The provision of an inclusive and accessible workplace is a crucial aspect for any office re-design or office refurbishment project. To include for a variety of staff your office has to be flexible and considerate.

The Disability Discrimination Act was introduced to promote inclusive and accessible environments. This was subsequently superseded by the Equalities Act, although DDA is still commonly used to refer to accessibility issues. The Equalities Act still imposes a duty on employers ad service providers to:

“….remove, alter, provide reasonable means of avoiding, or provide reasonable alternative method of making a service available to a disabled person where dealing with physical features.”

It is simple to consider accessible issues in terms of wheelchair users and ramps. In reality the scope of access issues is much more varied covering such things as visual and hearing impairment, learning issues, arthritis and much more.

With appropriate knowledge and consideration at the early stage of a project, implementing measures to improve the accessibility of the office environment need not be a difficult or challenging task. Simple measures such as clear signage for the visually impaired, or easy to operate door handles for arthritis sufferers can be easily integrated into any design and makes a huge difference for those who use it.

At Office Design and Project Services all our designers have received training in accessibility issues, and have extensive experience in its application. In addition we are corporate members of the Centre for Accessible Environments, the UK’s leading authority on accessible design. We are able to undertake access audits for existing and new office space, and when undertaking an office re-design or refurbishment we can identify access issues and provide simple and effective measures to resolve these within an integrated design.

By combining creative flair with a sound understanding of building construction, our office designers can produce tailored solutions for your office requirements. From the functional to the innovative, whether you simply need to fit more people into your office, or wish to add a ‘wow-factor’ to improve your profile, ODAPS can help.

From concept design to full working drawings, to implementation, our designers work in partnership with our clients and our projects team. We work with our clients to create the brief, and also provide the solution in partnership with them. We do not dictate what we think the solution ought to be. We have no preconceived ideas for your office- each project is individual and we apply our expertise and knowledge to provide tailored solutions.

We are able to undertake a Building Appraisal of existing or new office space to assess how your existing space can be better used, or how much space you may require in a new office. We also ask the relevant questions to stimulate consideration for how the office can be set up to cope with changing business requirements. This allows us to produce a workplace strategy to ensure that the design is ‘future-proofed’ and the money is spent in the right areas to help the strategic growth of your business.

You can also be assured that we consistently deliver value for money. With knowledge of products, office furniture and materials, and how to apply them, our office designers maximise the potential of your budget

Because our office designers are all qualified professionals, you can also be assured that all our designs comply with current legislation such as the Building Regulations. This is an important consideration as the Building Regulations is just one of a number of statutory legislation which affects building design. These regulations ensure the health and safety of people in and around buildings by providing functional requirements for building design and construction, including the interior fit-out. You can be assured that we are more than competent to deal with these regulations on your behalf.

If you are in any doubt as to your responsibilities, or the suitability of your office design then feel free to call and speak to one of our trained designers on a no obligation basis . Whether you prefer to send a message or give us a call, we are here to help.