Designing with Disabled Londoners launch event

04 August 2025

Earlier this month, we launched the Designing with Disabled Experience report as part of the Good Growth by Design programme.

This publication challenges how we approach access, inclusion and spatial justice in London’s built environment, centring the lived experience of disabled people as a foundation for more inclusive design.

Close up of Ash Roa stood on stage standing out against a completely black background as she addresses the audience. She is wearing white trousers, a white shirt and grey vest. — Call to action - Ash Roa, from the Greater London Authority's Place Unit, opening the launch event emphasising the urgent need for inclusive design in a city as diverse as London.

The audience look toward the stage where James Lee is welcoming everyone to the event. There is a screen to the right of the stage detailing the day's agenda. — James Lee, welcomes everyone to the event and sets out the day's framing.

Three people are standing in conversation smiling with one another. A man in a white shirt and white cap stands in the middle, while two women are listening either side, with their bodies turned towards him. — Expertise and lived experience - James Zatka-Haas, a member of the report's research team, in conversation with other attendees.

Several rows of audience members line the foreground, while two speakers are on stage and a BSL interpreter stands to the right of them. Two screens are lit up with 'Q+A' written on them and large stage slighting hangs from the ceiling above. — Designing for all Londoners - James Lee and Jordan Whitewood-Neal take questions and prompt discussion from the audience.

A woman in a white t-shirt holding a cane stands, smiles while in conversation with two individuals sat down. — Working together - with over 60 attendees, there was plenty of opportunity for enriching, diverse conversation.

The report draws together research, best practice and a rich exploration of designing with disabled experience, grounded in intersectionality and lived experience.

This is part of the Good Growth by Design (GGbD) suite of research and guidance published by the GLA to support the built environment sector to shape a better city by promoting quality and inclusion in the built environment.

A call to action

Opening the event, Ash Rao from the Greater London Authority’s Place Unit, emphasised the urgent need for inclusive design in a city as diverse as London.

"Too often, disabled Londoners are underserved by the built environment," she said, highlighting the report's expansive definition of disability and its ambition to disrupt current design practices.

James Lee, chair of the event, part of the report's sounding board and a Mayor's Design Advocate, grounded the discussion in his experience. He reminded attendees that despite years of investment, exclusion remains built into many of our public spaces. His message was clear: we must move beyond compliance toward genuinely enabling environments.

James Lee speaks into a standing microphone, smiling as he addresses the audience. He is wearing black jeans, a red top and black jumper, lit up by warm stage lighting in his mobility chair against a dark background. — James Lee, part of the sounding board for the report and a Mayor's Design Advocate, chaired the event.

Designing with Disabled Experience report

The Designing with Disabled Experience report was written by Dis Collective. The team (Jordan Whitewood-Neal, James Zatka-Haas, Carly Dickson, Christopher Scarffe, and Marney Walker) described a collaborative, deep-dive approach to designing with disabled experience that moves beyond box-ticking exercises.

Two men engaged in conversation on stage, the camera looks over one mans shoulder to the other man who's speaking into a mic. — James Lee discusses the report writing process with Jordan Whitewood-Neal, a member of the research team.

Audience member sits holding a mic, addressing the rest of the audience to her right. — The report led to an open discussion with the audience, as Carly Dickson, part of the research team, answered one of the audience members questions.

The report is structured in three core parts:

Why designing with disability matters: Sets the context, outlines the systemic inequalities and the imperative for change.
Principles: Sets out seven principles to address in projects and programmes, illustrated with case studies.
Practice: Offers practical prompts for those designing, commissioning and maintaining spaces.

Rich case studies showcasing best practice, from co-designed playgrounds to built environment access panels, illustrated the transformative potential of designing with disabled people, not just for them. The inclusion of a living glossary further underscores the evolving nature of inclusive design language and practice.

Designing through experience: case studies in action

Five case study speakers sit on stalls on stage. The second person along signs to the audience while the others listen to the BSL interpreter. — Five case study speakers discuss key examples of best practice. From left to right: Rita Adeoye, Chris Laing, Deborah Gundle, Ed Warner, Luisa Pereira Pires.

