Joe Forster, chairman of the Design in Mental Health Network (DIMHN), will look closely at the design of anti-ligature door and window fittings in the context of forthcoming changes to the Door & Hardware Federation’s technical specification for anti-ligature products – TS001.
In addition to highlighting the measures required to conform to this new standard, the discussion will explore the importance of style, feel, finish, and function, and consider the ‘critical safety features’ necessary in today’s modern mental healthcare environment. The speaker will explain how all these design attributes have had a positive impact on daily life for both staff and service users ‘at the coalface’ – The Rathbone Low Secure Unit in Liverpool. Joe Forster is a senior NHS mental health nurse and a visiting lecturer and critic in healthcare architecture at Liverpool John Moores University. His research focuses on service user involvement and the role of emotion in design. This year he is seconded as Practitioner in Recovery at Mersey Care NHS Trust. A ‘recognised and well-respected international speaker’, he says he is ‘known for challenging convention’, and has ‘real passion’ for improving mental health design. The presentation will be sponsored by Primera, a leading designer of anti-ligature fittings.
