Disability Act 2005 – Making Public Services Accessible
Part 3 of the Disability Act 2005 is entitled “Access to Buildings and Services and Sectoral Plans”. The section addresses a number of key areas to make buildings and services accessible and requires that all public bodies in Ireland must:
- Bring the public areas of public buildings in line with Part M 2000 by 2015 and bring the public areas of public buildings in line with Part M 2010 by 2022.
- Ensure that people with disabilities can use their services easily and at the same location or access point as everyone else.
- Ensure, where possible, that goods and services they buy or hire can be used by people with disabilities.
- Provide information in a way that suits the needs of people with disabilities – (for example by phone, by email, in plain English, large print or in Braille and ensuring websites meet specified accessibility standards).
Part 3 also requires 6 government departments to have a Sectoral Plan in place. This is a plan to demonstrate how the government department will make its services and the services of the agencies accessible.
Even though the legislation has been in place for over seven years it is still evident that a number of government departments and public bodies are not addressing the requirements of the Disability Act and the buildings and services are still not accessible.I
If you have responsibility for implementing accessibility within your organisation, here are five tips to get you and your organisation started:
- Appoint an access officer and establish an access team representative of the organisation.
- Benchmark existing levels of accessibility within the organisation (i.e. Customer services, procurement, information provision, built environment) and develop a strategic access policy and plan (in consultation with users).
- Carry out the actions outlined in the plan and review, monitor and update the plan on a regular basis.
- Promote accessibility to the internal and external customer (i.e. through the website, at events, through the newsletter and by contacting other organisations).
- Liaise and consult with relevant stakeholders on a regular basis.
If you would like further information on the Disability Act 2005 and making public services and buildings accessible, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01-4151285 or [email protected]
