DESIGN | NEURODIVERSITY individuals can now send in videos rather than fill out forms. If we can do better with our procedures, please tell us how, because we want to do it better, Kelly says. Guidance About 70% of people with autism will have hypersensitivity to certain parts of the environment, says Jean Hewitt. There are so many other conditions as well, and the thing they often have in common is a sensitivity to noise, light, patterns and colours, and touch. So, acoustics and lighting are incredibly important. Hewitt is technical author of PAS 6463 Design for the mind neurodiversity and the built environment, which went out for public consultation in November. The final version will be released by the British Standards Institution (BSI) in spring (see panel, Design for the mind). The guidance is aimed at designers, developers, architects, surveyors, inclusive design and access consultants, occupational therapists and building managers. Failing to design for neurodiversity could put employees off coming back to the office, says Hewitt, adding. We need a diverse workforce and, if we dont fix it, people will home work. This would be sad, because we need that diverse community in our buildings. The majority of these people are very capable and its wrong that our workplaces, social places and even living accommodation havent thought beyond the neurotypical. Feeling like you dont belong is a daily struggle for many neurodiverse individuals, whose talents are being overlooked because of a lack of understanding and support Safety & safeguarding Preview Wayfinding & navigation Lighting Calm Control Design for the mind Buro Happold 2021 Clarity Finishes Access to nature Acoustics Spatial & layout Inclusivity Feeling like you dont belong is a daily struggle for many neurodiverse individuals, whose talents and skills are being overlooked because of a lack of understanding and institutional support. Often, as Gill points out, the modifications or adjustments needed are very minor, but can make a huge difference. With the challenges posed by climate change and reaching net zero, we need minds that think differently and creatively. We need to attract loads of other people, and were not going to be able to do it the way its been done before, says Ford. There is huge benefit in building an organisation that has people with different skill sets who can talk to each other freely to develop ideas. Building services engineers alter buildings heating, ventilation, lighting and acoustics, so designing with neurodiversity in mind is surely an extension of the work we already do. CJ DESIGN FOR THE MIND PAS 6463 Design for the mind neurodiversity and the built environment, which will be reviewed after two years, focuses on control and clarity of space. Clarity encompasses the lighting, acoustics, sightlines everything logical, says technical author Jean Hewitt, and control is the adjustment of lighting or having the choice to sit somewhere calmer and quieter. A lot of people will experience a sensory overload some people shut down and become nonverbal; its a bombardment of noise, light and smell. Its such a sensitive experience that the brain cant cope with it, she says. As well as practical advice about fittings and their design, the document informs about the quality of light, suggesting to steer clear of fluorescent lights in favour of LEDs. However, LED lights can have a flicker if not appropriately designed, so guidance around this and the colour temperature of lighting is also included. A lot of people find the blue and white light disturbing, so its about giving people a choice, such as a desk lamp and changing the colour tone of the lighting. Warmer lighting tends to be more calming than blue light, which tends to wake us up, Hewitt says. In terms of wayfinding, the guide refers to designing logical, clear spaces with good sightlines, things that you would normally think of as being good design, says Hewitt, who says the publicly available specification is likely to get absorbed into a British Standard and become a code of practice. Hopefully, people will start reading it, applying it and testing it, and coming back and helping BSI and others to evaluate it, she adds. 24 January 2022 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Jan 22 pp22-24 Neurodiversity.indd 24 23/12/2021 12:18