BS EN 17210 describes basic, minimum functional requirements and recommendations for the accessibility and usability of the built environment. The accessible and usable built environment, following "Design for All"/"Universal Design" principles facilitates equitable and safe use for a wide range of users, including persons with disabilities.
The requirements and recommendations given in BS EN 17210 are applicable across the full spectrum of the built environment.
These functional accessibility and usability requirements and recommendations are relevant to the design, construction, refurbishment or adaptation, and maintenance of built environments including outdoor pedestrian and urban areas.
NOTE 1: ‘Design for All’ and ‘Universal Design’ share similar inclusive design philosophy. “Universal Design” means the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. “Universal Design” does not exclude assistive devices for particular groups of persons with disabilities where this is needed.
NOTE 2: Terms such as "design for all", "universal design", "accessible design", "barrier-free design", "inclusive design" and "transgenerational design" are often used interchangeably with the same meaning.
NOTE 3: This document does not cover management and maintenance issues, but provides basic information in Annex B.
NOTE 4: All figures are provided as examples. They are described by their title and key and do not provide additional information. Some figures show negative examples to be avoided; these are identified by the insertion of a red cross on them. A list of all the figures included is this document is given in the informative Annex C.
NOTE 5: In the case of refurbishment or adaptations of existing buildings or infrastructures, a specific study including feasibility determines the extent to which the functional requirements and recommendations can be met.
BS EN 17210 on accessibility and usability of the built environment is useful for
Accessibility and usability of the built environment benefit everyone, not just persons with disabilities. All people can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with electronic information and be active, contributing members of the digital world. Visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, and neurological disabilities should be considered when implementing accessibility measures.
Persons with disabilities and older people are often excluded from participation because of barriers in the environment design. They need to be considered in all stages of design, construction, management and operation of the built environment. BS EN 17210 specifies the functional accessibility and usability requirements and recommendations that enable you to use wheeled mobility devices in the built environment.
BS EN 17210 gives a very good example of human behaviour in fire emergencies situations. As some people with mobility impairments may potentially have to wait for assistance in a building that is on fire, the fire protection measures and fire management systems in an occupied building should be reliable. When assessing the ability of a design to achieve the stated objectives, the evaluation should consider the potential for loss of evacuation route availability or capacity as a result of other actions, including firefighter access, rescue, and fire-fighting operations. Fire evacuation routes, inside the building and externally to a “place of safety”, should be maintained
BS EN 17210 has been developed in response to mandate M/420 of the European Commission, providing a standard for procurement of an accessible and usable built environment. The main goal of BS EN 17210 is to contribute to the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in Europe
EN 17210:2021