Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.
Posted: June 14th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Designing for the Future Competition - University of Brighton, Inclusive design, Press coverage | No Comments »
I am delighted to announce that we have been asked to showcase work from our “Designing for the Future” student design competition at this year’s Design Zone at the Mobility Roadshow.
“Designing for the Future” which we run in conjunction with the University of Brighton is now in its third year and encourages student designers to think about the challenges and issues affecting our ageing population – and to create innovative and attractive and designs which allow older people to continue to live enjoyable, active and independent lives.
The Mobility Roadshow is an annual three day event, taking place at the Peterborough Arena at the East of England Showground on 21 / 22 / 23 June 2012, showcasing all things mobility related; everything from adapted vehicles and charity stands, to 4 x 4 wheelchairs and mobility scooters. This year’s Design Zone will be curated by Enabled
by Design and Such and Such Design who will be pulling together a host of new and innovative designs that can help to support people to live as independently as possible.
The Design Zone showcase is sponsored by Autoadapt and supported by the Royal College of Art’s Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design and, as well as work from our “Designing for the Future” project, will feature designs and products from Northumbria University as well as from other innovative companies and charities.
The Design Zone will also feature the popular Cool Wall. To find out more about the Mobility Roadshow Design Zone and how to nominate your favourite products and designs for the Cool Wall, CLICK HERE
We are delighted to be exhibiting in such good company and to be helping highlight the need for good design in the areas of ageing and independent living.
Posted: March 22nd, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Inclusive design, Press coverage | No Comments »
I am absolutely delighted to be nominated to become a fellow of the RSA.
The
RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) is an organisation committed to finding innovative practical solutions to today’s social challenges. Through its ideas, research and 27,000-strong Fellowship it seeks to understand and enhance human capability so we can close the gap between today’s reality and people’s hopes for a better world.
Nowhere is there a bigger gap today between our hopes for our later life and the awful reality for many of our
older people and I am looking forward to working with the
RSA to help us design a better future for all of us.
Philippa Aldrich
Founder
Posted: February 27th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Press coverage | Comments Off
Nice write up here from our friends at Hugmail
Monday, February 27, 2012 – 09:55
Posted in
A few weeks back Hugmail had the pleasure of meeting Philippa Aldrich of The Future Perfect Company.
Having first discovered The Future Perfect Company through Twitter, Hugmail was quick to offer its support to this proactive,innovative company. Such is our show of support that we felt the need to spread the word.
For those of you who haven’t heard of them before, The Future Perfect Company is a website that specialises in the sourcing of innovative, beautifully designed products for the older generation. From golf gloves designed by orthopaedic surgeons, to ergonomic saucepans designed to help make lifting easier – though the range is broad, it is unified by a focused commitment to bring good quality, well designed products to the senior market.
Created in response to seeing older family members struggle in their everyday life, Philippa has built a great network of passionate, hugely talented designers. Not only has this enabled her to create a successful business addressing a big need, it has also been influential in raising awareness of the need to innovate in this space. Philippa is part of the Technology Strategy Board’s new initiative ‘Tomorrow Together’. An initiative which aims to engage the creative community in innovation for later life.
So if you’re looking for a product to better meet the needs of an elderly relative or a skilled designer, passionate about improving products in the space, do get in touch.
To read the full post, go to http://www.hugmail.com/info/node/481
Posted: February 11th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Inclusive design, Press coverage | Comments Off
I have just written a post for the Age UK blog, “Inclusive Design – luxury or “must have”“, ahead of the Agenda for Later Life 2012 conference where I will be speaking about inclusive design.
In these times of austerity, I think it is easy to dismiss design as a luxury. However, if we pause and think for a moment about what good and, in particular inclusive, design, can deliver for us, very quickly it becomes a “must have”.
To read the blog in full, go to http://ageukblog.org.uk/2012/02/11/inclusive-design-luxury-or-must-have/
For details about the Agenda for Later Life 2012 conference including how to book , visit http://www.ageuk.org.uk/professional-resources-home/conferences/agenda-for-later-life/
Posted: February 5th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Designing for the Future Competition - University of Brighton, Inclusive design, Press coverage | No Comments »
2012 is turning out to be a very busy year! As well as running my own “Designing for the Future” competition with the Faculty of Arts, University of Brighton, I have also been invited to judge the RSA Student Design Awards and in particular the Mine for Life category.
The Mine for Life competition challenges students to design an assistive technology product which can be made through additive manufacturing using a consumer-driven and people-centred design philosophy. There is a cash award supported by Enabled by Design and Loughborough University - and very excitingly, the chance to have the winning design additively manufactured by Loughborough University.
