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New amendment to BS 8300:2001 code of practice

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Aug 26, 2005

A new amendment is now available for BS 8300:2001, Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people, Code of practice.

A new amendment is now available for BS 8300:2001, Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people, Code of practice.

This newly amended standard provides guidance on good practice in the design of domestic and non-domestic buildings.

Using it will help you meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA).

It explains how access approaches can be adapted to accommodate disabled people.

The recommendations relate to the elements of construction and accommodation common to different types of buildings, as well as those that are specific to building types.

BS 8300 applies to: car parking provisions; setting down points; garaging; access routes to and around all buildings; entrances to, and interiors of, new buildings; and routes to recreational facilities, such as patios, seating and picnic areas.

The recommendations are also accompanied by scene-setting commentary that places them in context for readers not familiar with the difficulties experienced by disabled people when approaching and using buildings.

The DDA does not provide exemptions for service providers on the basis of their size.

During the three-and-a-half years since publication, BS 8300 has received a number of requests for interpretations and clarifications.

These, along with issued raised by the Approved Document M of the Building Regulations, have been addressed.

The main areas of change include: sanitary devices; handrails; luminance (LRV - light reflectant values); and door closers.

The recommendations cover a wide range of impairments and activities.

BS 8300 is available in several formats.

Hardcopy (ISBN 0 580 38438 1) is priced £182 or £91 for BSI Subscribing Members.

This product is also available in large text and audio versions on CD.

Discounts are available to registered charities, who should contact BSI Distributor Sales.

BS 8300 is also available as a CD-ROM, BSI order ref BIP 3044, priced £230 + VAT or £115 + VAT for BSI Subscribing Members.

Smart Audit DDA Access Audit software is also available.

An Access Audit is the first step to take on the road to compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA).

An Audit will help companies make an accurate assessment of a building's accessibility, and how it meets the requirements of Act.

Smart Audit DDA Access Audit software, (from Configure Limited), guides the user through a series of straightforward, carefully structured questions and activities that construct an accurate assessment of the building.

Once the audit has been completed, an Accessibility Report is produced, along with an Access Plan.

The Accessibility Report is a detailed assessment of the site based on the information collected, and includes referenced site photographs.

The Access Plan identifies prioritised actions, and indicative costs of making the recommended adjustments.

Recommendations contained within the Access Plan are regularly reviewed as the legislation develops and the Act is tested in the Courts.

Because of the way that audit data is held, Configure will notify users of any changes to recommendations and priorities that are required.

The benefits and features include: cost-effective access audits; dynamic questioning; intuitive and easy to use; secure audit data storage; completely portable (recommended use of handheld PDA); reduces audit time; recommendations updated as legislation evolves; and each audit is reviewed by Configure's team of accessibility experts.

The software is distributed by BSI, BSI order ref BIP 3040, priced £250* + VAT per audit.

Alternative, with a PDA, BSI Order ref BIP 3041, priced £399 + VAT for the recommended PDA hardware.

For further details or a demo please contact BSI.

Note that packaging and postage is charged at £4.17 for the UK (inclusive of VAT), £5.83 for Overseas (+ VAT if applicable), but shipping is free for BSI Subscribing Members.

Pre-payment is required from non-members.

All prices, content and publishing dates may be subject to change.

For orders, please contact BSI Customer Services, quoting marketing reference code 8300-PR 'Industrialsafetytalk'.