Creating Inclusive Learning Environments, Socially and Physically for all Children: An Affordance-Based Approach

21st-century European society is dynamic and heterogeneous, characterised by cultural diversity resulting not only from migration but also widening acceptance of diversity in sexual orientation, gender cognitive, motor and neural capacities.

Architectural and urban designers, educational institutions, and local agencies are called to offer a healthy, inclusive and permanently adaptive environment for all members of this society.

The present study aims to develop an intervention model for advancing social interaction and inclusiveness in schools, schoolyards, playgrounds and similar parts of the built environment.

It follows an affordance-based approach that supports a better understanding of the fit between the built environment and the people who use it to inform inclusive design approaches.

Using a bottom-up approach based on stakeholders input, we integrate insights from different disciplines to develop, test and apply an intervention model based on information synthesised from behaviour mapping, tracking, observations, and questionnaires.

This multidisciplinary approach delivers a comprehensive, multifaceted perspective on individual behaviours, physical activities, social interactions, and space usages for creating inclusive social settings.

Designers, schools, and local authorities can use the intervention model to improve facilities, activities, and spaces, so all children feel safe, accepted, and free to participate, increasing social, mental, and physical health.