Accessible Waters uses creative, inclusive, and collaborative research methods to explore how people with visual impairment experience blue spaces. The approach is shaped by care, consent, and conversation – recognising that meaningful participation takes time, trust, and flexibility. 

The research involves a series of in-depth interviews and sensory engagements with participants who have varying degrees of visual impairment. These take place in different ways: sitting together in a familiar setting, walking alongside one another through meaningful places, or – for those who wish – swimming together in open water. 

These “swim-along” interviews are a distinctive part of the project. They offer a way to explore what it feels like to be with water, in motion, and in relationship – not just to place, but to body, memory, and connection. They are co-designed with participants and include practical adaptations such as tow floats, co-navigators, and continuous verbal check-ins to support comfort and safety throughout. 

Participants choose how and where they take part. All interviews are offered in multiple formats – in or near water, on land, or indoors – depending on what feels most accessible and meaningful. The project recognises that engagement is rarely linear: some may start with conversation and explore further steps later, or not at all. 

This flexible model of participation honours the different ways people relate to water and to research itself. All contributions are treated with care and confidentiality. Participants choose how their stories are used – whether through anonymised findings, creative outputs, or simply by helping shape a deeper understanding of access, wellbeing, and water.