RNIB Office Is UK’s First Building To Be Neurodiverse

The facilities at the new office are modern and inclusive of everyone’s needs

The new London office of the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is the first building in the UK to fully adopt a new BSI neurodiversity standard, says the organisation. The newly refurbished Grimaldi building in Islington has been designed to offer a modern, flexible and accessible facility for customers, patients, volunteers, supporters and staff.

It is the first building in the country incorporating innovations for those living with sight loss, alongside the implementation of the BSI PAS 6493 Design for the Mind – Neurodiversity and the Built Environment design guidance while also meeting current good practice for accessibility and inclusion. 

The building, created by Buro Happold and Kay Elliott, brings together key RNIB services, including the Low Vision Service assessment clinics, the Products for Life store, usability lab space designed to imitate an everyday ‘living room’ showcasing key everyday adaptations, a heritage area, ‘Talking Books’ recording studios, the RNIB Connect Radio broadcast studio, a multi-faith room, and serenity space for people experiencing sensory overload or stress, and amenities for guide dogs.

The key features include:

• Visually contrasting key surfaces including floors, walls and furniture, including a clear, colour-coded, tactile signage system with Braille and embossed text and symbols.
• NaviLens app points so that blind and partially sighted people can access and locate information and interact with the environment around them.
• An embossed vinyl flare path indicating the main circulation around each floor.
• Fully controllable lighting for both intensity and colour temperature on each bank of desks and in meeting rooms.
• Acoustics to reduce unwanted noise throughout.
• Ten Ecophon acoustic rafts suspended above the reception desk have incremental light reflectance values (LRV) to illustrate how visual contrast is measured.
• A passenger lift with voice annunciation, visual displays and tactile signage within the lift and on each landing.
• Kitchens with tactile and visual cues for cupboards and taps, and contrasting marine edge worktops.
• 3D printing enhances many areas, such as indicators on handrails and taps, and signs on store and kitchen cupboards.
• The building also has a sensory garden and zoned areas inside for quieter and collaborative work.

Keeping everyone’s needs in mind 

RNIB senior project manager Tricia Smikle said that the new building was an inclusive environment designed with everyone in mind. “As a charity, we believe that the world should be accessible to all, and this important move and adopting the new BSI guidance for neurodiversity, represents RNIB’s values and our continued determination to build a more inclusive society,” said Smikle.

According to Jean Hewitt, inclusive environments specialist in the inclusive design team at Buro Happold, the building introduces many new and innovative features specifically for people with sight loss that other organisations are already looking to adopt. “As technical author of the new PAS 6463 design standard, it’s been a true joy and a privilege to work on the first building in the UK to interpret and apply the new guidance,” said Hewitt. “It’s purposefully drafted to offer flexibility in the way it is applied to meet different circumstances and user needs. With this building demonstrating what’s possible, I hope others will follow suit, to make places as inclusive as possible for everyone to enjoy and have the opportunity to flourish.”