Uniform product testing guidance on schedule

The guidance remains on track for publication of a draft early this May, and of completed guidance this autumn. As reported in January’s The Network, stakeholder workshops, garnering the views of estates and facilities, architectural, design, manufacturer, and construction personnel, were held last summer to give the joint DiMHN and BRE team a clearer understanding of the necessary performance requirements – in areas ranging from robustness to antiligature. Follow-up events for clinical staff in London, Manchester, and Edinburgh late last year, and early this, were well attended, with representation from some of the UK’s largest mental health Trusts and Boards. The feedback received afforded the product testing initiative team with greater insight into how clinicians risk assess current environments and manage patients of different risk levels. 

Philip Ross (pictured), who leads the Workstream, said: “Our aim is to create a testing framework where products can be graded in key areas of performance, covering ligature risk and robustness. Our draft product testing guidance based on these parameters –to be published next month – will also consider the characteristics of two specific product groups – doorsets and door hardware, and windows.” 

A small internal DiMHN Working Group has been working closely throughout the project with former BRE MD and Special projects director, Richard Hardy (now a consultant to BRE), and associate director, David Gall, harnessing their considerable expertise, technical knowledge, and input in an area for which the building science centre has a considerable reputation. Philip Ross will update delegates on progress, and the next steps, in a first day DiMH 2019 conference keynote speech on 21 May, with a consultation period on the draft guidance ongoing for several months thereafter, and a targeted autumn publication date for the finalised guidance.