The D.R.E.A.M. Centre: Innovative Immersive Experiences for Inclusive Education
The D.R.E.A.M. Centre at Chailey Heritage Foundation is a state-of-the-art, multi-use facility designed to provide children and young adults with complex physical disabilities, high health needs, sensory impairments, and learning difficulties with transformative experiences. Combining immersive education, activity spaces, and sports facilities, the centre leverages innovative technologies to empower its users with accessibility and engagement like never before.
In recognition of its groundbreaking design and impact, the D.R.E.A.M. Centre was honoured with a THEA Award for Outstanding Achievement, a testament to its excellence in immersive and inclusive design.
A New World of Possibilities
The D.R.E.A.M. Centre blends physical and digital experiences using advanced technologies such as hoists, automated doors, real-time effects, and smart automation. These systems come together to virtually transport users to explore sights and sounds from around the world, creating environments that are both inspiring and inclusive.
Our Contribution
Our team was engaged to design and commission the Medialon control system, ensuring the technology was flexible, future-proofed, and capable of meeting the diverse needs of the end users. Key aspects of our involvement included:
- Modular and Future-Ready Design: The control system was designed to be highly modular, with predefined modes for everyday operation and the ability to add customisable functions. This ensured the system could evolve over time to meet changing needs.
- Customisation for Operators and Admins: To accommodate a variety of use cases, we developed a dual-access control panel:
- Operators can easily use predefined modes for standard functionality.
- Admins have the ability to create and customise new buttons, assign functions, and expand the system without requiring technical expertise or external support.
- Lighting Control Innovation:
- We provided a lighting state recorder that captures incoming DMX values and saves them as new presets, allowing the system to store unlimited custom lighting states without the need for a console or programmer.
- A DMX passthrough was implemented to enable live control for events while seamlessly integrating with the system’s predefined settings.
Delivering Versatility and Empowerment
By building a control system that empowers the client to make changes independently, we delivered a solution that is both robust and adaptable. The flexibility of the system ensures that it can meet the diverse requirements of the centre’s activities while maintaining ease of use for operators and administrators.
Empowering Inclusive Engagement
The D.R.E.A.M. Centre exemplifies how technology can break barriers and create opportunities for everyone. Receiving the THEA Award for Outstanding Achievement underscores the project’s success in combining cutting-edge technology, accessibility, and immersive design to create a truly transformative space. We are proud to have been part of a project that ensures every visitor can engage, explore, and thrive in a world of possibilities.