What is Inclusive Design?

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 places a duty on service providers to make their products and services accessible to disabled people.

In 2005 The British Standards Institution (BSI) launched a new "Inclusive Design" standard to encourage organisations to think about the

"Design of mainstream products and/or services that are accessible to, and usable by, as many people as reasonably possible on a global basis, in a wide variety of situations and to the greatest extent possible without the need for special adaptation or specialised design."

This standard is a useful starting point for companies committed to improve the usability of their products and services.

BT is amongst a number of businesses that include Ford and Tesco who have, for a number of years, recognised the value of "Inclusive Design. These companies have designed phones, websites and cars to take into account the different access needs of their customer bases.

At BT we understand that this approach is becoming increasingly important as the population ages and customers in general are demanding greater ease of use.  The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) use the following information to stress the importance of "Inclusive Design":

• Today half the UK adult population is over 47 and is continuing to get "older"

• Capability deteriorates significantly with age

• Older customers with significant capability impairment have a multi-billion pound spending power

Read more about the development of guidelines for Inclusive Design