Released: 22 February 2006
Toilets for disabled people are frequently locked in an effort to stop misuse and vandalism. Unfortunately this can also make them unusable to disabled people.
To combat this, over 7,000 toilets have been made accessible through the National Key Scheme (NKS) started by the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation (RADAR). Details of these are now available for free on-line, making them even more accessible. Before being placed on directenquiries.com, the information was only available in a paper directory costing £8.
RADAR (The Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation), who run the NKS, have worked in partnership with directenquiries.com, the Nationwide Access Register, to provide this information. This makes life easier for disabled people, who will now be able to plan their time away from home, knowing the facilities they need will be accessible and in a useable condition.
Direct Enquiries, chief executive, Grant Kennedy said: “Providing this free information to disabled people adds to the unique service we already offer. Unlike the printed [paper] directory, our website can be updated on a daily basis, ensuring up to date, free information on all facilities under the NKS.” The National Key Scheme
The NKS, sometimes known as the RADAR Scheme, was developed because some public toilets for disabled people are locked to prevent damage and misuse, causing inconvenience. If it is necessary to lock accessible toilets, providers are asked to join the NKS. All facilities involved in the NKS are fitted with a standard lock and providers are asked to make keys readily available to disabled people.
Over 400 local authorities in all parts of the country have now adopted the scheme as well as a wide range of other public, voluntary and commercial organizations. Over 7,000 toilets are now fitted with the lock and can be found from Shetland to Jersey.
Within the scheme, RADAR: - supplies NKS keys to disabled people who have difficulty, obtaining one locally
- maintains a list of toilets fitted with the NKS lock
- provides general information about the scheme to individuals and providers
Ed Mylles, Director of Business Development at RADAR, said: “RADAR has a long history of helping our members, and disabled people in general, find innovative solutions to the barriers we face in our daily lives. Our partnership with Direct Enquiries is another example of this. Direct Enquiries, we believe, can provide an invaluable service to disabled people across the UK. The Direct Enquiries website offers a vehicle for freedom and choice for disabled people.” (ends)
Notes to Editors
Directenquiries.com, was set up as the Nationwide Disabled Access Register in 2002 in partnership with RADAR (Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation) and The Employers' Forum on Disability. During the past 12 months the information available has grown to include access for parents with pushchairs as well as the general public. This allowed directenquiries.com to rebrand as The Nationwide Access Register in January 2006.
Directenquiries.com is the only UK directory specifically designed for companies to showcase their disabled access and other facilities. On average, directenquiries.com receives over 1.3 million hits each month from people looking for businesses, organisations and services with the disabled access they require. Registration is only £35 per year, per location, for which companies receive the following:
- Nationwide registration on directenquiries.com detailing company name, address and other contact details, including links to their website, should they have one
- Access to the Action Plan
- A “More Information” section, equivalent to five pages of A4, updateable on a daily basis. This allows businesses to include information on forthcoming additions or changes to their disabled access as well as useful information about their business in general
- Feedback facility to provide customer comments and opinions
For users, directenquires.com provides a full directory service for UK companies detailing the access and facilities available at those registered with directenquiries.com. The register currently includes disabled access information on leading high street names such as Boots, LloydsTSB, Argos, Gap, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Costa Coffee, Pizza Express, PC World and Waterstone’s as well as thousands of small and independent businesses. The disabled access information encompasses everything from parking, entrances, lifts, toilets, counter heights, wheelchair and pushchair access to staff assistance and auxilliary aids such as Braille, large print and induction loops.
For further information, images and interviews please contact us on 01344 360101 or e-mail press@directenquiries.com
www.directenquiries.com