Designs for living

Passionate about form and function, Denise Stephens (left) was inspired to set up Enabled by Design when her growing collection of assistive equipment made her home look more like a hospital than a machine for living in

Enabled by Design (EbD) is an online community of people interested in finding well-designed everyday products. By sharing our loves, hates and ideas, we challenge the one-size-fits-all approach to assistive equipment.

Often there’s a mainstream product that’s easy to use that’ll do the same job as an assistive product. The one-touch tin-opener is great for me, for example, as I have numbness in my hands but it’s also a nice gimmick that my non-disabled friends love too: just touch the top and watch it go!

I got frustrated over time that all my assistive equipment, though great in helping me stay independent, looked dated and clinical.

For example, I used NHS crutches for a long time but they weren’t intended for long-term use. If people see you using NHS crutches they say: “What happened to you?” Last year I went to a wedding, dressed up in a nice dress, but when the photos came back the crutches seemed to stand out. They were ugly AND they clicked really loudly – not good in libraries.

Looking for a replacement pair I came across Kowsky, a German firm that makes the most beautiful crutches in the world. They are fairly lightweight and fully adjustable, have non-skid rubber stoppers and a comfy non-slip rubbery grip, come in a range of colours and most importantly don't click! They’ve changed the focus on my crutches. Now people are more likely to ask: “Where did you get your beautiful crutches?”

Looking for alternative assistive equipment, I felt alone and frustrated. I saw the need for EbD, developed it with my business partner and won first prize at the first ever Social Innovation Camp, a weekend-long competition devoted to developing online solutions to real-world challenges.

Now EbD has an “ideas factory” where users and designers can meet each other and share experiences. People with impairments become experts on what works for them. Designers complain that they don’t meet users of equipment, just get given a crutch and told to redesign it. How is design meant to progress without dialogue?

Who’s to say that the crutch as we know it is the ultimate design? Why not start from scratch? Speak to people who use them day-in and day-out and discover the best solution.

EbD is a work in progress so please give us your feedback on the accessibility of www.enabledbydesign.org

• Denise Stephens was talking to Kelly Mullan