Guide “Resilience”
The Guide to creating Resilience Centres was created by Big City Lab, an urban bureau commissioned by the Ministry of Social Policy as part of the National Mental Health Programme, with the financial support of the ASTARTA-KYIV agro-industrial holding.
This guide explains creating barrier-free spaces for Resilience Centres to provide psychosocial support and volunteering. On its pages, we show easy-to-implement, yet aesthetically appealing and high-quality solutions that will ensure the functionality of each centre and make it completely barrier-free for all visitors.
Each city and community has institutions that may soon be transformed into psychosocial service centres: this decision was made by the Cabinet of Ministers in January 2024. The centres will provide psychosocial support, assistance to veterans, legal aid and employment advice, and space for meetings and community activities. How to choose a building that is best suited for such tasks? How can old premises be transformed into comfortable ones for veterans, volunteers, IDPs, and all citizens? How can we create accessible and comfortable spaces without spending much money and effort?
The Resilience Centre consists of functional areas:
- car and bicycle parking area;
- recreation area;
- entrance group;
- foyer;
- waiting area;
- children's playroom;
- accessible restroom;
- shower room;
- child care room;
- room for group classes;
- room for individual consultations;
- premises for employees;
- shelter.
The guide contains recommendations for arranging spatial solutions for each of these locations.
Barrier-free accessibility lies in the details. The guide takes into account the psychological comfort of visitors. It describes the nuances that will help make the space accessible and comfortable.
There are recommendations for creating a busy board at the reception desk so that children do not get bored while waiting for their parents to fill out the documents.
A separate room has been added for confidential questions that visitors do not feel comfortable discussing in front of others at the reception.
A children's playroom for different age groups is foreseen: a playpen for kids under 3 years old; tables for individual activities for 3 to 7 years old; shelves for books, colouring books or educational games that will be interesting for children over 7 years old; a dry shower for calming down, etc.
A group consultation room has been designed to be as flexible as possible: by easily changing the design with mobile furniture, the community can gather to watch a film or presentation, for training or group therapy.
The comfort of the centre's staff was also considered: the employees' room has facilities for work, eating, rest, and team meetings.
The foyer area's size is defined, considering the space for storing baby carriages.
A children's playground is provided on the surrounding territory so that visitors understand that the centre is child-friendly and has the necessary infrastructure.
In addition to the guide, our team has compiled an equipment specification—these are the best recommendations for furniture and spatial elements, with costs, sizes, and links to where to buy them.
You can get this table upon request by emailing um@bcl.com.ua
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