Glossary

  • Access Audit – a survey of the building/service from the view point of people with various impairments
  • Organisations – businesses, local authorities, charities etc
  • Physical features – paths, steps, doors, reception desk, etc
  • Impairment – a person who is deaf or has poor hearing would be said to be hearing impaired, a person who has difficulty in walking would be mobility impaired etc.
  • Policies, Practices and Procedure – policies are typically rules, practices could be giving staff training and procedures are how things are done.
  • Reasonable adjustment – Reasonable adjustment is the term given to improve access under the DDA and this could be any of the following:- change practices, policies and procedures, provide auxiliary aids. When it comes to physical features, that is remove the feature, alter it, avoid it or provide the service by an alternative way.
  • When deciding what is reasonable the following should be taken into consideration:-
    Is it practical to take the steps suggested?
    The cost, financial or otherwise of making the adjustment,
    The extent of any disruption that the adjustment may give rise to,
    The service providers’ financial resources,
    The amount of money and other resources that have already been spent on making adjustments,
    The availability of other assistance e.g. grants or other finance.
  • Service Provider – this is the term given to where members of the public have access to a service. This could be park land, a shop, sports centre. It doesn’t matter if it’s free of charge or has to be paid for.
  • Public – someone who is accessing a service in their individual or personal capacity, but that person could be using the service on behalf of an organisation as an employee or representative and may have access to areas that would be accessed by someone in their own capacity (a member of the public). It is thought that the service provider will have a duty to employee or representative of another organisation.
  • Anticipatory duty – a duty that means you have to be proactive
  • Public Function – is the term used to describe the activities of public authorities e.g. budgeting decisions
  • Club – has 25 members or more, is not open to the general public, and has a true selection procedure. A video rental club for example, is not classed a club for the purpose of the Act.
  • Disability – this is a mental or physical impairment which has to be long term, more than 12months, substantial and has an adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities. Since 2006 anyone who has HIV, cancer or multiple sclerosis is automatically treated as disabled under the Act.