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Welcome! The fact that you are reading this suggests that you are seeking guidance on The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA), and what implications it might have for your business or service provision, well you've come to the right place.
The DDA was introduced in 1995 after 15 years of lobbying of the respective governments by a deceptively large and very vocal element of society.
Whether you are a service provider or employer or both, the DDA imposes obligations on you.
What is the DDA you might ask?
Well it is a piece of civil legislation that is just one part of a broadly complimentary suite of acts designed to minimise discrimination and promote equality of opportunity. As it's title suggests the purpose of the DDA is to prevent discrimination against disabled people.
The DDA gave disabled people new rights in areas of; employment, access to goods & services, buying or renting land and property, education, and public transport.
The act attempts to offer an explanation of the term disability, but this has drawn criticism in that the authors have drawn up what is described as the medical definition, focusing on the disability of the individual as the cause of the problem rather than a problem associated with lack of social inclusion.
It would be impossible to identify all recognised disabilities but here is a sample of the most widely recognised disabilities:
- Whole range of Mobility Impairments
- Sensory Impairments e.g. hearing & vision
- Dexterity Impairments
- Mental illness and learning difficulties
- Dyslexia
- Diabetes
- Epilepsy
- Speech Impairments
- Facial Disfigurements
(This is by no means an exhaustive list)
