Designing for the disabled

Introduction

There are many standards for designing buildings and designing and testing equipment to help the disabled and elderly. Since publication of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 there has been more public awareness of the needs of the disabled, and many new guides have been developed to help designers and manufacturers meet the requirements of the Act. Since 1 October 2004 all companies are required to take reasonable steps to ensure that as many disabled people as possible have full access to services and goods.

These are the main guides that are available through British Standards:

BS 8003:2001 Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people
This code of practice gives recommendations for the design of domestic and non-domestic buildings and their approaches so that they are convenient for disabled people to use. Guidance is given on: domestic housing, buildings open to the public, architectural design, entrances and interiors of new buildings, doors, spaces, corridors, stairs, guard rails, ramps, lifts, car parks and parking, access routes to and around buildings, routes to recreational facilities such as patios, seating and picnic areas, garaging, building regulations and health and safety requirements.

BS 7000-6:2005 Design Management Systems is a guide to managing inclusive design.
It includes product design, consumer and supplier relations, design for disabled and visually impaired people, legislation, quality and instructions for use.

BIP 3003:2004 Step through guide to disability access (on CD-ROM)
Helps organisations to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.

A summary of the standards areas that cover other products and services (not including medical equipment) for the disabled are:

Buildings

Design of buildings
Fire precautions and access to buildings
Lifts
Hoists and stair lifts
Sanitary appliances (basins, toilets, drinking fountains, hand driers etc)
Escalators and moving walkways
Tactile warning devices for paved surfaces
Smoke alarms for deaf and hard of hearing

Equipment

Hearing aids
Wheelchairs
Walking aids
Beds
Low-vision reading aids
ICT products
Making information accessible on the Internet through sign language
Aircraft ground support equipment

To identify the standards you need, you can search BS Online.

In addition to formal standards, BSI works with other organisations to create Publicly Available Specifications (PAS)*. It is currently working with the Disability Rights Commission on guidelines on internet accessibility for disabled people, which bridges the gap between web designers and disabled users.

*Under the PAS scheme, BSI lends its expertise and brand to a co-sponsoring organisation to draft best practice methodology for products or processes.