As well as Mine for Life, the RSA Student Design Awards have a number of other interesting categories, all of which address important social issues, such as the workplace and working conditions of the future (Tomorrow’s workplace); intergenerational relationships (Something for everyone) and collaborative consumption (Shared assets).
I am really delighted to be asked to be involved and will let you know what happens.
The deadline for entries is 17 February and more details can be found HERE
Image: Silver Inhaler by Hanna Mawbey 2011
Posted: January 30th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Inclusive design, Press coverage | No Comments »
I was really pleased to be asked contribute a blog post to the new website, Tomorrow Together launched last week by the UK’s innovation agency, The Technology Strategy Board which is about encouraging people to talk about what they want in later life.
According to findings released by the Technology Strategy Board, a staggering 90% of people in the UK are not looking forward to older age with concerns about health, mobility, wealth and social interaction ranking highly. Nearly half of people think that better products and services to sustain independence would change this with 79% of people wanting more innovation in products and services for older age.
As Jackie Marshall-Cyrus from The Technology Strategy Board says :”We need urgent innovation. It’s time for the talented, passionate brains of today to re-imagine and rethink for the future and work on tomorrow, together”.
In my blog I have shared some of my thoughts about how I think we go about encouraging better design for older people, drawing on my experience of running the “Designing for the Future” competition with the University of Brighton.
To read my blog post on the Tomorrow Together website CLICK HERE
Do you agree? Get involved by visiting www.tomorrowtogether.org.uk and for those Tweeters amongst you, by following @tomorrowtogethr or the hashtag #innovateforage.
Posted: January 24th, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Inclusive design, Press coverage | No Comments »
I am really pleased to see Yours magazine today engaging its readers in the debate about design for all (and not just because I am quoted with lovely photos of our double handled teapot and mug!).
Editor Valerie McConnell recounts her recent trip to her local gym where although pleasantly surprised by her results on the treadmill, she found herself wrestling with a hard to squeeze shampoo bottle.
As Valerie says: “Do you wish everyday objects could be designed to be easy to use as well as look good?”
I think they should :”Why should age mean life has to be less attractive? “Easy to use” products can often be stigmatising, which makes them less desirable and reduces the likelihood that they will ever be used. How many abdandoned, ugly plastic “reachers litter the homes of our older people?”
There is fortunately, as Valerie points out, a growing movement towards inclusive design which means that “everything from jam jar lids to public spaces should be designed to be equally useable by everybody”.
And to encourage this movement further, Valerie goes on to pose the question – given the increasing numbers of older people and their considerable combined spending power, should all designers be forced by law to make products accessible?
This is a really good question and it will be interesting to see what Yours readers think. And how fantastic that they are being asked in the first place as innovation in this area has the potential to transform all of our lives.
Posted: January 3rd, 2012 | Author: admin | Filed under: Care, Grandparents, Health, Press coverage | Comments Off
Our fantastic Move It or Lose It! chair-based exercise DVD has been featured on the It’s in the Stars blog as a great gift idea to help someone make a fresh start this year.
“12. If your parents or grandparents have become less mobile or a loved one is temporarily incapacitated, help them get fitter with the Move It or Lose It DVD of chair-based exercise.”
To see the post in full, visit http://www.itsinthestarsonline.com/12-gifts-to-help-someone-make-a-fresh-start-in-2012/
Posted: December 8th, 2011 | Author: admin | Filed under: Designing for the Future Competition - Collyer's, Inclusive design, Press coverage | Comments Off
Nice coverage here of our “Designing for the Future” design competition with Collyer’s Sixth Form College from West Sussex County Times who have supported us since we launched. Horsham in Sussex is one of the fastest ageing populations in the UK with the number of people over 65 set to increase by an astonishing 60% between now and 2026.
Our winner, Alex Francis designed an ergonomic shopping bag handle with a clever reminder ring which ensures you never lose your shopping!
More details of the competition HERE.
Posted: September 22nd, 2011 | Author: admin | Filed under: Designing for the Future Competition - Collyer's, Press coverage | Comments Off
Nice piece in today’s West Sussex County Times about the launch of our second student design competition at the College of Richard Collyers in Horsham, West Sussex.
We had a fantastic time at Collyer’s last year and are really looking forward to seeing what designs this year’s intake come up with.
Kate Sharp, Faculty Leader, Art & Communications at Collyer’s, commented: “We are delighted to be able to run this innovative competition again and to give the students the opportunity to think about real-life design challenges. We have imbedded the competition into the AS level courses and have been commended by the exam boards for using this “live” brief”.
I am delighted to announce that we have been asked to showcase work from our “Designing for the Future” student design competition at this year’s Design Zone at the Mobility Roadshow.
