Access

for Everybody

Award-winning Universal Design and Accessibility experts. Led by disabled people.

Direct Access has led the accessibility and inclusion field since our inception in 2004. We are a DOBE™ certified Disability Owned and Operated Business Enterprise providing accessibility consultancy based on our real lived experience of disability.

With consultants across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland – we enable organisations to create inclusive environments that meet and exceed accessibility standards and building regulations across the UK and mainland Europe.

We work with clients, architects and design teams working on everything from small community venues, to UNESCO heritage sites, to world famous museums.

A Selection of

Our Work

A close up photograph of an open gate leading to a walkway surrounded by a lush green garden. On the gate is a square sign displaying a white capital T, representing the Tullie Museum and Art Gallery.

Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery

Direct Access are the Accessibility Consultants for the Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery, helping Cumbria become a thriving place for everyone through the development and implementation of an accessibility Read More

A proof of concept photograph of the proposed new design of Chichester Street in Belfast showing a bustling street front with new modern buildings.

The 5 C’s Public Realms Project – Belfast

Direct Access were the accessibility consultants for the 5 C’s Project in Belfast, providing a review of 5 proposed street refurbishments for The Department for Communities (DfC) Belfast Regeneration Directorate. Read More

A photograph of an exterior pathway at the Sewerby Halls & Gardens on a sunny afternoon, to either side a mixture of white, pink, and purple flowers are scattered from one end to the next, with larger plans and trees further back on each side. At the furthest end of the path, there is a sheltered garden gazebo with two trees adjacent to the left and right.

East Riding Museums

Direct Access provided accessibility audits to the East Riding Museums Group to ensure that its sites are fully accessible and inclusive to disabled visitors and staff. The initial site audits Read More

A proof of concept photo of the V and A East museum, showing a large, baige building that looks like an upside down crown. A large V and A sits on the top. Outside crowds of people commute on the open plan path space. At the forefront, a set of stairs lead down to a nearby canal with a red, white, and blue coloured boat passing by.

V & A East

Image © O’Donnell + Tuomey / Ninety90, 2018. The Victoria and Albert Museum, more commonly known as the V&A is the world’s largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and Read More

A render of the upcoming United Nations International Center for Migration, a building with large glass windows that is generally see-through. On the street front is a black car, a flagpole with a blue UN glad and people dressed in suits walking along the pavement.

United Nations International Organization for Migration (Geneva)

Direct Access has provided Universal Design and accessibility consultancy services for the new International Organization for Migration Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Working with the Architectural and design teams at each Read More

Ellison Institute for Transformative Medicine

The Ellison Institute is an interdisciplinary, patient-centered research center that provides cutting-edge cancer care and wellness services, undertaking research initiatives that span the scientific spectrum to change how cancer and Read More

More Case Studies

Latest

News

The Harris Museum Art Gallery Exterior, a grand imposing building supported by Greek style pillars from the front. Street lamps illuminate the front of the street below as the evening draws in.

News

‘Harris Your Place’ : Direct Access interviewed for access consultancy work at the Harris Museum

Direct Access founder Steven Mifsud MBE was interviewed for the Harris Museum’s ‘Harris Your Place’ profile series, highlighting key people in the site’s ongoing refurbishment. An ambitious undertaking, it is set to be the first blended museum, art gallery, and library in the UK. Conducting the interview with Steven is

July 23, 2024

A detached, red-bricked, two-story house on a river edge in Canterbury on a bright, sunny day. The building has a beautiful garden with white flowers in front of it, across the river bank the same white flowers can be found along with purple and orange flowers. On the river, a man rows a couple on a boat across the gentle water.

News

Direct Access bringing access and inclusion to Canterbury

Canterbury County Council (CCC) have commissioned Direct Access for their Levelling Up Project, the scope of which has seen the firm deliver accessibility audits for many of Canterbury’s heritage places, gardens, trails, streetscapes, car parks, and cycling routes. The project, which has seen Direct Access deliver accessibility audits to public

July 16, 2024

A dark blue graphic which reads "July Disability Pride Month" in white text. The rainbow of colours representing pride cover the edges of the graphic. Several small circles surrounding the text are also coloured a combination of red, orange, green, and blue.

News

Embracing disabled identity: Direct Access and Disability Pride Month

Disability Pride Month is an annual awareness day celebrated every July, championing the creativity, resilience, and achievements of disabled people. The origins of Disability Pride as a celebration go as far back as the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act back in 1990, which the date traditionally commemorates. However,

July 8, 2024

Steven Mifsud holding his MBE medal on the grounds of Windsor Castle on an overcast morning.

News

Steven Mifsud interviewed for the 20th anniversary of Direct Access

Celebrating 20 years as Director of Direct Access, Marketing Executive and Accessible Media Consultant Michael Miller interviewed our Group CEO Steven Mifsud MBE about the company’s history which now spans a generation, and what the future holds for the award-winning accessibility consultancy. Hi Steven! Firstly, congratulations on Direct Access finally

July 5, 2024

A close-up photograph of a white laminated sign hung up by string on a fence in what we would assume to be a high street. In bold, black, capitalised letters, the sign has text which reads “polling station”, with a small piece of paper sellotaped underneath it reading “disabled access”, also in bold, black, capitalised letters.

News

The visually impaired right (and fight) to vote independently

With the arrival of the UK General Election today, citizens nationwide are flocking to their local polling stations to exercise their rights as British citizens. However, not everyone is being granted the opportunity – with many disabled people across the Four Nations still unable to visit their local polling station

July 4, 2024

A lanyard with images of sunflowers printed on it, symbolic of people with invisible or hidden disabilities on a laminate wooden table next to a Direct Access branded mug.

News

Direct Access celebrates 20 years providing world-renowned accessibility services

This summer, Direct Access is delighted to be celebrating twenty years of providing world-renowned accessibility services across the globe, from Nantwich, to Florida, to Riyadh. Reflecting on the past and looking brightly forward to the future of Direct Access’, Steven said “As we mark the commencement of our 20th year

July 1, 2024

An image of showing the exterior of a large, modern red-bricked building, the Swan Theatre, on a sunny day. The building hosts the Royal Shakespeare Company. In the foreground of the image, geese can be seen paddling on the River in front of the building.

News

How to make your theatre inclusive and disability-friendly

The live event market is currently booming, making a huge resurgence within the wider entertainment industry. With the pandemic becoming something of a distant memory, the general public is becoming much more comfortable in crowded spaces again, with live performances and concerts generating billions of pounds a year. The joy of

June 21, 2024

News

How providing tote bags with small objects can increase accessibility on your premises

Adopted widely from education and play settings to workspaces, sensory bags are an inclusive, inexpensive method of signifying to visitors that your premises actively consider accessibility and comfort. The tools and resources available within the bag can ease or lessen situations of sensory overload, as well as aid in the

May 24, 2024

A middle aged Maltese man in a pink polo shirt and light-blue checkered suit jacket standing behind a Tactile Map Board on a sunny day. His hands are placed either side of the board, which is grey and has a white miniature model of a building on it.

News

Expo City Dubai install first ever Direct Access Tactile Map at the Museum of Expo 2020

Expo City Dubai, a long-time client of Direct Access, has installed the first tactile map on its site at the Museum for Expo 2020. The Tactile Map Board is one of Direct Access’ signature products, representing an innovative, multi-lateral approach to inclusion that utilises accessible digital media elements to deliver

May 23, 2024

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