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» technical guide: accessibility - part M,
BS 8300 and the DDA »
The current Part M Approved
Document ‘Access to and use of Buildings’ was
published in 2003, taking effect on 1 May 2004. For new
housing, this generally replicates the provisions of the 1999
edition, which was considered to be adequate.Although it does
not apply to house extensions and alterations, these must not
make the building less satisfactory in accessibility terms.
For non-housing, Part M guidance was based on BS 8300 : 2001
‘Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the
needs of disabled people – Code of practice’. BS
8300 was subsequently amended in 2005 to remove conflicts
with Part M but also provides information and detail
additional to Part M. These changes are supported by the FAQ
section of the DCLG website relating to PartM. The guidance
provided in BS 8300 is also considered applicable to existing
as well as new buildings and extensions, and to domestic
buildings (where it differs substantially from Part M).
Solutions other than those shown in the Approved Document or
BS 8300 may be appropriate in particular situations,
justified for Building Control purposes in an Access
Statement.
Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act
1995 (DDA) dealing with Rights of Access came into force in
October 2004. This requires organisations or individuals
providing goods, facilities or services to the public and
their landlords or property managers (‘service
providers’) to make "reasonable adjustments"
to their properties to overcome physical barriers to access.
Both new and existing buildings are included but not
dwellings. As no detailed physical guidance is offered in
the DDA Code of Practice, it is most likely that adherence
to BS 8300 will be regarded as acceptable for DDA purposes,
although it will be for the courts to decide on specific
issues. The requirements and options for designers are
building type specific and can be summarised as indicated in
the table in column one on page 16.
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| New housing - |
comply
with Part M, consider additional BS 8300
provisions |
|
| Housing extensions - |
consider BS 8300
provisions |
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|
| New non-housing and extensions -
|
additional BS 8300
provisions particularly where service providers
for DDA |
|
|
Existing building with
service provider - |
provisions as far as
is ‘reasonable’ |
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|
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The contents of
this guide represents Leaderflush Shapland's interpretation
and opinions of the documents discussed. No responsibility
or liability can be accepted for any loss or damage arising
from any error or omission contained in this guide.
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