UABD Library welcomes CLAUD visitors
Julia Waite
Published: 11 December 2006

18 Librarians from 16 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) visited the Library at the Arts Institute at Bournemouth recently to talk about the implementation of the Universal Access by Design (UABD) system that provides symbols and colours for different subject areas.
The Librarians were from the networking group CLAUD which represents Librarians in Higher Education institutions in Southern and South-Western England networking to improve access for disabled users. They came from a variety of HEIs including Exeter, Southampton, Bristol, Cornwall, Plymouth, the Open University, Portsmouth, Sussex, Bath, Oxford Brookes, Bournemouth and the University of the West of England.

The aim of the visit was to view the UABD signage within the Library, with a possibility of further implementation in other HEIs. UABD uses colours and symbols to access different sections within the Library, creating a more visual environment for the user. It allows them to find the correct shelves without having to rely on using the traditional Dewey Decimal System. This is of particular benefit for students with learning difficulties such as dyslexia, or those with visual impairments, as it uses both colour and symbols, and each of the Institute Library’s main subject areas now has a colour and symbol associated with it.

The CLAUD visit follows both regional and national coverage on UABD. Julia Waite, Head of Library and Information Services at the Institute commented “The visit by members of CLAUD was very successful. UABD has not only raised the profile of the Institute, but has also made the Library a more user-friendly place. As a result of the press coverage, we have received enquiries from a number of Libraries nationally and internationally which reflects the interest in using alternative means of accessing book stock and can only benefit students and staff.”

For more information on the Institute’s library, please visit www.aib.ac.uk/aj/the-institute/library.html, for more information on Universal Access by Design, which was implemented by former Institute BA (Hons) Graphic Design student Jason Healey, please visit www.uabd.co.uk. For more information on CLAUD, please visit www.bristol.ac.uk/claud