Inclusive Design and Management Training

According to the World Health Organisation, 15% of the global population lives with some form of disability – and this percentage is rising

Taking into account these statistics, it’s easy to see why inclusive design training is so important. No matter what your business, it is vital to consider the needs of everyone when it comes to staging events, creating communications, or improving the environment in which people live, work and play.

At Buro Happold, we have been placing people at the heart of our designs for over 40 years and have gained a solid reputation as specialists in creating buildings and urban environments that work for everyone.

Our inclusive design training involves a mixture of seminar-style and ‘mini-audit’ sessions where participants will walk around a building in groups making observations with expert guidance. 

So, who better to trust when it comes to learning more about inclusive design and management in practice? Our IOSH licensed training programmes are offered via live online methods, or face-to-face at your premises or our offices. Other programmes, including our CPD sessions, can be made available in a recorded format.

A number of our courses have been licensed with the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) as this is a well-recognised, respected training and information provider to the facilities management and surveying disciplines in particular. We also offer a range of shorter CPD workshops suitable for architects and interior designers.

A widely acknowledged benefit of our training is the increased understanding about how the law works and dispelling many myths about the Equality Act. This enables delegates to make well informed decisions on accessibility improvements for workplaces and visitor venues, eliminating costly retrospective corrections.

Examples of our inclusive design and management training courses

Note: Our training programmes can be provided as full or half day sessions for face to face delivery, or as live online sessions each lasting for one hour or more.

IOSH Access and Inclusion: Design & Management of the Built Environment

This full-day programme (providing 7 hours of taught material) is designed to help you explore the benefits of universal design and inclusive management practices and understand the legislative requirements around them. It provides a holistic approach to accessibility, and you will gain an all-round understanding of Equality Act duties for reasonable adjustments and regulatory requirements. It is ideal for facilities and estates managers, as it blends awareness training with building design and management elements and helps attendees to understand not only the legal parameters but also easy, achievable ways to improve everyday access, often through adapting routine maintenance and replacement routines.

IOSH Fire Safety and Disability: Managing Additional Needs

During this half day programme (providing 3.5 hours of taught material), you will gain an overview of current fire regulations and be encouraged to explore options and scenarios that will help you identify and address the needs of people with physical, mobility, sensory and cognitive disabilities. This will enable you to carry out assessments at your own premises and make any necessary adjustments. It is of relevance to anyone who needs to understand the management considerations around evacuation of people with additional evacuation needs, and is regularly attended by estate managers, HR and safety professionals.

Disability and Deaf Awareness for Customer Facing Staff

Developed specifically for front of house staff, such as receptionists, security personnel and volunteers, this half-day programme (providing 3.5 hours of taught material) gives you the opportunity to learn about different disabilities and impairments and gain an overview of the Equality Act. You will be encouraged to identify unconscious bias, challenge stereotypes, and expand your understanding of physical, sensory and cognitive disabilities , as well as mental health and other conditions that may impact on a customer’s requirements. The aim is to be able to consider wider user needs, with the view to creating a more welcoming environment for everyone.

Other courses include: Dubai’s Universal Design Code; External Environments; CPD workshops on Bathrooms, Tea Points, and Designing for Neurodiversity; Access and Inclusion – Sports and Leisure; Access and Inclusion – Educational Environments.

Our inclusive design training expert

Jean Hewitt is a leading practitioner in the field of inclusive design, who has worked in and delivered training to the public, commercial and charitable sectors. Jean completed an MSc in Inclusive Environments at the University of Reading, building on her knowledge as a Chartered Surveyor (Facilities Management). She has been an accredited member of the National Register of Access Consultants (NRAC) and a qualified trainer since 2001.

She is currently an Honorary Senior Lecturer at UCL, and represents the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management on the British Standards Institute BSI B/559 Committee – “Design of an Accessible and Inclusive Environment”. Jean also sits on the advisory management panel for NRAC.

Jean has received widespread praise for her training style and experience:

Thank you very much for the training. It was a well-informed session that staff gained a lot of information from.

Commission for Social Care Inspection

A really well delivered course – Jean has impressive scope of knowledge!

Camden Council

Excellent explanation and focus on the important issues.  The pace was great and real scenario discussions bring the topic to life.

Interserve

A brilliant, practical, thorough and comprehensive training session. Invaluable!

Multiple Sclerosis Society

The session Jean ran for our registration staff on ‘Working with students with disclosed or hidden disabilities’ was extremely valuable. They learned lots of techniques to help them provide a good service to all our students.

City Lit

For more information about our Inclusive Design and Management Training courses, please contact Jean Hewitt.