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The Disability Discrimination Act, what compliance
means.
The Act, which was passed in 1995, requires that the
owners or persons responsible for all Public and most
Private Buildings must make provision for people who
have a disability or special need to gain access to
their premises. The act has three stages of compliance
and we are now in the final phase of the act's introduction
so that by October 2004 physical barriers must be removed
to allow access.
In April 2000 the government established the Disability
Rights Commission to police the compliance issues relating
to the act.
In particular the commission will assist disabled groups
and individuals to take action against anyone who has
a building which does not comply by the deadline.
What types of Barrier to the Disabled need to be removed
in a building?
Section 21.2 of the Disability Discrimination Act state
that: "where a physical feature makes it impossible
or unreasonably difficult for a disabled person to make
use of a service or building, it is the duty of the
provider of that service to take such steps that are
reasonable to remedy the situation".
It is clear that the Government is serious about this
issue and have pledged an increasing amount of funding
to the Disability Rights Commission to make sure all
parties avoid any disputes and work together to make
sure buildings are compliant well within the timetable.
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