Key elements of The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA)
The overall purpose of the Act is to end discrimination against disabled
people in employment and access to goods, facilities and services.
Since the 2nd of December 1996 it has been unlawful for service providers
or employers to treat disabled people less favourably for a reason related to their disability.
The DDA says that a reasonable adjustment has to be made.
The duty to make reasonable adjustments fall into three main areas:
- changing policies, procedures and practices
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- providing auxiliary aids and services
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- overcoming a physical feature by
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- altering it or
- avoiding it or
- providing services by
alternative methods |
Since the 1st of October 1999 a service provider has had to take
reasonable steps to:
- change a policy, procedure or practice which makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult
for disabled people to make use of its services
- provide an auxiliary aid or service if it would enable (or make it easier for) disabled
people to make use of its services
- provide a reasonable alternative method of making its services available to disabled
people where a physical feature makes their use impossible or unreasonably difficult
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From the 1st of October 2004, where a physical feature makes it
impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people to make use of services, a service
provider will have to take reasonable steps to:
- remove the feature or
- alter it so that it no longer has that effect or
- provide a reasonable means of avoiding it or
- provide a reasonable alternative method of making the services available
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Actions to overcome physical barriers should be considered in the order
listed above. Only if the earlier options have been considered and determined unreasonable
should later options be taken.
Duties under the act are anticipatory, and all services are included
whether paid for or not.
For further information on the law and how it applies to your business consider our
Accessible Solutions Manual.
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