Accessibility
Guidance
![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.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/shutterstock_1079252090-1200x480.jpg)
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
Read More...![An image of a black tote bag on a table with the English Heritage logo on it. Surrounding the tote bag are various items relating to accessibility, including ear defenders, bean bags and squeezable rings.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/04a9a47e-67a0-4a8b-b2bd-7d7f4c570414-1200x480.jpeg)
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
Read More...![A middle aged Maltese man in a pink polo shirt and light-blue checkered suit jacket sits on a sofa in an auditorium. He is holding a microphone and holding his hand out as he says something to an off-screen interviewer.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/DSC_0512-1200x480.jpg)
Steven Mifsud MBE interviewed at MENA Construction Summit
Answering questions on-stage, Steven spoke at the MENA Construction Summit this week on multiple topics effecting the future of the construction industry, ranging from Saudisation, to diversifying the workforce, to improving the local school curriculum. Accessibility and inclusion play key roles in how attraction providers can contribute to the sustainable
Read More...![Two female children smile as a rollercoaster sends them flying down the track. One of them is posing for the camera holding her hands up high.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/shutterstock_1487350391-1200x480.jpg)
Developing Accessible and Inclusive Theme Parks
From improving the emotional well-being of disabled people to generating more wholly positive perceptions of accessibility in the public consciousness, creating accessible and sustainable leisure facilities not only creates positive social awareness of disability issues (particularly among non-disabled children) but also allows disabled people from all walks of life the
Read More...![A photograph of Cheshire Oaks retail outlet on a sunny afternoon. A few cloud dot the otherwise blue sky as shoppers walk along the promenade. To the right of the image are Dune and Clogau stores.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/McArthur-Glen-1-scaled.jpg)
Designing inclusive retail and shopping spaces for accessibility
It is no secret that the rise of E-commerce, quickly accelerated by changes in people’s spending habits and the realities of our world economy, has resulted in physical retail spaces suffering losses in both consumer and business interest. However, while shopping for our favourite brands has never been easier for
Read More...![A banner with text reading "Accessible Interpretation of Wildlife" alongside two photographs. One shows a bald eagle stood on a wooden pole, the other a duplicate of the eagle as a tactile, white statue.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/WhatsApp-Image-2023-09-14-at-08.35.36-1200x480.jpeg)
Tactile Objects and Models are the Future of Accessibility
Most disabled people from lived experience understand what segregation and exclusion feels like. But ask the average disabled person what accessibility means to them, you are pretty much guaranteed to get a different answer every time. To a wheelchair user, it might mean facilities offering automatic doors, wheelchair ramps, and
Read More...![A young Caucasian man who is a wheelchair user eats on the terrace of a restaurant with a Caucasian male friend. The friend assists by cutting his food up with a knife and fork.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/AdobeStock_561471138-1200x480.jpeg)
How cafés, pubs and restaurants can better serve disabled patrons
One of our team’s favourite subjects for blogs, (like this one), is using our combined knowledge of accessibility to make recommendations to business owners about how they can become more inclusive to current and (potentially future) disabled customers. Whether that’s by speaking about issues we regularly identify when we do
Read More...![An accessible parking bay with the international symbol of access (person in a wheelchair) painted on the tarmac in yellow.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/pexels-jakub-pabis-11074302-1200x480.jpg)
Why the parking area is the first indicator of your sites’ accessibility
As the point of entry for the majority of public facilities, the accessibility of a site’s parking area has the capacity to shape the perception of an entire facility in the eyes of disabled visitors. In this blog, we will explain some of the ways you can make your car
Read More...![A photograph of the front cover of the Access Guide which Direct Access produced for Cannock Chase. The cover has a dark green colour scheme with a mixture of yellow and white text. It reads "Cannock Chase access guide. Welcome to the Access Guide for Cannock Chase". Underneath this text is the Cannock Chase logo. A photograph on the cover shows a young white woman with downs syndrome riding a bike with stabilisers joyfully. Next to her getting in close for a photo is a white male companion who is off his bike and holding it with one hand. He is also smiling happily. Behind them is a bike trail through some woods.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Access-Guide-Cover-1200x480.jpg)
The benefit to providing accessibility and sensory guides for site visitors
Whether you are a site owner providing an attraction to the public or are the custodian of a heritage site/museum, Accessibility and Sensory Guides are fast-becoming a standard of the overall visitor experience in public recreation, entertainment, and educational settings. Working very much in the same way as a traditional
Read More...![A Refuge Point sign on a grey wall with the international symbol of access printed on it next to an emergency two-way intercom within a non-specific building interior. In the background, a floor to ceiling window reveals a church and several houses being battered by the rain on a cloudy day.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/IMG_0895-1200x480.jpg)
The Direct Access Guide to Accessible Wayfinding
When we hear the phrase “wayfinding”, what most frequently comes to mind is the application and availability of signage in a particular environment, which is normally used to signify elements of a space that requires visitor attention, or offer directional guidance in complex environments, such as shopping centres, hospitals, museums,
Read More...![A photograph of the exterior of the Science and Industry museum in Manchester.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Science-Museum-1-scaled-1-1200x480.webp)
