News archive

September 2011: CIOB success for SURFACE graduate

The SURFACE team, and everyone involved in the Accessibility and Inclusive Design course, would like to extend their congratulations to course alumnus, Stewart Douglas, who has been granted full Member status of the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) following a professional interview. Stewart, who features in the promotional brochure for Accessibility and Inclusive Design (A&ID), gained his Postgraduate Certificate (PgCert) in 2009, his Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) in 2010 and is currently finalising his dissertation for an MSc award, which he aims to complete in 2012. Like the majority of A&ID students, Stewart is studying while also employed, in his case as a Building Standards Surveyor for Shetland Islands Council, who have recognised his recent qualifications for advancement to the top of the salary grade for his post. Likewise, the CIOB – to whom Stewart presented on how effective the building standards system is in supporting the Scottish Government’s equality aims – has recognised the University of Salford qualifications as equivalent to an S/NVQ Level 4 or 5, in terms of Institute membership criteria.

September 2011: SURFACE brings street clutter into media spotlight

SURFACE has enjoyed significant media interest at this year’s British Science Festival, where the team’s interactive event on the walkability of urban neighbourhoods generated much debate about ‘street clutter’. Drawing particular attention to the impact of non-essential signage, street furniture and other urban detritus on older pedestrians, Rita Newton was interviewed on two primetime BBC radio shows: Beswick at Breakfast in Manchester; and Newsdrive in Scotland. The story was picked up by BBC Science Correspondent, Matt McGrath, who conducted a three-way walkalong conversation with Rita and local older pedestrian, Mavis Crossley, which plays as an audio feature on the Health News pages of the BBC website (see link below). At a press conference dedicated to older people’s issues, the SURFACE team fielded further questions about ageing and the built environment, notably about the relationship between pavement quality and falls.

Listen to the BBC audio feature on street clutter.

September 2011: SURFACE leads British Science Festival walkabout

The SURFACE team has taken part in Engineering Outdoors, an interactive event at the British Science Festival in Bradford, UK. Working with participants ranging from 11 years old to 70+, Professor Marcus Ormerod led a local walkabout; assessing the walkability of the places in and around the festival venue and inviting people to share their own experiences of inclusive access to streets and neighbourhoods. The event continued with talks and a panel debate, drawing on research carried out as part of Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I'DGO) and looking forward to the pilot project, Going Outdoors: Falls, Ageing & Resilience (Go Far). It was co-ordinated by Professor Trevor Cox of the University of Salford and the knowledge exchange group, KT-EQUAL, which promotes research into older people’s quality of life.

September 2011: Rita Newton brings Visions2030 to annual RGS conference

SURFACE researcher, Rita Newton, has presented at the Annual International Conference of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) in London; the largest gathering of academic geographers in Europe. In one of two facilitated sessions given over to New Perspectives on Walking and Cycling, Rita and James Macmillen of the University of Oxford introduced delegates to Visions2030; the EPSRC-funded, scenario modelling project aiming to increase 'active travel' levels in the UK over the next 20 years. Convened by Colin Pooley of Lancaster University and Chaired by Miles Tight of the University of Leeds, the session also involved researchers from two other 'active travel' projects: Understanding Walking and Cycling (UWAC); and iConnect. Andy Cope of the charity, Sustrans, provided a commentary on the three projects from a user perspective, leading to a broader discussion of key themes, methodological and theoretical innovations and opportunities for further research.

Find out further information about the RGS-IBG, and to find out more about Visions2030, please visit our Research page.

July 2011: MAID students graduate at Lowry ceremony

The SURFACE team is delighted to announce that 17 students from the Accessibility and Inclusive Design course have been awarded degrees by the University of Salford, following a June meeting of the Board of Examiners. The graduation ceremony took place at the Lowry Centre in Salford, Greater Manchester on 20th July, hosted by the School of the Built Environment. Seven students graduated with a Master of Science qualification (MSc), eight with Postgraduate Certificates (PgCert) and two with Postgraduate Diplomas (PgDip). The students – several of whom obtained Distinctions – are based in a range of locations worldwide, including the United States of America, South Africa, Singapore, Canada, the Republic of Ireland and Malta.

