Creating Spaces That Are Welcoming To All – Handrails, Balustrades & Accessibility Requirements

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, as of 2022, 5.5 million Australians (21.4% of the total population) were living with disabilities. Many of these people face ambulatory challenges. For various reasons, they find it difficult to navigate uneven surfaces, to climb stairs, and so on.

Add to this the effects of ageing, and the ways it eventually alters everyone’s capacity to perform the above tasks, and it becomes clear that accessibility is an important consideration, particularly for architects and designers.

In this session of CPD Live, we examine the issue of accessibility as it applies to the built environment and ask what it takes to create spaces that are welcoming to everybody, regardless of their physical abilities.

Focusing on the role of disability ramps, handrails, and balustrades in this context, our speakers identify the types of spaces that can be problematic in terms of accessibility, outline all the relevant regulatory requirements, and consider the possible negative consequences of not meeting these requirements.

They identify the various strategies specifiers can employ to deliver spaces and buildings that are welcoming to all.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this presentation, you should be able to:

• Outline the strategies that architects and designers can take to improve accessibility for those with ambulatory challenges
• Identify the regulatory requirements that apply to accessibility and the built environment
• Outline the potential negative consequences of not adhering to these regulatory requirements.
• Explain the role that disability ramps, handrails, and balustrades can play in ensuring accessibility for all

 (PC 12 PRACTICE MANAGEMENT AND PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT, PC 25 PROJECT INITIATION AND CONCEPTUAL DESIGN, PC 46 DETAILED DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTATION)

Speakers

Samuel Eade, Regional Sales Manager at Moddex Group

With over a decade at Moddex, Sam Eade has been instrumental in delivering exceptional handrail, balustrade and access solutions across Australia. Sam brings extensive expertise in prefabricated systems and commitment to innovation, making him a trusted advisor to clients across infrastructure, commercial, and industrial sectors.

Edward Archer, Business Development Manager at Moddex Group

Working at Moddex for over 8 years, Ed Archer is a trusted partner to specifiers, helping them navigate project requirements, from aesthetics to compliance, with ease. Ed has experience delivering innovative and compliant systems across projects of all sizes, from large-scale infrastructure to smaller bespoke designs, whilst upholding Moddex’s reputation for quality and reliability.

Michael Smith, Co founder and Architect, Andever

Michael Smith is an architect and co-founder of andever, with architectural projects spanning residential, commercial and health typologies across Victoria. He is also a published author and a strong public advocate for better built environments, as well as consulting architect for Built Environment Channel.