Mumsnet with ND active section

[Rreaq]

This has been bought up a lot in the mm with Neurodiverse section and there are a lot of ats to @mnhq in posts about it (but not sure @ ing works.
Can the Neurodiverse mumsnet section be removed from active?
Alot of people have commented they can't see the nd section warning label at the top when they click through from trending, people commenting not realising what section it is etc, pretty sure the old mn with special needs used to not be in active, there are other boards that aren't included in active, can this be repeated with this section?

There's been countless requests for the ND board not to show up in active, to no avail.

I support the cause, but I won't hold my breath as MNHQ haven't listened or acted before 😞

I'd say is a site coding issue. Either it's coded so badly/ restrictive so they can't. Or won't pay a coder to sort it out.
Or maybe they don't care as the Mumsnet team are all NT?

RSD makes some of us highly sensitive to criticism and negativity, and it is impossible to discuss issues about adhd and autism on the wider forum.

Having a space where (mainly) women can talk about our experiences is important - there are other sites for ND people but the experience of women is fundamentally different from the experience of men. Many of us have reached middle age without a diagnosis, with our mental health in tatters, and our career potential decimated.

The ND board has huge potential to be a safe space to explore issues. This is right on the coal face of disability awareness. But we need support from MN HQ.

Can you step up?

My money is on the latter.

Countless requests since the ND board was set up - and nothing. No support. No action.

Thank you @Trivester you expressed so much that i wanted to say but just didn't know the best way to phrase it.
Now it's Monday I hope we can get a response from mnhq. Maybe. 🤞

This is excellent, @Trivester.

Perhaps @MNHQ will listen to us, but I'll be honest and I say I won't hold my breath. Endless incidents of ableism being glossed over or swept under the carpet haven't given me much faith.

Hello, everyone. Part of our reluctance to remove any board from Active conversations is that it makes it harder to find for those who would benefit from it. We do appreciate why you want this, though and so have removed it from Active as a test to see if this means the the board is a more supportive space for NT MNers and that those who need it can still find it. Thanks to all who contacted us about this.

Thank you. Progress at last!

Part of our reluctance to remove any board from Active conversations is that it makes it harder to find for those who would benefit from it.

Members can look in all talk sections and they will see there's an ND board, the same as members can find the board designated for black MN'ers.

I'm sure that ND members will signpost in a similar way that people posting in AIBU, for example, about relationships are often signposted to the relationships board.

Fingers crossed for the ND board becoming a safe space for ND members.

It's just a pity that we have lost members as this wasn't actioned sooner.

Thanks Mumsnet for listening

This:

Members can look in all talk sections and they will see there's an ND board, the same as members can find the board designated for black MN'ers.

And this:

I'm sure that ND members will signpost in a similar way that people posting in AIBU, for example, about relationships are often signposted to the relationships board.

I don't want it removed from active unless you can opt in to see it. When we first got the Mumsnetters with special needs section, that never appeared in active even if you opted in, which was crap for those of us with ADHD because literally out of sight out of mind. Making it harder to access our own support board is a bit shit.

And nobody knew it was there which is why there was a separate campaign for a neurodiversity one. Which I agree is a much better name. I think it should stay in active. But if most people prefer it not to be, please let it be opt in-able.

Perhaps it could be excluded from the list of topics allowed to appear in trending, like some other sensitive boards?

Also maybe make the SEN children's sections a bit more visible as well? When the site was smaller, everyone knew they were there even if they didn't use them so people got directed to them easily via word of mouth, but that method doesn't seem to work any more. In fact, isn't it really hard to opt in and out of viewing any topics if you're not using MN on a desktop? Why not make this function easier and advertise it a bit more clearly so that people can choose what they want to see in active conversations? Then it would make sense to hide some of the more sensitive boards for people to choose on their own.

Agree with @BertieBotts.

Opting in to see it in active would be a really good compromise.

Thank you @YetAnotherBeckyMumsnet

I just want to echo the people saying that an opt-in to see it in active would be best because those of us with ADHD will never remember it exists. Or in those moments when we remember, we won’t navigate through the menus to try to find it.

This

I agree with the ADHD PPs. As someone with ADHD I will completely forget that the board exists if it doesn't appear in actives.

I bet this a user needs scenario you didn’t anticipate MNHQ. 🤣🤣

Can’t be in active because it invites all sorts of problematic stuff for NT posters; has to be in active because a significant number of the ND users simply cannot use the site other than through active.

As a person who works in IT, including UX, engagement and digital transformation, this is exactly why users should be allowed to favourite or follow boards based on their personal profiles.

Surely that should say 'some of us with ADHD'?

I have ADHD (and autism) and it doesn't apply to me.

I want to see the ND board off active due to the amount of ableist and often downright nasty posts from people on a section of the forum that is supposed to be for ND members.

The way I find the ND board is to look at what threads I'm on. Simple.

Yes. Some of us. Many of us.

The point is that many of us with ADHD share your concerns about what happens when people wander in from active and treat it like AIBU. But want a solution that lets it remain in active but only for those who actually opt in. Like the SN sections.

The problem is that it’s utterly useless to many of us with ADHD if it doesn’t come up on active.

There may be a different way of handling it - a kind of ‘active subscriptions’ function, but it seems to work for SN to do it that way. Just hiding it from active really doesn’t meet some core user needs for the ND boards.

Threads I’m on only works if you’re on Threads already. Otherwise you have to check the board to see if there’s anything you’re interested in. And it can very easily drop off TIO entirely.

I'm autistic, not ADHD but I have noticed engagement has already dropped off massively. I do worry as you do that the board will be forgotten.
I'm not sure what the answer is to be honest.

Re: engagement dropping off - people have left, regular posters, because of attacking posts, ableist posts and downright spiteful posts on a board that was set up for ND's to support ND's.

I had to step away from here for a couple of months because of the above. I know that other members have expressed that the ND board doesn't feel safe and it doesn't seem as though MN 'had our back' as ND people (usually people with autism) were subject to ableism.

I don't know what the solution would be to create a safe, supportive environment but also encourage new people to post. But the ND board being in active invited all sorts of nastiness from NT's who felt it their right to challenge our thinking and preach that all we had to do was behave 'normally' in order to fit in 😡

Yeah, I was devastated when barrow left.
Hopefully things will perk up a bit soon.