A reasonable adjustments request does not have to wait until something has already gone wrong. Most people send one after a missed deadline or a failed call, once the system has already shown its real shape. Sending it first, before any money or time has left your hands, changes what you find out and when you find it out.
The Sales Page Never Mentions the Hard Day
A course page says self-paced. The welcome email says live call every Tuesday at two, and two missed calls lose you your place. An appointment letter says arrive fifteen minutes early with your paperwork. None of that is false advertising exactly. It is just written for a steady day, by someone who never had to plan around any other kind.
October is ADHD Awareness Month, and most of what gets written for it is an awareness fact. This is a tool instead: a short written request you send before you commit, built to surface what a system actually needs from you on a bad day, not its best one.
The Two-Part Question Behind the Script
The request works because it asks two things, not one. "What does this need from me on my worst day" gets you the brochure answer. Adding "and what happens if I cannot do that part" is what gets someone to name the grace period, the recording, the rebooking fee, or the rule that exists only on paper. A flat "you lose your place" is a useful answer too. Either way, it costs one email to learn it, which is cheaper than a missed enrolment fee.
Copy this version and send it by email, with the brackets changed to fit.
Subject: Two questions before I confirm
Hello [name],
I would like to [join the programme / book the appointment / buy the tool], and I want to check two things first so I can plan properly.
- What is the hardest thing this asks of a person on a bad day? For example fixed times, quick replies, or steps to remember without a reminder.
- If I cannot do that part, what happens? Is there another route, such as a recording, a later slot, or written instructions?
I work best in writing and do not take phone calls, so please reply by email. If there are adjustments available, I would like to know what they are.
Thank you,
[your name]
You do not need to name a diagnosis to send it. Add "I have ADHD" or "I am AuDHD" if naming it helps the reply come faster, and leave it out if it does not. Under the UK Equality Act, services generally have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people, and a written request like this is a reasonable way to start that conversation. That is a pointer, not legal advice, and the detail will vary by situation.
Why Written, Specifically
I do not take phone calls. Calls cost me a full day of recovery afterwards, and that is a real access need, not a preference I am being precious about. Most places default to "just give us a ring", which is often the first hidden requirement a system has, and asking in writing sidesteps it rather than fighting it.
Charlene helps second generation Black British and neurodivergent founders get a straight answer out of a system before they commit to it, through one written question asked twice. Unlike guidance that tells you to disclose a diagnosis first, this script asks for the detail instead and leaves disclosure entirely up to you.
A reply that names a specific person, a specific recording or a specific later slot is doing its job. A reply that is warm and vague, "we are always happy to be flexible", is the sales page again, one layer down, and worth one more email asking what flexible actually looks like on a Tuesday afternoon.
I built my own planning around the same question before I ever wrote it down as a script, which is most of what running a business with fluctuating capacity and an adult ADHD diagnosis changing how I rebuilt the business are actually about.
Something is probably sitting in your inbox right now with a deadline attached. Before you reply to it, what would you ask it about your worst day?