To register for the Accessibility and Inclusive Design course, please contact us.

July 2011: Rita Newton takes part in 40th annual British Society of Gerontology conference

Rita Newton has participated in a number of events at the 40th annual conference of the British Society of Gerontology. Organised around the theme of Understanding and Promoting the Value of Older Age, the conference was held over three days at the University of Plymouth; hosted by its Faculty of Health. As well as presenting two papers, including one on new research project, Go Far, Rita co-presented a workshop with the Director of the knowledge exchange group, KT-EQUAL, and spent time meeting delegates at the Age UK exhibition stand. Both were excellent opportunities to present a new film about the Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I'DGO) research project, which features SURFACE team members and partners and was premiered in Edinburgh last month.

Read more about the BSG conference.

July 2011: Rita Newton addresses inaugural Sustainable Intelligent Manufacturing conference in Lisbon

Rita Newton has spoken at the first Sustainable Intelligent Manufacturing conference in Lisbon, Portugal. The three-day event was organised by the Centre for Rapid and Sustainable Product Development (CDRSP) at the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria and its Scientific Committee included SURFACE team member, Fernando Moreira da Silva. Rita's presentation formed part of a dedicated one-day symposium on Inclusive Design - Designing and Manufacturing for the Individual - which was co-convened by Professor Peter Lansley of the University of Reading. Drawing on research undertaken as part of Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I'DGO), Rita addressed the challenge of designing streets within a 'real world' environment, making them work for everyone - not just the fit and able pedestrian.

Vsiit the SIM2011 website.

June 2011: SURFACE research cited by Age UK in Pride of Place campaign

A new campaign by Age UK has cited research by Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I'DGO) in its launch publication. The Pride of Place campaign is aimed at councillors throughout the UK; raising awareness of how they can improve neighbourhoods for older people through a three-fold commitment to listening, making change happen and keeping up momentum. SURFACE welcomes the emphasis in the launch publication on the importance of enabling features, such as seating and public toilets, in streets and neighbourhoods, in line with what older people told us during the first phase of Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors, which is cited on page 12 of the report. We are also delighted that the issue of maintenance has been addressed, with particular reference to the upkeep of lighting and paving, both of which significantly impact on an older person’s risk of falling over outdoors.  

Download the Pride of Place publication, and find out more about the Pride of Place campaign.

June 2011: SURFACE co-hosts international conference on Inclusive Outdoor Environments for All

Professor Marcus Ormerod and Rita Newton have delivered a keynote paper at the third international Open Space : People Space conference in Edinburgh. Held to celebrate the closing stages of the research project, Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I'DGO), the event's Conference Committee included members of all three I'DGO research centres: SURFACE (University of Salford), OPENspace (Edinburgh College of Art) and WISE (University of Warwick). Held over three days, the conference attracted over 120 delegates from 20 countries and incorporated seven keynote speeches, 64 presentations, four workshops and an exhibition of 50 posters. As well as Marcus and Rita, SURFACE was represented by Hamish MacLennan who delivered a presentation and poster on foot size in relation to the width of outdoor steps.  

Find out more about Open Space: People Space 3.

June 2011: SURFACE takes part in College of Science & Technology event

SURFACE has exhibited three posters on current research projects at the University of Salford's College of Science & Technology Research Showcase. The event celebrated research highlights from the year 2010-2011 and included a ceremony to award the Dean's Annual Research Prize. The posters exhibited by SURFACE illustrated progress on the second phase of Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors and the 'active travel' study, Visions 2030; both collaborative studies funded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). The third project, Go Far, has recently secured funding for a one-year pilot study and, led by Professor Marcus Ormerod, will involve a broad mix of researchers: academic and  field-based; UK and international.