We take a look at common design approaches that we can learn from as we actively design accessibility into our world.
In a previous blog post, we looked at universal design and accessible design as ways of designing products and services for accessibility. Universal design aims to be comprehensive while accessible design considers specific needs of people with access needs or disabilities. Both approaches encourage designers to consider the diversity of users throughout society.
There’s another approach that is becoming increasingly popular: human-centred design. It’s an approach that we are paying attention to here at Be. Lab, because it is all about “designing with” – rather than “designing for” – your end users.
Inclusive design aims to create products and services that are optimised for users with specific needs but that are usable by as many people as reasonably possible.
The British Standards Institute defines inclusive design as: “The design of mainstream products and/or services that are accessible to, and usable by, as many people as reasonably possible ... without the need for special adaptation or specialised design.”
Microsoft’s definition is: “a methodology, born out of digital environments, that enables and draws on the full range of human diversity. Most importantly, this means including and learning from people with a range of perspectives.”
Microsoft’s former director of inclusive design, Kat Holmes, points out: “Inclusive design doesn’t mean you’re designing one thing for all people. You’re designing a diversity of ways to participate so that everyone has a sense of belonging.”
Put simply, human-centred design is a methodology that puts people at the centre of all product or project development. While the definitions are currently still quite fluid, this video from IDEO.org sets it out clearly. It is, they say, “an approach to problem solving that starts with people.”
The emphasis varies depending on what sector you’re in, and the range of relevant sectors is surprisingly broad.
Human-centred design is a buzzword in product design (especially in the tech/digital sector), where it’s seen as an offshoot of “design thinking”. But it also has a place in humanitarian settings and also in policy work, like this project with the New Zealand government.
At its most basic, it’s about re-framing a problem in human-centred terms. At its best, it takes a participatory approach, involving users in all stages from initial input to reviewing and refining the product. As WSP-Opus states: “To be truly successful in creating human-centric design, humans need to be a central part of the design process.”
Unlike universal design and inclusive design, human-centred design was not specifically developed for accessibility. Its main focus is usability, so accessibility is just one aspect. However, it can be a valuable tool in designing for accessibility.
In Australia, human-centred design is seen as central in creating accessible public transport journeys. In the UK, the Amplify project used human-centred design to improve disability inclusion in low and middle-income countries.
At home, Be. Lab worked with Local Boards in Auckland to improve the accessibility of the parks and playgrounds in their area. Before developing our accessibility plans, we gathered feedback from the local community to understand the access needs of those who regularly use the parks. This ensured the parks would be designed with best practice accessibility in mind.
Here are Be. we find elements of inclusive design and human-centred design useful, and inform our unique approach.
We love the words of Kat Holmes, former director of inclusive design at Microsoft, who sees a participatory element as vital to tackling exclusion: “The key is to regularly ask yourself who will want to use your design, but will be most unable to do so? And then seek out their input as a way to help you shape better design constraints.”
All of our assessments and tools are designed with our accessibility coaches and consultants who have considerable industry and lived experience.
We can integrate the practice of “designing with” and bespoke a solution to help you achieve your organisation's accessibility goals.
To find out more, get in touch with our team of experts today.