Cognitive Access Design™ (CAD) Framework
Designing for All Minds
What is CAD?
Cognitive Access Design™ (CAD) is a new, evidence-informed framework developed by Accessible Futures Group to reimagine inclusion through the lens of how people think, process, and feel in systems.
CAD goes beyond traditional accessibility and inclusion models by focusing specifically on cognitive experience, addressing the overwhelm, confusion, unpredictability, and mental friction that so often go unseen.
Inclusion isn’t complete until it includes the mind.
CAD gives organisations, educators, designers, and service providers the tools and structure to make systems feel clear, safe, and manageable—for all users, especially those with cognitive differences.
Our Core Concept
The Five Pillars of CAD
At the heart of CAD is a flexible design framework built around five core pillars. These pillars help embed access into the structure of environments, not just as an add-on but as part of how things are built from the ground up.
- System Awareness
Recognising and challenging structural barriers that exclude or overwhelm users.
- Cognitive Load Reduction
Simplifying, clarifying, and pacing content to support focus and comprehension.
- Executive Function Support
Designing environments that scaffold memory, planning, task-switching, and follow-through.
- Emotional Safety & Predictability
Creating calm, emotionally safe spaces through clear expectations and reduced ambiguity.
- Co-Designed Inclusion
Building with, not just for, neurodivergent people through meaningful co-production.
The Missing Piece in Accessibility
Most accessibility standards focus on physical or sensory access.
Most inclusion work focuses on representation.
But neither fully addresses what happens when a system is cognitively inaccessible—when it’s too fast, too complex, or emotionally overwhelming to engage with.
CAD fills that gap.
It offers a way to design systems that are not only open, but intuitively usable—for neurodivergent individuals and for anyone affected by stress, trauma, fatigue, or executive function challenges.
Our Commitment to Openness
Accessible Futures Group was founded on a social mission. We believe that cognitive access should be a core design principle across sectors, and we want this framework to support as many people as possible.
That’s why the CAD framework and its core principles are open to reference and apply, with appropriate credit to Accessible Futures Group.
We encourage organisations to use CAD as a lens for reflection, design, and service improvement.
Please Note: While the framework itself is open, our training materials and implementation tools are copyrighted and may not be reproduced, adapted, or used for commercial purposes without written permission.
If you’d like to embed CAD within your organisation, training, or services, we invite you to explore our training and consultancy pathways.
If you reference, adapt, or build from CAD in your work please credit: Cognitive Access Design™ developed by Accessible Futures Group. Do not claim CAD™ as your own intellectual property
If you're unsure whether your use falls within fair use or open licensing please get in touch, we’re happy to help
Certification Coming Soon
We’re currently developing a formal CAD Certified™ programme to recognise organisations actively embedding Cognitive Access Design in their systems.
Stay tuned for updates—or contact us if you'd like to be part of the early pilot phase.
© 2024 Accessible Futures Group. All rights reserved.