Employing a rational and logical approach, they sought educational testing for Martin, eventually discovering he had dyslexia. This testing proved expensive and required multiple trips to London. After the diagnosis, the Lows found that school support was non-existent, ultimately leading them to send Martin to a specialist school.
Early Volunteering and Formation
The narrative jumps to 2001, as Martin was finishing his university dissertation on dyslexia. As part of his research, he and Jennifer began volunteering at the Norfolk and Norwich Waverly Valley Dyslexia Association. This support group, which met monthly at Norwich City College, had just started offering computerised screening tests but lacked technical expertise. Martin stepped in to manage and perform the tests, and soon the group was offering screening to anyone for a small fee.
In 2004, a dedicated group of volunteers felt a need to offer screening more often than just once a month. This led to the creation of Indigo Dyslexia Services. They secured an office in the Charing Cross Centre in central Norwich, providing a range of practical support services, including screening tests, tuition, and other beneficial services for dyslexic individuals.
Becoming a Charity and Expanding Services
Following the closure of the Norfolk and Norwich Waverly Valley Dyslexia Association, Indigo Services reformed in 2007 as a registered charity named the Indigo Foundation. They continued to offer screening and assessments, shifting their focus extensively towards offering advice, guidance, and raising dyslexia awareness in the local community.
A key development occurred from 2011, when Indigo started a partnership with Northampton University’s support department, offering study needs assessments for students. Shortly thereafter, Indigo became its own registered Needs Assessment Centre, providing assessments for the Disabled Students Allowance, funded by Student Finance England.
At the beginning of 2013, Indigo began to expand geographically by setting up an outreach centre in Ipswich, near the university campus. This centre provided the local community with screening tests, tuition, and diagnostic assessments, until it was relocated to Bury St Edmunds in 2016. A further outreach centre was established in 2018 in Cambridge’s Future Business Park, offering the usual services and promoting community awareness.
Restructuring, Adaptation, and New Home
In 2015, following Jennifer’s retirement, Indigo underwent a significant restructuring. No longer reliant on donations, the organisation transitioned from a charity to a limited company, Indigo Solutions Limited, operating under the trading name The Indigo Dyslexia Centre.
The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruption, as Indigo’s work was predominantly face-to-face. This crisis necessitated a rapid shift to working online through conference meeting software, which ultimately forced the development of a new method for delivering screening tests remotely across the country. As a result of this successful transition to online service delivery, Indigo’s physical outreach centres were eventually closed down.
This allowed Indigo to purchase its own permanent office building in early 2021 at 2 Duke Street, Norwich. This dedicated three-floor space enabled the creation of purpose-designed assessment rooms, meeting the growing demand for testing and assessments. The centre continues to operate from this location today.
Present and Future Growth
Since 2022, Indigo has broadened its service offering to include a Dyscalculia Screening Test, which has proven popular, with many parents opting to combine both the dyslexia and dyscalculia screenings for a more comprehensive picture of their child’s needs.
Looking ahead, in 2026, Indigo plans to relaunch its website, incorporating online bookings, a newsletter, and extensive advice and guidance content for parents, students, and assessors. To this day, the Indigo Dyslexia Centre maintains its founding principle: Dyslexia is only a learning difficulty, not a learning impossibility.
