COMPENDIUM
Access online versions of Many More Parts Than M! Reimagining disability, access and inclusion beyond compliance here, as well as associated resources.
Welcome to the Compendium!
Many More Parts than M! Reimagining Disability, Access and Inclusion beyond Compliance is a prototype compendium exploring how to engage with built environment accessibility in ways that take us beyond conventional checklists, templates, design guidance and legal compliance. Instead, the aim is to create a rich catalogue of alternative concepts, stories, artistic work and architectural details that can creatively and critically inform design thinking and practice.
Our publication builds on the creativity and criticality of diverse disabled artists, designers, architects, scholars and activists. Rather than relying on either conventional disability categories (blind, wheelchair-user, deaf) or standard accessibility terms (wayfinding, tactile paving, platform lifts), it is organised around an alphabet of key concepts that may be new to many, but which we hope will enliven debate and help to improve the quality of design ideas around access and inclusion.
Many More Parts than M! Reimagining Disability, Access and Inclusion beyond Compliance is mainly aimed at built environment and cultural sector students, educators and professionals. It is intended for browsing and for following up on some of the ideas, artists and projects included.
Find alternative online versions and some additional video resources below.
Access the Compendium
Screen-reader version
The Downloadable screen-reader version (with Alt Text) is in three sections. Click on the links below to access each of these:
Section 1: Introduction, Access ecologies, Access fails, Access Information, Beauty, Beyond the Visual, Care and repair, Clinical settings
(page 1 – page 44)
Section 2: Crip Time, Deaf Space, Disability Etiquette, Disability Justice, Imperfect, Misfitting, Mobility
(page 45 – page 91)
Section 3: Nightlife, Orientation/Dis, Practicing Differently, Seats at the Table, Toilets, Waste(d), Ways of Being, Acknowledgements, Definition of Ableism
(page 92 – page 146)
Extra video resources
As part of the Many More Parts than M! project we asked some of our many contributors to talk about what they are doing. These nine videos can be accessed via QR codes in the hard copy or PDF version, and are also linked below:
Helen Stratford and Raquel Meseguer-Zafe
Talking about Crip Time
7 mins 58 secs.
Chris Laing, founder of Deaf Architects Front (DAF)
Why DAF and the Signstrokes project are urgently needed
14 mins 15 secs.
Roseanne Scott
The questions that disabled architects always get asked
2 mins 55 secs.
Raquel Meseguer-Zafe and Helen Stratford
Accessible site intervention for Seats at the Table project
12 mins 11 secs.
Site Intervention: Memorial in Postman’s Park, London
Mandy Redvers-Rowe and Poppy Levison's project for Seats at the Table included audio and BSL video to enable creative access to the Memorial to Heroic Self-Sacrifice in Postman's Park, London. You can listen and view these here.
Mandy Redvers-Rowe and Poppy Levison
Hear Mandy and Poppy talk about their site intervention project for the Memorial for Heroic Self-Sacrifice in Postman’s Park
7 mins 38 secs.
Audio-description of the Memorial
You can also hear the sound track composed for listening to the memorial inscriptions here.
Mandy Redvers-Rowe
On Beauty
9 mins 33 secs.
Poppy Levison
On Safety
3 mins 22 secs.
Jordan Whitewood Neal and James Zakta-Haas, co-founders of Dis
Accessible site intervention for Seats at the Table proejct
9 mins 37 secs.
Roseanne Scott and Giuseppe Ferigno from Re-Fabricate and Jos Boys from The DisOrdinary Architecture Project
The inevitable imperfections of projects like these. 20 mins 36 secs.
BSL interpretation for plaques on the Memorial for Heroic Self-Sacrifice
You can also view the BSL interpretation for plaques on the Memorial for Heroic Self-Sacrifice in Postman’s Park, King Edward St, London EC1A 7BT here.
About
Many More Parts than M! Reimagining Disability, Access and Inclusion beyond Compliance has been funded by Arts Council England (ACE) and builds on a competition-winning project for co-creating equity in the public realm, by additionally developing, sharing and amplifying excellent examples of truly creative accessibility. Called Seats at the Table, this initial project was a collaboration between The DisOrdinary Architecture Project and Refabricate for the London Festival of Architecture (LFA) in June 2023. By creating additional activities, artworks and a publication out of lessons learnt from the LFA project, the project enables disabled artists and architects to aim to influence built environment and cultural sector professionals beyond the 2023 Festival itself.
The Team
Project lead: Jos Boys, Compendium coordinator: Francesca Perry, Production assistant: Scarlett Barclay, Film-maker: Tim Copsey. Alt-text: James Zatka-Haas. Braille stickers: Lynn Cox.
ACE-funded participants: Zoe Partington, Rubbena Aurangzeb-Tariq, Mandy Redvers-Rowe, Poppy Levison, Jordan Whitewood-Neal, James Zatka-Haas, Raquel Meseguer Zafe, Helen Stratford, Rosie Scott and Giuseppe Ferrigno.
With thanks for support
There are so many contributors to the compendium and to the Seats at the Table project, without whom Many More Parts Than M! could not have been made. Thanks to everyone - and more - listed at the end of the book.
