Branding and Design
Being neuro-inclusive in your company’s brand and design is one of the best ways to show authentic commitment to diversity to the world - including prospective employees, clients, and audiences.
Truly inclusive design ensures that all services, content, products, and environments you are creating and fostering are designed with all users in mind, including those with visual and/or cognitive differences.
Even where brands are established, subtle amends or enhancements to your websites, visual materials, and comms can ensure that neurodivergent access needs are met, without being asked.
Consider these measures in your branding and rebranding conversations:
Visual Materials
Navigating a world built for neurotypical brains can be exhausting, so reducing cognitive load is a recurring theme in designing for neurodivergence.
Consult with the neurodivergent people around you and in the wider community to maximise inclusivity in your design of visual internal and external materials (Word Docs, PowerPoints, Pdf decks, etc), but start by considering these principles:
Download our Accessible Formats Guidelines here!
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Make sure all of your visual materials are seamlessly compatible with screen readers and other text-to-speech (TTS) software
General
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use at least font size 12pt or above
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Use 1.5 or double line spacing
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Colour code text - put information in one colour, a question in another
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Fonts should be clear, rounded, and have space between letters - a sans serif typeface and kerning (printed/un-joined text) is preferable
Fonts
Headings and Subheadings
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headings should be a font size that’s at least 20% larger than the main body text (Microsoft has accessibility options under the ‘Layout’ tab that will help to align headings correctly)
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Avoid underlining and italics which can make words ‘run together’: use bold text for titles, sub headings, or to draw attention to important information or key terms
Page Layouts
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Left align, without justification
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Wide margins
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Avoid multiple columns
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Avoid too much text on a page
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Break up text with regular section headings in long documents, and include a table of contents
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Avoid the use of background graphics with text over the top
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Use text boxes or borders for headings or to highlight important text
Writing Style
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Ensure sentences and written instructions are short and simple
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Keep paragraphs as short as possible - dense blocks of text are difficult to read
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Use numbers or bullet points rather than continuous prose - and use them consistently
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Include flow charts, illustrations, and diagrams to break up large sections of text or to demonstrate a particular procedure
Colour Schemes and Readability
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Where possible, particularly for non-printed materials, avoid white backgrounds, opting preferably for off-white/pastel colours
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Use sufficient contrast levels between background and text: avoid black text on a white background, and light text on a dark background
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Avoid colours such as green with red/pink in your content where possible as they can cause difficulty for people who are colour blind or have colour vision deficiencies
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Avoid patterns on backgrounds where there is a lot of text - it will be less distracting for the reader
When in doubt, use the ACCESSIBILITY button on all Microsoft programmes to check your documents/presentations.
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Use Alt Text for all images
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Provide captioning and transcripts for videos and audio content
MultiMedia
PowerPoint Presentations
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Ensure slide contents can be read in the order that you intend them to be, and give every slide a unique title - this helps screen readers properly communicate your work
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Ensure that colour is not the only means of conveying information - this is challenging for people who are blind, have low vision, or are colourblind
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Try to use a larger font size (18pt or larger) where possible
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Use images to break up blocks of text and make your slides easier to scan
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A colourful, high-contrast graphic layout, with pictures and text creates a structured design - far easier for people with dyslexia to understand
