The Action Plan on Universal Design in Statsbygg - The Directorate of Public Construction and Property in NorwayFinn Aslaksen, Vista Utredning AS, Norway How can universal design thinking be adapted in a big public body responsible for developing and maintaining most of the governmental public premises in a country? Statsbygg acts on behalf of the Norwegian government as manager and advisor in construction and property affairs. Statsbygg offers governmental organisations premises suited to their needs, either in new or existing buildings. Statsbygg manages around 2,2 million m2 of floor space, in Norway and abroad. The property portfolio consists of office buildings, schools, accommodation and specialised buildings throughout the country, and embassies and residences outside Norway Statsbygg has worked traditionally to improve accessibility to new buildings, by focussing on accessibility and to apply the regulations and guidelines in the national building code. It is however becoming clear that this is not enough. Even new premises appear to have accessibility problems, and some have been criticised by organisations for disabled people. A better approach to these problems therefore is needed. In existing premises several initiatives had been taken to register and repair accessibility problems. More systematic registration however, have uncovered that some problems has not been identified and accessibility problems have remained. The need for a better system to uncover problems and to develop good solutions is obvious. At the same time the governmental action plan for universal design was launched, and naturally Statsbygg as a governmental directorate will have to implement this plan within its area of responsibility. The action plan on universal design in Statsbygg covers all planning and maintenance activities. In January 2004 Statsbygg - The Directorate of Public Construction and Property in Norway approved an action plan on universal design covering both the development of new premises and repair and development of existing premises. The overall ambitions for this project is to secure that new buildings are designed according to the principles of universal design, and to gradually improve the existing premises. For the development of new premises the main actions for 2004 are as follows:
In the next years activities to increase the staffs knowledge of the documents listed above and of universal design in general will be carried out. For all existing premises Statsbygg will carry out registration of accessibility and universal design, and also develop a list of measures to be taken. These will be implemented in the ordinary maintenance plans and included in ordinary maintenance and repair actions. There is however also a separate budget line for universal design actions that can not be included in ongoing repair works. The registrations will be carried out by using the internet-based system YOU-TOO, which is originally developed as a European system for information on accessibility to public buildings. The use of this system is modified as the registrations also covers identifications of universal design standard, and identifications of possible measures and costs. When the registration is completed, the accessibility to all premises will be published on the Internet. As the registration gives the exact measures and not only a yes or no according to a defined standard, Internet search can be carried out based on personal requirements. The process so far raises a lot of questions of general interest. We will like to share the experience we have gained so far, and also hear what kind of experience other public (or private?) bodies may have from similar work. Some of the topics we would like to discuss are:
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