Services
Just one example of when discrimination can take place.
About Access is a specialist firm in the field of access. It is headed by Ian Streets who is a member of the National Register of Access Consultants (NRAC).
Typically it is the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) that drives organisations into becoming more accessible. This has been in place since 1995 with further legislation added in 2005.
There is a requirement to ensure that members of the public are not discriminated against for a reason relating to their impairment. Discrimination could occur because of physical features, practice, policy or procedure. It is important that organisations take a look at themselves to identify where there are problems to access and implement reasonable adjustments to reduce the risk of prosecution under the Disability Discrimination Act.
In short if you offer your services to the public or are a club with 25 members or more you have an anticipatory duty to make it accessible. To organisations that have a public function e.g. local authority, police etc, they have to positive in their approach of ensuring that disabled people are treated equally. For employers they have a duty towards their employees to make reasonable adjustments to suit the individual, this is not anticipatory but good practice would be to carryout an Access Audit as though it was anticipatory and carryout adjustments to physical features when next refurbishing.
Access Consultancy
This can be offering advice on projects from the start to completion to giving support if things go wrong during the construction phase.
Design Appraisals
This is reviewing the design, hopefully before planning approval is sought. The aim is to look at the design from an access prospective.
Access Statements
Design and Access Statements now form part of the Planning process. Their complexity will depend on the size of the development.
Access Audits
The core of our business, in essence these are a survey of the building looking at it from the view point of people with various impairments.