Does your organisation address physical accessibility?
Physical accessibility refers to changes made to a physical environment to eliminate barriers that restrict access for people living with disabilities.
The public perception of what that entails is not always accurate, as this goes beyond ramps and wheelchair access. It includes physical measures that cater to a broad group of people living with different disabilities, which needs require varied adjustments.
The Equality Act 2010 aims to break down barriers and assist disabled people who are disadvantaged and face discrimination due to the lack of accessibility within society. It is discriminatory to mistreat a disabled person due to their disability. This extends to physical spaces. It is an organisations responsibility to ensure they meet their accessibility obligations.
That’s why in this blog, we will highlight the adjustments needed within organisations and other factors as to why it’s essential.
Why is physical accessibility important?
A complete physical accessibility solution will enable your organisation to include everyone – including your organisation. It will support your ability to attract and retain employees and customers. Additionally, you’ll be able to decrease condition related absenteeism and increase employee productivity and satisfaction.
As mentioned above, without the proper accessibility adjustments, your organisation could face accusations of discrimination and potentially legal action. It’s vital for any organisation to avoid these legal disputes and instead support the needs of everyone in society.
Besides inclusion and legal obligations, physical accessibility will widen your talent pool, allowing your organisation to find the perfect employees to prosper and scale.
Physical disability is only disabling when the physical environment prevents someone from doing what they need to do. For example, an accountant can be just as productive in a wheelchair, as long as they have access to the office and the equipment required to help them do their job well.
Furthermore, physical accessibility can be life-saving for a person living with a disability. For example, if a building is on fire and the elevators aren’t working, a person in a wheelchair would struggle to exit a building safely.
What are Physical Accessibility Solutions?
Physical accessibility adjustments and solutions include, but are not limited to:
- Clear Signage
- Disabled Parking
- Pavement Access
- Wide, accessible doors, entrances, hallways and fire escapes
- Bright lighting and colour contrast
- Navigable building routes
- Accessible Bathrooms
- Accessible waiting and service areas
What are the steps to building a physically accessible environment?
The process usually involves numerous consultants, auditors, and contractors who rarely collaborate in time- or cost-efficient ways. With high costs and long delays, businesses often steer away from making simple changes to improve their accessibility, which excludes disabled people and prevents organisations from developing a diverse and productive workforce.
Microlink’s Physical Accessibility offerings remove clients’ financial and administrative wastefulness by offering an all-in-one, start-to-finish solution.
Our process consists of five main steps:
Auditing a building and creating a survey of the current state of the facility and the changes required.
Reports are then compiled from the auditor’s detailed survey.
A clear and accurate Budget with flexible options is suggested for the accessibility solutions.
Planning upon the budget agreement
We deliver the clients’ package of the very best Physical Accessibility solutions, using the latest and most innovative products.
This process over time has been shown to reduce the time spent on projects by up to 64%, whilst our reliable, streamlined supply chains allow us to optimise value for our clients.
For over a decade, we have provided physical accessibility solutions. Our scale, expertise, infrastructure and networks offer the very best physical accessibility solutions at the most affordable prices on the market.
For more information on our physical accessibility services, get in touch.
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