Gemma Helyer shares her personal and professional experiences with accessibility

In this Bank Holiday Monday episode of Beautiful. Diverse. Human., Joanna and Fernando are joined by Gemma Helyer, Freelance Senior Product Designer specialising in UX, accessibility, and complex user journeys. The conversation explores Gemma’s personal and professional experiences with accessibility, including recently discovering that she qualifies for two hearing aids, adding hearing loss to her existing accessibility needs alongside glasses, ADHD, and dyslexia. Together, we discuss: Accessibility in product and service design The reality of managing multiple access needs Why accessibility should never be treated as an afterthought At the heart of the episode is Gemma’s powerful message: Accessibility should be a core part of any product and never an add-on or afterthought. This conversation is an honest and insightful reminder that accessibility is not niche, it is fundamental to creating better experiences for everyone.