A guide to curating inclusive exhibitions and museums
When we think about accessibility in the context of most built environments, the first thing that comes to mind for most people is whether wheelchair users can directly access the building via ramps, sufficiently wide doors, and elevators. But accessibility is, as we all know, is much more than mobility
Read More...![A modern living room space with artificial plants decorating a space which includes a coffee table and red armchairs.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/pexels-rachel-claire-4846101-1200x480.jpg)
How inclusive and accessible design leads to future-proof housing developments
What is Inclusive Design? In construction, inclusive design is a sustainable, inclusive, and cost-effective design practice, yet is also massively underutilised. For firms that do use inclusive design when approaching new builds, it presents an opportunity for site owners to create built environments that are massively beneficial to every individual
Read More...![Part of a spacious office with a long aisle and row of desks with business supplies and green plants standing by walls and on workstations.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/AdobeStock_568743494-1200x480.jpeg)
The health, environmental, and social benefits of Biophilic design
Biophilic design (from the Greek, ‘philia’ meaning ‘love of life’) is an environmental design choice which is being adopted by architects and decorators around the world for modern office spaces and desk-based work environments. Office spaces, though largely safe and unassuming compared to workplaces of past centuries still provide potential
Read More...![A black wheelchair user wearing a white vest and armband carries a basketball in the palm of his left hand and holds on to his wheelchair with his right. He is on a basketball court on a sunny day.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/shutterstock_2247087249-1200x480.jpg)
Why the Models of Disability matter when creating inclusive environments
As access consultants at Direct Access, we often get asked this question and when we do, we tend to give a rather dry and professional answer explaining legal requirements and building regulations. Whilst it is true that these legal boxes need to be ticked, it is hardly an inspirational, encouraging,
Read More...![A mixed group of work colleagues discuss work around an office table. One of them, a male wheelchair user, points to his female colleagues monitor to point something out.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/pexels-kampus-production-6248983-1200x480.jpg)
How business owners stand to benefit from accessibility and inclusion
When we think of the built environments that make up our society, whether that’s bus stations, libraries, hospitals, supermarkets, or hotels, thought is rarely ever given to the potential of these spaces were they to be rebuilt, readjusted, and made inclusive. Indeed, when we think of accessibility and inclusion in
Read More...![Hand of an unrecognizable person dragging a suitcase, wearing on the wrist a lanyard of sunflowers, symbol of people with invisible or hidden disabilities.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AdobeStock_576074074-1200x480.jpeg)
The difference between disability awareness and understanding
Much is often said about disability awareness, whether it’s businesses and organizations earnestly involving themselves in the various disability awareness days that happen each year, to huge corporations painting an image of inclusivity simply because they offer images of diversity in their branding – it is clear that in today’s
Read More...![A middle aged man, Andy Lomas, poses for a photo behind a large tactile map board at a product and service conference. In the background is a poster banner for Direct Access showing a young man in a wheelchair cheering on a hillside.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1000004018-1200x480.jpg)
The Importance of Accessible Wayfinding in Commercial Environments
In the past ten years or so wayfinding has undergone massive changes that has made getting around more accessible to all. With the ease of availability of services such as Google Maps, finding your way from A to B has never been easier. However, despite the ability to guide us
Read More...![A blind man using a white cane to identify tactile paving safely walking along a path.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Blind-Housing.jpg)
Etiquette for Interacting with a Visually Impaired Person
To preface, it is important that we first acknowledge that while there are generally recommended methods of communicating with blind people, they are ultimately individuals with their own experiences, and will therefore have preferences unique to them. This blog entry is based on preferred etiquette which tends to overlap among
Read More...![A close up of a Braille festival guide for the Nantwich Food Festival 2023. Photos of various guests are on the cover, including Simon Rimmer, Nigel Brown, Jack Stein and Lesley Waters.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/d738908a-adae-4231-ad37-8796ad55e0b7-1170x480.jpg)
How to cater to the increased demand for Accessible Media
With society’s increased reliance on digital spaces to carry out everyday tasks, ensuring the provision of Accessible Media is vital. From ordering food shopping to doing taxes to arranging doctor’s appointments to streaming films and television, the digital realm has largely superseded the analogue methods of the past. This progression
Read More...![A sign language video displayed on a television.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/WhatsApp-Image-2023-09-29-at-10.23.31-2-1200x480.jpeg)
Universal Design: Creating Spaces for All
Universal design is the design philosophy that seeks to create products, spaces, and environments that are usable and accessible to people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds. It is a framework that acknowledges and celebrates human diversity by creating spaces that are inclusive and welcoming to everyone. At the heart
Read More...![The Direct Access logo.](https://directaccessgp.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/White-Logo-Transparent-Background-1-1024x198.png)
United Kingdom
Suite GB,
Pepper House,
Market Street,
Nantwich,
Cheshire,
CW5 5DQ.
Ireland
77 Camden Street Lower,
Dublin,
D02 XE80.
Inclusive Guides
Explore our free guides on accessibility and inclusion, crafted by our experts. Click Here.