A new direction for inclusive design in Australia
by Access Institute
‘Just so good. This should be elevated to become a national blueprint for Universal Design. Congratulations to everyone involved.’
Sue McGill, Director Participation Growth, Australian Sports Commission
Across Australia, the conversation around access in the built environment continues to evolve.
For decades, design has largely focused on minimum compliance, meeting the technical requirements of legislation including the National Construction Code, the Disability (Access to Premises – Buildings) Standards 2010, and referenced Australian Standards such as AS1428.1.
While these frameworks remain essential, they were never intended to define the full extent of inclusive design. In addition, it should be noted that even the latest versions of the Australian Standards for Access and Mobility are still based on very old anthropometric data from 1983, and do not consider the access requirements of people under 18 or over 60, approximately half of the Australian population.
Consequently, the needs of children, younger people and older adults, are not considered. In addition, minimum compliance requirements do not address the needs of people who identify as neurodiverse, members of the gender diverse community, people with cultural considerations or those where English is not their first language.
In response, Access Institute Director, (Ms.) Joe Manton, worked in partnership with Sport and Recreation Victoria to develop a new, updated Design for Everyone Guide 2026 building on the original 2015 publication.
As highlighted at the Access Consultants Association Conference in October 2025, this new Guide, provides a comprehensive, practical resource that reframes how we approach access for everyone, shifting the focus from compliance to genuine inclusion and participation for all community members when using sport and recreation facilities. The Guide is available free online and can be used by everyone across the country as a practical resource to guide the development of inclusive buildings and facilities.
Introducing the Design for Everyone Guide 2026
Design for Everyone recognises that good design must work for all these users, not just meet minimum thresholds.
The Design for Everyone Guide has been developed to support:
- Designers and architects
- Access consultants
- Government and policy makers
- Developers and asset owners
- Project managers and contractors
It provides a structured, layered framework that supports the delivery of inclusive, accessible sport and active recreation facilities.
The 4-Tier Inclusive Design Guidance (IDG) Hierarchy
At the core of the Guide is a four-tier hierarchy of Inclusive Design Guidance (IDG).
This hierarchy supports the planning, design, and development of sport and active recreation environments to ensure they are inclusive, usable, and welcoming for everyone.
- Overarching Inclusive Design Principles
This tier establishes the strategic foundation for inclusion establishes the principles of Universal Design as an essential consideration in developing inclusive facilities.
It defines the values and intent that guide all design decisions, including fairness, dignity, and equitable access. These principles should be embedded at the earliest stages of project development, including:
- Master planning
- Business cases
- Feasibility studies
- Design briefs.
The Guide also provides a benchmark for consideration when funding sport recreation facilities.
Embedding these principles early ensures that inclusion is intentional, not retrospective.
- Key Inclusive Design Principles for Common Elements
This tier provides consistent guidance for elements that could be considered across most sport and recreation environments, such as:
- Amenities – Toilets, Change Areas and Showers
- Assistance Animal Relief Areas
- Baby Feeding Rooms
- Continuous Accessible Paths of Travel
- Device/Scooter Recharge Points
- Emergency Egress and Evacuation
- Entrances
- First Aid Areas
- Furniture, Fixtures, Installations, for example, seating, tables, litter bins drinking fountains
- Lighting and Visibility
- Multi-Faith Prayer Rooms
- Sensory Rooms and Quiet Rooms
- Shade and Shelter
- Signage and Wayfinding
- Vehicle – Electric Charging Bays
- Vehicle/Parking and Drop Off Zones/Cycle/Scooter Storage
It supports these elements to be accessible and usable across all facility types, reducing inconsistency and duplication.
- Key Inclusive Design Principles for Facility-Specific Elements
Different facilities, have unique functional requirements. These include:
- Aquatic centres
- Indoor sports stadiums
- Parks/greens
- Outdoor ball courts
- Play spaces
- Skate parks
- Sport and active recreation reserves
- Sports pavilions
This tier provides targeted guidance for these specific facilities, ensuring that:
- Design responses are fit-for-purpose
- Facility-specific features are inclusive
- Broader access objectives are maintained.
It allows for tailored design solutions while maintaining consistency with overarching principles.
- Universal Design Considerations and Key Access Dimensions
The final tier translates principles into practical application.
It includes:
- Universal Design considerations
- Technical guidance
- In some cases, measurable benchmarks
This tier ensures that design moves beyond aspiration and is supported by clear, implementable guidance.
Why the hierarchy matters
The 4-tier IDG hierarchy is critical because it provides:
Clarity and consistency
It demonstrates how high-level principles translate into practical outcomes, reducing ambiguity in design and decision-making.
Flexibility and adaptability
It accommodates both common elements and site-specific conditions, supporting a wide range of facility types and contexts.
Integration of Universal Design
It ensures that projects move beyond compliance to deliver meaningful inclusion, dignity, and usability.
Better outcomes for everyone
By embedding inclusion across multiple layers, facilities better support:
- People with disability
- Older adults
- Children and families
- The broader community
What makes this Guide different?
The Design for Everyone Guide is not theoretical. It is practical and grounded in:
- Real-world application across sport, recreation, including public domain and community infrastructure
- Alignment with Australian regulatory frameworks
- Practical strategies that can be applied immediately to support effective inclusion.
The Guide is also suitable for use across a wide range of other buildings, facilities, and spaces, as the principles embedded, equally apply to these other areas of the built environment.
It expands the scope of access to incorporate a wide range of considerations in the built environment that impact on inclusion of everyone in using sport and recreation facilities.
Why this matters now
Australia is at a critical point in the evolution of access and inclusion.
With increasing expectations from:
- The community
- Government policy
- The NDIS
- Local government and public infrastructure projects,
there is growing recognition that Compliance alone is no longer enough.
Projects that embed the target of inclusive outcomes from the outset:
- Reduce costly retrofits
- Improve user experience
- Deliver stronger long-term asset performance
- Support better social outcomes
- Aim to meet the needs of most people in the community
Supporting industry to lead the change
Access Institute was very pleased to collaborate with Sport and Recreation Victoria to develop the Design for Everyone Guide. This work represents an important opportunity to help lead and shape the future of inclusive design across sport and recreation environments.
The development of the Guide has provided an opportunity for Access Institute to continue to be at the forefront of:
- Advancing professional practice
- Building industry capability
- Providing practical tools for use in developing inclusive environments
The Guide is supported by:
- Training programs
- Short courses and CPD delivery
- Project advisory services
- Ongoing industry engagement.
Six training programs have been delivered to stakeholders in Sport and Recreation Victoria including representatives from State, local government and Commonwealth government, community based and professional focussed sport and recreation organisations as well as others from a range of industry areas operating to improve access to the built environment. As these were all fully subscribed, further sessions will be made available shortly.
Looking ahead
Design for Everyone is not a trend; it is the next step in the evolution of the built environment.
It challenges industry to move from:
- Minimum → Meaningful
- Compliance → Inclusion
- Access → Participation
And ultimately, it supports environments where everyone can access, use, and enjoy spaces with dignity, independence, and equity.
Where to access the Design for Everyone Guide 2026:
The Design for Everyone Guide 2026 is free to download at the following link Design-for-Everyone-Guide-a-Guide-to-Sport-and-Active-Recreation-Settings-March-2026.pdf
The Guide is available as a PDF, MS Word document, and other accessible formats.