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DDA Access Products
DDA Access Products
A range of solutions to assist business owners and other service providers to ensure that they meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.
E-Access Bulletin's fourth annual conference and exhibition on access to technology by people with disabilities is on 23 April. It's not just about the web, but about e-learning, digital TV, mobile phones, and other portable devices: this is the place for all organisations in all sectors to find out how to comply with the law and what to include in your access policies and strategies. Click to visit the organiser's website (it will open in a new browser window)
Suppliers of DDA access products. If you click on a link, that supplier's page will open in a new window:
AAT Stairclimbers
ACORN Stairlifts
Bentley Fielden
DDA Installation Services
Easygates - door entry
Easylink UK - alarms
& monitors
EquiLift
Force Ten Co
G L Jones Playgrounds
Guldmann UK
Lift Able Stairlifts
Minivator
Power Lift -
vertical lifts
Stannah Stairlifts
Talksigns
Tough Furniture
Unwin Safety Systems
Your Accessible Company
product enquiry
If
access to your building is difficult, portable ramps can provide a cost-effective
solution. Folding access ramps can be set up and removed in a few seconds
and won't cause an obstruction on the pavement.
The lightweight fibreglass ramp on the left is from Bentley Fielden, and comes in a range of sizes up to 7' (2133mm)
A
wheelchair lift with glass walls adjacent to the curving staircase makes
a striking architectural statement in this modern building.
STAGETEXT, a registered charity, increases access to the arts for people with a hearing loss by providing captioning systems that display the text as it is spoken or sung, enabling deaf and hard of hearing people to follow the dialogue on an equal basis with their hearing peers.
A trained STAGETEXT captioner delivers the captions live from a laptop computer to a screen (or screens) so that deaf and hard of hearing audience members can follow what is said, when it is said.
Conventional
signage may be completely inaccessible to the visually impaired. Talking
signs, such as the one shown right, harness the latest speaker technology
from British company NXT, to convert traditional boards into audio speakers,
enabling the information to be relayed in a form convenient to the visually
impaired.
Background to the DDA
The DDA was introduced in December 1996 when, in addition to employment
protection provisions, it became unlawful for service providers to treat
disabled people less favorably than other people for a reason related
to their disability.
From 1st October 1999 all service providers have had to make reasonable
adjustments for disabled people, such as providing extra help or making
changes to the way they provide their services. Service providers must:
• Take reasonable steps to change practices, policies or procedures
which make it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people
to use a service
•Provide auxiliary aids or services which would enable/facilitate
disabled people to use a service
• Overcome physical features which make it impossible or unreasonably
difficult for disabled people to use a service, by providing a service
by a reasonable alternative method.
Since 1st October 2004 service providers should have made reasonable adjustments to the physical features of their premises to overcome barriers to access. This must be done by altering, removing or providing a reasonable means of avoiding such physical barriers.
To read the DDA, please click here.
The Disability Rights Commission has introduced a new code of practice. To download a PDF, click here.
Many
products are now available - in all price ranges - to assist service providers
to overcome access problems in their premises.
The drop-down counter on the left, for example, is an inexpensive way to adapt an existing counter that is too high for a wheelchair user to reach.
An automatic door opener (right) can make it easier for a wheelchair user to enter a building.
Quick links to other Professional Product sections below:
