Inclusion Award
Dean Cavanagh is a Consultant in Arup’s Access and Inclusive Environments team. A proud disabled person, Dean has advocated for equality, especially for disabled people, his whole life and has been hugely influential in shaping Arup’s inclusivity practice.
Dean’s project work highlights his skills in connecting with clients and influencing their designs to create a more inclusive and safer built environment for everyone. He has implemented change and educated clients to deliver direct outcomes for inclusivity, advocating for the provision of social sustainable homes, ensuring that people are at the heart of the design, and future proofing concepts.
Dean notes his experience of overcoming discrimination and disadvantage in his formative years as key to shaping him as the strategic thinker, enabler and leader he is today, refusing to accept societal stereotype and barriers and doing all he can to instigate real, inclusive change, for the whole community in all that he does.
Upon joining Arup in 2020, Dean put himself forward to be the Co-Chair of our internal disabled staff network – Connect Ability – implementing the first disabled staff survey endorsed by Arup Board members and bringing disabled staff and allies together through internal networking events.
Outside of Arup, Dean uses his consultancy skills to contribute more widely to society through his position as Chair of Manchester Disability Collaborative. Seeking to create systematic change in the built environment for disabled people, Dean actively engages with his community and council leaders to address important issues affecting disabled people.
View the Arup profile in the MCA Members Directory.