People with disabilities helped design our new NHS mental health referral tool – and their input improved it for everyone

GM.Digital's latest study published in Frontiers in Digital Health shows how our new digital tool for referring children and young people to NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) was reshaped after testing by a group of stakeholders with lived experience of disability.

GM.Digital worked with a Pan-Disability Digital Accessibility Group (PDDAG) of 12 people, including individuals with chronic pain and fatigue, physical disabilities, neurodivergence and visual impairment, to test a new online referral tool being developed as part of the NIHR-funded EN-CAMHS 2 project.

Researchers took part in two rounds of usability workshops, first trialling the tool and then reviewing the changes made in response to their feedback. As a direct result, the research team redesigned the multi-factor authentication process – including adding an email-based alternative for people without access to two devices, and alt text for screen reader users – along with clearer wording, simplified consent screens, a progress bar and improved navigation throughout the form.

The study also tested how long the form took disabled and non-disabled stakeholders to complete, finding no difference in completion times between the two groups – challenging an assumption among some stakeholders that disabled users would need longer.

The researchers note that, due to recruitment constraints, the study was unable to include people whose first language is British Sign Language, and recommend that future digital health research embed accessibility expertise, including BSL users, from the earliest stages of design. The team worked with the Manchester Deaf Centre to produce a BSL explainer video for the tool in the meantime.

Usability testing with disability advisory groups should become routine practice across digital mental health research, alongside compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, which is a minimum starting point rather than a sufficient standard on its own.

Notes

The full paper, “Inclusive design in digital mental health: stakeholders with disabilities must be central to usability testing,” by Tranter H, Giles N, Price T, et al., is published in Frontiers in Digital Health (2026), DOI: 10.3389/fdgth.2026.1833693, and is freely available open access.

EN-CAMHS 2 (Enhancing CAMHS Referrals 2, NIHR158809) is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme. The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.

The project is led by researchers at the GM.Digital Research Unit, Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, in partnership with the University of Manchester.