Some of the contents of the pages on this site are Copyright © 2016 NJH Music | [Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index] Re: Is your bandroom ready for 2004?
Colin Thomas said >I read a letter in the BB today which has of course struck a chord. >I am at present on the Disability Access Group in my local town and >it is obvious that property managers and owners are not aware that >buildings have to be disability friendly by the year 2004 This is true, but only in part! I worked in access issues for four years and was very much involved in these issues when the Disability Discrimination Act came in (the Act which contains these requirements). Yes, goods and services provided for the general public have to be accessible - from 2004 this will include buildings. Where they are not currently accesible, occupiers and owners of 'public' buildings will have to have made 'reasonable adjustments' to make those buildings accessible. If a legal case is brought, each building will be judged on it's own merit and an assessment will be made of whether the necessary adjustments are 'reasonable.' From the outset, the Act has reaslised that exceptions may need to be made. If it does not already exist, I am sure that the HMSO will be publishing Codes of Practice which you may purchase to help you decide what changes you need to make to your bandroom. It is worth noting that, unless the law has changed since 1995 when it was passed, the requirement is for goods and services offered to the 'public'. In essence this means that a bandroom only accessible to members and staff of a band is not open to the public and thus need not change but a bandroom where the public is invited to listen needs to comply. None of this is to say that I don't think that every band should look at access to it's own premises as a matter of Good Practice anyway. In terms of the Act, it is probably more important for bands to be aware that concert promoters may have duties to ensure that the premises they use for concerts meet the legal requirments. This means that when you book someone else's hall to perform in, you should be asking them about their access arrangements and looking for somewhere else if you are not happy with the answers you get. This also applies to contest organisers - and this should extend to ensuring that performers' areas are also accessible. >Local Access groups can give advice and help mostly at no cost and >of course there is a chance to build good community relations also >gain good publicity for the band. Yes Local Access Groups can be very helpful - and many local councils also have a paid local Access Officer. I would agree entirely about improvements to access being good for a band's standing in the community but I would like to think that a band would make the improvements in the name of equality rather than as a means of getting good publicity. Pete -- Pete Denton --
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