you are dyslexic or have another learning difficulty and apply on the government's ATW website. If you need any support or help with this please get in touch. I offer a free 30-minute phone call or face to face meeting to help you work out what you need to do to get the support you need and are entitled to.

If you think you may be dyslexic you can start sending me a message asking for an Adult Screening Questionnaire (just ask for an ASQ – I will know what you mean) and getting it back to me. Then we can arrange your free 30-minute consultation.

05/10/2020

is Dyslexia Awareness Week and there is a lot of things happening over at the British Dyslexia Association. They have set up the hashtag: - what a great positive hashtag. I believe that Dyslexia gives me certain advantages and I know Paul Brown says the same thing. This year is all about creativity - Paul Brown should definitely have been asked to speak - I don't know any dyslexic more creative than Paul.
There is a petition to sign about getting support and assessments into schools! Please have a look at the BDA website and go and sign the petition. All of the details can be seen here. https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/support-us/awareness-events/dyslexia-awareness-week/dyslexia-week-2020

I will be posting a couple of videos this week about dyslexia so please keep an eye on this page.

"And finally", as they say..... Dyslexia Success is up and running

I am back tutoring in person on a one to one basis and taking bookings through Facebook. I will also be carrying out screenings and assessments in person as well. Please head over to on Facebook to book an appointment or message me directly.

If you don't want face to face tuition because of Covid19 but would like to have tuition let me know and we can arrange online tuition too.

Dyslexia Creates In 2020, we will be putting aside 5-11 October to explore – looking at the power of dyslexia to create ideas,…