Designing for neurodiversity (ADHD, Autism, Dyslexia)

How Legal & General turned accessibility into a growth engine

Building a digital world that works for everyone isn’t just “the right thing to do” it’s one of the most underutilised growth levers in business today.

When you design for neurodiversity particularly ADHD, Autism and Dyslexia you’re not designing for a niche. You’re removing friction for everyone and when friction disappears, performance follows. The numbers don’t lie.

The Legal & General Case Study

Legal & General (L&G), a major financial services company, undertook a web accessibility audit and redesign focused on simplifying their digital experience.

What happened next was immediate and hard to ignore:

• Immediate impact: Within 24 hours of launching accessibility improvements, organic search traffic jumped by 25%… and quickly climbed to 50%.
• Conversion growth: Within three months, their conversion rate had doubled.
• Total ROI: Within one year, the project delivered a 100% return on investment.

This wasn’t a slow burn. It was a step change.

The Strategy: Designing for the Neurodivergent Mind

The transformation wasn’t about adding more, it was about removing barriers.

For ADHD:

They eliminated attention hijackers. No more auto-playing videos, fewer intrusive pop-ups and a clear, focused “success path” for users to follow.

For Autism:

They introduced predictability. Consistent navigation, clear labels and a calmer interface with more white space and less sensory overload.

For Dyslexia:

They removed the walls of text. Clean sans-serif fonts, better spacing and left-aligned content made everything easier to scan and absorb.

Simple changes. Powerful impact.

The Results: Beyond Compliance

What followed wasn’t just improved accessibility, it was measurable business growth.

• SEO explosion: Within 24 hours of implementing technical fixes like alt text and semantic HTML, traffic increased by 50%. Google rewards clarity.
• Conversion mastery: A simpler, lower-friction experience led to a 2x increase in conversions within three months.
• The bottom line: Within 12 months, the project paid for itself, achieving 100% ROI through increased sales and reduced support demand.

The Takeaway

Inclusive design isn’t a checkbox, it’s a competitive advantage and when you design for the edges, you create better experiences for the middle and that’s where real growth happens.