DDA Compliance & Regulations

One of the most recent and influential pieces of government legislation concerning disabled access is, the Disability Discrimination Act, which applies to all employers and anyone who provides a service to the public which aims to remove physical barriers and improve access for all. Many buildings may have to be upgraded to meet the minimum requirements so read on to see how The Platform Lift Company can help you!

How does the DDA affect your business?

There are estimated to be around 8.6 million disabled people in Great Britain, yet it is only in recent years that provision has been made for a sufficient level of accessibility.

The Disability Discrimination Act was the first of its kind to call for gradual improvements in the way that employers, owners and property managers of public buildings achieve equal access for all members of the public.

The Act was introduced in three successive parts:

Part 1 – Dec 1996 – Recognise overall problem
Part 2 – Oct 1999 – Start making reasonable adjustments
Part 3 – Oct 2004 – Deadline for making reasonable adjustment

Improvements to access upper floor levels, multilevelled surfaces, and items that may be too high to reach for the wheelchair user, are all examples of issues that need to be addressed.

It is the duty of the service provider to remedy the situation, i.e.:

• Remove the feature
• Alter it so it no longer has that effect, or
• Provide a reasonable alternative method of making the service in question available to a disabled person