U.K. Pubs and Bars need to get in on the Act
By Megan Clancy
Leisure services will need to do a lot more to convince disabled people that they will be ready for the 1st October deadline, warned the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) on the first day of the annual Pub and Bar convention at Olympia.
From 1st October 2004, every business, large or small - from local off licences to pubs, restaurants and hotels in the UK - will need to become more user-friendly to Britain's 8.6 million disabled people. New duties under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) call for improvements including adapting premises, removing physical barriers or providing services in an alternative way to disabled customers.
A staggering 70% of disabled people said that they are still unable to get through the door in pubs and bars across the UK. This figure was highlighted in a recent NOP poll commissioned by the DRC to show the extent to which Britain still remains a closed shop to disabled people.
Bert Massie, Chairman of the DRC said:
"With just over six months to go before equal access laws come into force, pubs and bars need seriously to consider the adjustments they can make to their premises in order to welcome their disabled customers.
"Accessible business is good business. Disabled people have an annual spending power of £50 billion, without taking into account their friends and families who will also be influenced by their choices. Pubs and bars should tap into this goldmine."
The warning comes in the wake of new figures showing very low awareness of impending equal access legislation affecting two million businesses in Britain. From October service providers will have to make 'reasonable adjustments' to their premises or the way that they provide their services so that they are not unreasonably difficult for disabled people to use. Service providers must try to anticipate the types of problems that might arise. The aim should be that, when disabled customers request services, the service provider has already taken all reasonable steps to ensure that they can be served without being put to unreasonable difficulty. In considering whether or not a service provider has taken unreasonable steps to comply with its duties after 1 October 2004 a court might take into account the time that the service provider has had prior to that date to make preparations.
DRC representatives will be on hand during the three day event in Olympia, London (Stand F94), to offer information about the law. The event runs from 30th March through to 1st April 2004.
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