Petition for packaging

Published:

Join us in petitioning government to introduce mandatory minimum standards for consumer packaging to enhance accessibility, sustainability & consumer choice.

Inspired by the findings of our recent report, ‘Designing the Everyday for a Less Frustrating Life’ with u3a and This Age Thing, which revealed consumer packaging as the most frustrating household item in need of redesign, we are petitioning Government to to work with Industry, Academia and the Design Sector to enforce minimum inclusive standards for product packaging.

Attempts to reduce costs and increase the shelf-life and durability can make consumer packaging difficult and often practically impossible to safely open for those without full ability, undermining protections in the Equality Act and the British Standard on Inclusive Design.

Decades of campaigning has failed to elicit significant change in the design and manufacture of consumer packaging, and without a a mandatory minimum standard being introduced, this is unlikely to change anytime soon. By enforcing minimum standards, similar to building regulations, the UK Government can support better accessibility, sustainability and consumer choice.