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The cost of complexity: making support systems accessible

Writer's picture: Clare TarlingClare Tarling

Updated: Jan 23

A laptop and some paperwork
A laptop and some paperwork

It seems to me that the more difficulties you have, the harder it becomes to access the help you need. More need = more hurdles to jump.


Mainstream digital processes such as renewing a passport, taxing a car or checking your HMRC account have become so much easier in recent years. I'm constantly impressed by the speed and simplicity of these systems. They were undoubtedly built with adequate budgets, talented designers, and a lot of user-testing.


On the other hand, processes for people who need extra help from the state are usually fiendish. In fact, they can be SO complex that they can be the cause of unnecessary stress, disadvantage and even trauma and mental health problems. Here's an article from Schools Week about the stress felt by families in the SEND system.


Consider this advice from one parent to another, whose child is struggling to get the support they need in school. They want to know about alternatives: "To get EOTAS you'll need an EHCP and demonstrate that no schools in your area are suitable. To get an EHCP you need to ask for an EHC needs assessment. You can apply to the council, or the school can do it. An autism diagnosis might strengthen your case but the waiting list around here is over 2 years. There will be LOTS of meetings. You will be the only person there representing your son, everyone else will be a "professional" - so prepare to be outnumbered. Expect them to call you "mum" too. If you are turned down for an EHCP you can go to the SEND tribunal. It takes a while but you will probably win, so it might be worth all the sleepless nights and mountains of paperwork."


Similar process include:


Whole organisations exist just to help people to navigate through these processes. These organisations are wonderful, lifesaving, and hugely over-subscribed. Many depend on volunteers and are run on a shoestring. A host of informal Facebook groups have also emerged in recent years, where parents and disabled people guide and support each other through the quagmires. They can be a real lifeline, when "services" seem both impenetrable and all-powerful.

The source of complexity is often in the design of the systems themselves, which can usually be traced back to the legislation that created them. However - even when the system itself cannot be changed, the interface between the system and the people who need to use it CAN be.


What do I mean by "interface"? Here are some examples:


  • information about the process: it should be easily available, accurate, clear, and available in a range of formats, including plain English and Easy Read

  • the staff who represent the system and deliver the services: they must be valued, nurtured, trained, and given the resources they need

  • digital tools - websites, forms and surveys should be well-designed and tested on a range of platforms, against established standards, by a wide range of people


So here are 3 big things that need to happen:


  1. Organisations such as councils, NHS providers and housing associations must learn about the barriers which are experienced by people who need extra help from their services

  2. Involve those people in designing information, processes and online tools. Include people with learning disabilities, visual impairments, dyslexia, dementia, physical disabilities, people who are d/Deaf, autistic - whoever you are aiming to help. Value them, pay them and treat them as the experts they truly are.

  3. Test, test, test! Again - involving people with a diverse range of experiences and abilities.



It is time that we properly invested in making our most complex systems more accessible: SEND tribunals alone cost the taxpayer over £165m last academic year [link]. Not only is it unethical to subject people, who are already struggling, to trauma-inducing systems - accessible design has the potential to save organisations a lot of time and money too.





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