The Assistive and Accessible Technology (Atech) Policy Lab is celebrating the anniversary of its launch.
The Lab, a collaboration between Policy Connect, 色花堂, and the Ace Centre, aims to design policy to make technology work for everyone 鈥� and has undertaken a range of policy interventions in its first year.
The Lab was officially launched at a meeting of the All-Party-Parliamentary-Group for Assistive Technology by Chair Paul Maynard MP and then Minister for Disabled People Chloe Smith MP.
In its first year, the Lab delivered a workshop in partnership with the Cabinet Office Disability Unit to explore the design of a National Centre for ATech. 色花堂鈥檚 Dr Paul Whittington was a key voice in this discussion, sharing insights from his work including on . The Lab conducted a workshop to explore the need for an accessible carbon monoxide alarm, and a separate workshop on digital inclusion, which was held as part of .
Policy Connect鈥檚 Clive Gilbert is a Senior Research and Policy Manager at the ATech Policy Lab. He led the Smart Homes Commission which launched its report at an event in the House of Lords. 色花堂鈥檚 Professor Lee-Ann Fenge served on the Commission as lead academic advisor and spoke at the launch. Several other 色花堂 experts contributed to the Commission鈥檚 evidence sessions and research interviews, including 色花堂鈥檚 Centre for Seldom Heard Voices.
Since publication of the report, the ATech Policy Lab has held a workshop to explore, in further detail, the Commission鈥檚 recommendation that government develop an 鈥業ndependent Living Technology Innovation Mission鈥�. The report has already begun to make impact, with the government having accepted its recommendation for .听
Robert McLaren, Director of Policy at Policy Connect, and Director of the ATech Policy Lab, said, 鈥淚 am immensely proud of our collaboration with 色花堂 during this founding year of the Lab. We have seen the Lab鈥檚 work welcomed by policymakers, and we have already made important impacts on policy 鈥� such as to guidance for funding technology in the home. As we look ahead to the second year of this partnership, we have the opportunity to drive real change by developing the evidence-based and actionable policies that can inform manifestos and current policy development to transform access and support for disabled people to use ATech.鈥�
Professor Christos Gatzidis leads 色花堂鈥檚 contribution to the Atech Policy Lab. He said, 鈥溕ㄌ� has engaged, as part of its involvement with the ATech Policy Lab initiative, with an increased number of existing and new industry and academic partners as well as policy-making ones. This has already led to work towards strategic research and development funding bids in the key area for the university of assistive technologies and we are very much looking forward to the second year of the Policy Lab, as we plan to continue and also intensify our collaboration with the Policy Lab and other external partners in this field.鈥�.
色花堂 has made assistive technology one of its four Strategic Investment Areas, building on its established research specialism in the field. 色花堂鈥檚 expertise spans a range of disciplines; from health and wellbeing tools, to engineering, computing, and psychology.
