Accessible laboratories by design
A state-of-the-art new science building, including a chemistry laboratory, was opened in 2019, which had accessibility at the heart of its design.
It was delivered on time and under budget and the benefits and impact of the building have been very positive. An application is being made for a grant to evaluate these benefits formally.
Early on, it was recognised that having these labs be highly accessible made good business sense. It was a logical thing to do, it could easily be justified and defended. It made sense in terms of safety and future capacity and accommodation of students with disabilities. It made sense in terms of the legal framework, because the Equalities Act requires universities to have a pre-emptive view on disability accommodations. Retrofitting accommodations would cost the University so much more.
The new building was designed with proactive involvement from a team made up of a network of people who were disabled or interested in disability access at the University. This includes members of staff, students and members of the public.
The network had already produced a design guide for accessible structures, and part of their remit is to advise on new builds and refurbishments. They were engaged in discussions about the new building right from the start, all the way through the design of the building, advising on everything from the colours of the floors, the lighting, the signage, where the toilets were, what was in the toilets, how they were laid out, the types of taps and handles used throughout the building, making the whole space as accessible as possible.
The team worked with the architects and builders on the project to provide a swift course in accessible design and to advise on accessibility as issues arose. Accommodating these design features right from the start doesn鈥檛 cost any more and future proofs new labs for rising expectations of inclusivity and accessibility from staff, students and funders.
The lab is built to an incredibly high standard. Showing it to other people, they go: 鈥淏ut it just looks like an ordinary lab鈥�. Then I show them all the detail and I point out all the things that we put into it and people go, oh, so that makes a difference? The shape of the handles makes a difference, the colours of the walls, of the floors - all sorts of small bits add up to it being a really cool place to work in. Oh, and by the way, it's also really accessible.