DISABILITY AUDITS

JRL Solutions Ltd carries out disability audits and interprets standards to help employers meet their obligations under legislation.

The framework for addressing disability issues includes:-

• Disability Discrimination Act 1995
• Disability Discrimination Act 2005
• Disability Discrimination Act 1995(Amendment) Regulations
• Building Regulations 2007 Approved Document M Access to and use of buildings
• Health and Safety Acts, Appropriate Regulations
• Approved Codes of Practice and Guidance

There is a requirement under Disability legislation for employers, service providers and managers of premises to make “reasonable adjustments” to enable a person with a disability to be employed, to continue to be employed, be accommodated and gain access and move around a building or premises. The Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999 places a duty on the employer to assess the risks to the health and safety of employees and to others who may be affected by the conduct of the undertaking.

Within the Code of Practice to this are categories of persons who may be at particular risk and for whom a risk assessment is necessary. One of these categories is “disabled persons”.

Disability is defined as “a person has a disability……if he (or she) has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long term adverse effect on his (or her) ability to carry out normal day to day activities.”

Employers and others with control of buildings are expected to introduce measures aimed at ending unfair discrimination against persons with disabilities. Employers, Service Providers and landlords and other persons in connection with the selling, letting and managing of premises have a duty not to treat disabled people less favourably than others for a reason relating to their disability unless this can be justified.

The duty of reasonable adjustment applies where any physical feature of premises or any arrangements made result in substantial disadvantage to a disabled person compared to a non-disabled person.

These reasonable adjustments include:-

• Making adjustments to premises
• Reallocating part of the job to another person
• Transferring the person to fill an existing vacancy
• Altering the person’s working hours
• Assigning the person to a different place of work
• Allowing absences during working hours for rehabilitation,assessment or treatment
• Providing appropriate training
• Acquiring or modifying equipment
• Modifying instructions or reference manuals
• Modifying procedures for testing or assessment
• Providing readers or interpreters
• Providing supervision

JRL Solutions Ltd carries out disability audits to address the following factors:-

• Approach, routes and route furniture
• Car parking
• External ramps
• External steps
• Entrances
• Reception areas and lobbies
• Corridors
• Internal doors
• Internal ramps
• Internal stairs
• Lifts
• Platform lifts and stairlifts
• Toilets general provision
• Toilets wheelchair users
• Internal surfaces
• Facilities
• Seating
• Counters and service desks
• Telephones
• Alarms
• Controls
• Wayfinding
• Lighting
• Acoustics
• Means of escape
• Building management