Studiohead works on inclusive design handbook

Innovating With People – The Business of Inclusive Design launched at the end of last week at the Innovation for All conference in Oslo. Its publication coincides with the Norwegian government writing inclusive design into the country’s legislation.

Co-author and Studiohead director Cian Plumbe, a former Helen Hamlyn Centre research associate, hopes that the book will ‘open up business to make it aware of inclusive design methodologies’.

According to the book, inclusive design ‘aims to design mainstream products, services and environments that are accessible and attractive to the largest possible number of people’.

UK-based graphic designer Maureen Valfort designed the book, which details nine research techniques for engaging with user groups. ‘The graphic design was vital to the book, since we wanted to get across important information just by glancing through it,’ says the Norwegian Design Council’s Innovation for All Programme director Onny Eikburg.

‘Originally we only had a short leaflet in mind, but it has grown into a book that took 18 months to produce. We are really trying to get across the fact that inclusive design is not just about good intentions but good business,’ says Eikburg.