Know their rights
Viewpoint from Grant Kennedy chief executive, Direct Enquiries Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) came into force in October 2004. While it is clear from previous discussion with the event industry that venues are aware of the Act, there still seems to be substantial confusion, fear and misconception.
Many are aware of the legislation but choose to bury their heads in the sand, plagued by ungrounded fears of substantial costs and upheaval. The venues in question not only face the possibility of legal challenges from disabled people, but they are also losing money by shutting their doors on potential customers.
The DDA first came into force in 1995, “to end the discrimination which many disabled people face in their everyday lives”*. Since then, additions to the Act have put greater pressure on companies to provide for the UK’s 10 million disabled people. Those venues that see the Act as obstructive are fooling themselves, not least because disabled people in the UK have significant spending power. In fact, those that provide good disabled access are providing good access to all, including, for example, the parents of the 700,000 plus babies born each year in the UK, who travel with pushchairs.
The basic facts are simple but often confused. By October 2004 all service providers had to have made “reasonable adjustments to the physical features of their premises to overcome physical barriers to access.”* Costs are unavoidable, but they are often not as excessive as many fear. Venues concerned about their legal obligations can consult the DRC. However, as a guide, they should, at the very least, be aware of what facilities they can or cannot provide; have a plan of improvements they intend to implement; have budgets set aside or planned to cover the cost of those improvements; and a plan indicating when improvements will be completed. In addition, Section 4.26 of the DDA Code of Practice states, “businesses must communicate anything that is unreasonably difficult for someone to use.”
Venues have now had 10 years to understand and make changes in line with the DDA. Those who are ignoring the law or remaining unappreciative of the details need to act. One tool that can help is the Free Access Assessment provided by the Nationwide Access Register at www.directenquiries.com. The assessment is the ideal first step in understanding and collating details of the access they currently provide, with recommendations for improvements.
It is imperative that companies don’t fall into the trap of assuming that every disabled person has a wheelchair. Consideration has to be made for a wide variety of disabilities, including hearing, vision and mobility impairments. Advice and information, including a full action plan, with estimated costs and timescales are available to companies on the Nationwide Access Register. This includes changes that can be made to improve access for no cost at all.
Above all, venues need to remember that making their premises more accessible does more than just help meet legal obligations; it provides a greater level of service, improves public opinion and drives new customers.
*Quotations courtesy of the DRC
(The above has been transcribed with kind permission of Access All Areas - www.access-aa.co.uk)