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Late last year, The Rt. Hon. Matt Hancock MP called before the House of Commons for all children to be screened for dyslexia before they leave primary school. It’s the first parliamentary move of its kind in the UK, and it has the potential to change the narrative for many people in society who might otherwise have gone undiagnosed for years; or potentially even their whole lives.
In an article in The Telegraph published last December, Mr. Hancock spoke candidly about the strong links between low literacy and long-term unemployment and crime and stated that breaking this cycle was a huge part of helping people with dyslexia find fulfilling futures in the world of work. “Simple early screening and education would go a long way towards helping dyslexics into the workplace and out of the cycle of crime, and be so valuable to those businesses who can make the most of all that potential,” he wrote. “I welcome the new Education Secretary’s recent commitment to a White Paper tackling illiteracy. I will tell my good friend Nadhim Zahawi that we absolutely cannot tackle illiteracy without getting to grips with dyslexia.”
Mr. Hancock also commented on the reality of living with dyslexia, and how dyslexia and associated literacy differences can drastically affect life chances of the people who have it if it isn’t identified and supported. “Everyone has a contribution to make, and it’s our job in politics to help people make it. But the system hold dyslexic people back – when, in truth, the potential has never been greater. Today’s Bill is a small step to releasing that potential. […] I’m passionate about improving support for dyslexic people- and all those with neurodiversity – because I feel I was one of the lucky ones. I had brilliant teachers and decent maths, so could get to an amazing university which could set me on the right path.”
It isn’t the first time that Mr. Hancock has spoken out about dyslexia and the ways that it can change somebody’s lived experience, both in education and going into the world of work. Speaking to the CEO of the British Dyslexia Association Gillian Ashley in a Political Sandbox video for Chamber UK, he opened up about his experiences as a dyslexic cabinet minister and how he would like to improve the system for the approximately 6.3 million people in the UK who live with dyslexia every day.
So, being the intrepid reporters that we are, we sent our SWD Director Darren Clark down to London to have a chat with Mr. Hancock last week all about his own dyslexia experience and just what it is that he hopes the Dyslexia Screening Bill might be able to do for the hundreds of thousands of people in the UK with dyslexia and literacy differences.
You can catch the interview as it premieres on our Succeed With Dyslexia YouTube Channel later today – and if you want to take a deeper dive into the landscape that surrounds the new UK dyslexia bill, you can also find an interview with another parliamentary supporter of the bill Tom Hunt MP in our latest episode of Dyslexia News!
