Stimpunks Foundation
to bring to a manager, to HR, to an access conversation
Broadside · Open edition
Side A of B
Sensory Access
at Work
Most workplaces are built for one narrow way of sensing, moving and communicating, and anything outside it gets called a problem. Input stacks faster than it can clear — and that load gets read as fragility rather than as design failure.
Access is created,
not granted.
the environment is designed · so it can be redesigned
Sight
- Dim or kill the overheads; task lighting and daylight instead.
- Replace or filter flickering fluorescents.
- Sunglasses, caps and screen dimming are equipment, not accessories.
Sound
- Quiet zones and low-stimulation rooms that actually exist.
- Noise-cancelling headphones and ear protection as normal kit.
- Cut background noise: HVAC, machinery, open-plan chatter.
Smell
- No scented cleaners, air fresheners or aerosols in shared areas.
- Ask people not to wear strong perfume or cologne.
- Warn before painting, deep cleaning, or anything with fumes.
Taste
- No shared meals or team lunches as a condition of taking part.
- Safe foods and familiar brands, without comment or pressure.
- A private, low-stimulation place to eat.
Touch
- Ask before contact. Don't assume handshakes.
- Sensory-friendly clothing over rigid dress codes; fidgets and weighted lap pads.
- Thermal sensitivity is common — layers, a personal fan, some say over the thermostat.
And three more overleaf
- You were taught five senses. There are at least eight.
- The other three have no folk names, so needs that come from them get argued down as preferences.
Stimpunks Foundation
the three senses nobody taught you, and what else the day needs
Broadside · Open edition
Side B of B
Proprioception
where your body is, without looking
- Allow movement: standing, walking, rocking, pacing, a sit-stand desk.
- Walking meetings and movement breaks.
- Unusual posture is not inattention and not disrespect.
Vestibular
balance and motion
- Stable, supportive seating, and freedom to change position.
- No high stools or unstable chairs.
- Warning about anything that moves, spins or shifts underfoot.
Interoception
the signals from inside
- Build breaks in. Don't rely on people noticing hunger, thirst or fatigue on time.
- Normalise stepping away to eat, drink, or rest.
- Ask directly rather than waiting to be told. Answering may itself be hard.
And the rest of the day
- Communication — written and asynchronous as normal and respected; processing time; AAC and text over voice.
- Attention — protect deep-work time. Monotropic attention runs single and deep, and resents being fragmented.
- Predictability — agendas and questions in advance, realistic notice of change.
- Meetings — materials ahead, cameras optional, written contributions counted.
- Recovery — rest and pacing are part of sustainable work. Sensory load plus masking pressure compounds into burnout.
How to use this
Bring it to a manager, to HR, or to an access conversation as a starting point. Pick the entries that fit you — nobody needs every item. It is a menu, not a test.
What this is not
- not a diagnosis, and not a medical form
- not a fixed checklist every person must match
- not a claim that difference is deficit
- not a demand to “just try harder” once the environment has been named
Your nervous system is real, and the environment is designed. This is access as infrastructure, not an afterthought.
Stimpunks Foundation
Adapted from the Sensory Access at Work Why Sheet at stimpunks.org/why/sensory-access-at-work, which carries the full detail and the links. The eight-sense framing, and the reading of sensory difference as human variation rather than deficit, are Stimpunks'. Related: Cavendish Space; Neurodivergent Workplaces; Designing Sensory-Safe Spaces; The Inclusive Power of the Dimmer Switch; Preventing Autistic Burnout; the Sensory Checklist Gallery; and writing a neurodivergent collaboration manual to say how you work best — all at stimpunks.org.