Equality and diversity issues in relation to the the built environment placed centre stage by CABE

Architects and planners need a new design philosophy to put inclusion at the heart of the development process, CABE has urged at the launch of a report on equality, diversity and the built environment.

In Inclusion by design, CABE calls on local authorities and the built environment professions to look again at the different ways in which people experience buildings and places. Too often, architects and planners fail to understand how our experience of a place is directly influenced by our social, cultural and economic background. As a result, the design and management of buildings and places exclude different types of people without it even being realised.

Richard Simmons, CABE chief executive, warns that inequality is still literally being built into new places. 'Even though accessibility has improved over the last decade, the fact remains that poor and disadvantaged people are far more likely to live in poor quality environments.'

The professions need to better mirror the diversity of the society they serve. Currently, only two per cent of registered architects are black and minority ethnic, for instance, and park workers are predominantly white men aged over 40.

The report also proposes that local authorities should go beyond their public duties on race, gender and disability equality, and exceed the related legal requirements.

In some places, though, inclusive design is already inspiring very good solutions. Public space in Spa Fields, Islington, North London (pictured here), has been redesigned to create a safer space for women, and gave local young people work experience during the construction. Other examples are health centres that can cater for patients seeking asylum after torture; schools with learning spaces that work for pupils with hearing impairment; town squares with seating designed in consultation with older people; and estates that have safe places for young people to socialise.

CABE has also published an Equality scheme and action plan for itself, and is setting up a new group to advise it on inclusive design and equality.