A black woman sits on stage in a black dress, holding a microphone and addressing the audience. — Rita Adeoye, from London Legacy Development Corporation, speaks to the audience about their Built Environment Access Panel, shaping inclusive design across the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

An audience member asks a question. He is wearing an orange shirt and white shorts and gestures with his left hand while speaking into the mic in his right. — Constructive conversations - an audience member adds to the discussion and poses a question.

A white woman in a long black dress sits on a stall on stage and speaks into a handheld microphone. — Luisa Pereira Pires, from Neurodiversity Architecture Network, discusses how architectural education and practice needs to be transformed.

The five case study speakers sit on stalls on stage, while Jame Lee is to their right chairing. The audience clap and sign silent applause as the quickfire case study session comes to a close. — Bringing the report’s ideas to life - offering tangible examples of what inclusive design can look like when it’s informed by lived experience.

A key segment of the event showcased rapid-fire case studies from designers and advocates working at the frontline of inclusive practice:

Chris Laing (Deaf Architecture Front) introduced Silent Buttons, a short film that captures the everyday barriers Deaf people face. He challenged the notion that cities are built for all, calling instead for design that begins with Deaf experience.

Rita Adeoye highlighted the London Legacy Development Corporations Built Environment Access Panel, which has helped shape inclusive developments across the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and surroundings. The panel brings lived experience to the design process and highlights how community voices can hold decision-makers to account driving excellence, not just compliance.

Ed Warner (MotionSpot) presented inclusive design guidance tools like the Regeneration Inclusive Design Overlay and Publica’s principles, co-developed with disabled people and already influencing practices across the built environment sector.

Deborah Gundle from Fairplay, shared the powerful story of co-designing one of the UK’s first fully inclusive public playgrounds. She emphasised that inclusion in play spaces is a necessity, not a luxury.

Luisa Pereira Pires (Neurodiversity Architecture Network) spoke about transforming architectural education and practice to better support neurodivergent professionals. Her toolkits and advocacy show how institutional change can begin from within the profession itself.

These stories brought the report’s ideas to life, offering tangible examples of what inclusive design can look like when it’s informed by lived experience.

Moving from reflection to action

The final panel discussion and question and answer session underlined the appetite for applying the report’s lessons in context. Jordan Whitewood-Neal offered a reminder: "Spatial justice isn’t just about access, it’s about how space itself can disable." He called for action that addresses structural injustices like housing inequality and welfare cuts alongside design practice.

Speakers discussed the importance of embedding inclusive thinking early in project timelines, challenging traditional resource allocations and measuring impact meaningfully. Carly Dickson pointed to the need for consistent questioning and reflection throughout the design process, not just at the start.

Attendees also asked how the team selected contributors to the report. The answer: by prioritising breadth of lived experience over rigid definitions. This inclusive, non-prescriptive approach mirrors the report’s values and ensures more nuanced insight.

A woman and her guide dog sit at the end of the front row looking up at the stage. — "We must treat lived experience as expertise"

James Lee (left) and Jordan Whitewood-Neal (right) pictured together smiling on stage. — A collaboration - James Lee and Jordan Whitewood-Neal were among a vital group of researchers and writers who sat on the report's sounding board.

View of stage and audience from up in the gallery. Rows of chairs and wheelchairs line the audience, with a guide dog lying at the end of a row. One speaker addresses the audience on stage, while a BSL interpreter signs. — "Spatial justice isn't just about access, it's about how space itself can disable"

Looking ahead

James Lee closed the event with a reminder that this report is just the beginning. The work of designing with disabled experience must be collaborative, continuous, and embedded structurally, not left to individual initiative or voluntary effort.

If we want cities that truly work for everyone, we must treat lived experience as expertise, build inclusive processes from the outset, and reimagine how design can serve justice, not just compliance.

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Download the Designing with Disabled Experience report PDF

Please note: we are working on a BSL translation of the report, which will be added to this page shortly.