Do the rights of People who have Disabilities are taken seriously is the construction industry, even though there are laws that state that we a right to equitable access? As a person with a disability and working as an Access Consultant, I find that myself getting frustrated when I see blatant disregard to the Access to Premises Standard when I go to brand new buildings. As well as when I get requests for Performance Solutions for brand new developments where they could have been avoided and addressed early in the design stage. I wish to see the rights of People who have Disabilities to expect equitable access in new buildings among Architects, Drafts persons and Surveyor’s taken seriously as much as the fire and egress standards, which doesn’t have provisions for People with disabilities to exit from a building that is on fire.
In 1992 Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) came into effect, to ensure the protection against unfair and unfavourable treatment for people with a disability in Australia. It also makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person who is an ‘associate’ such as a friend, carer or family member to a person who has a disability. The Act supports the principle that people with a disability have the same fundamental rights as the rest of the community.
One of the primary standards that upholds the DDA is the Access to Premises Standard 2010. This standard sets out the minimal requirements of which public places need to adhere to. The aim of these Standards is to provide the building and design industry with detailed information regarding the required access provisions associated with the design and construction of new buildings and upgrade to existing buildings. Unfortunately, these requirements are not commonly enforced by some Building surveyors or Architects.
All too often, Access Consultants have to explain to clients why they have to spend significant amounts of money towards the end of their building projects, to provide the minimum requirements for access. Therefore, this is why it is beneficial to engage with an Access Consultants in the early stages of a project, as identifying spatial issues or the need for a passenger lift, a ramp or increased corridor width early in the process, rather at a later stage could have a significant cost or time impact on any advanced design,
Owners/developers may not be aware that buildings have to comply with the access standards, so it is up to Architects, Building Surveyors and other Building Practitioners to engage with an Access Consultant to review the plans to ensure it complies with the standards. So, is it time that to make it mandatory for all new public and commercial buildings to be signed off by an Access Consultant to ensure the minimum standards are met? Or do we need to better educate Building Practitioners to understand the reason why the access standards are important to providing equal access for all?
If you would like to understand more about the benefits of engaging in with an Access Consultant for every project. Domatic Access is offering a free 30-minute consultation called “Fostering a good practice of engaging with Access Consultants” to go through these benefits with you and your team.
If you are interested to find out more, then contact us via email
