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Access Access Access - Olan McGowan
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Since the year 2000, the year in which the regulations were reviewed and updated, their scope was extended to cover private housing, having previously been only applicable to publicly accessible buildings and workplaces. There again, the intention was merely to make houses "visitable" by people with disabilities rather than liveable. Consequently, the 99% statistic above is likely to remain pretty much intact. Moreover, the absence of policing means that the "visitable" requirement can be overlooked with impunity by developers, making future adaptations all the more costly, adaptations which have their own problems.

The Irish Wheelchair Association has advocated for some time for a fundamental review of Part M. Expansion and enforcement of these regulations would give rise ultimately to a "building for all" culture in this country which could only serve to add value to the community. Coupled with this, Ireland urgently needs a strong national team of "access auditors" to assist developers and designers in getting things right from the outset. Some years ago, a form of "access auditing" was available from two officers at the the National Rehabilitation Board but, when this organisation was dissolved and its functions divided between F�S and the NDA, this valuable service was somehow lost. At the moment, developers can contact the Institute for Design and Disability who offer access auditing as a private service but it is ludicrous that this service is not available freely and easily to those who are at least willing to address this important issue.

The publication "Building for Everyone" by the National Disability Authority is available for � 45 from the NDA offices on Clyde Road, Dublin 4. The great value of this publication is that it has been developed without compromise, in other words, away from the influence of politicians and lobby groups. Its standards far exceed the notion of a "minimum requirement" contained in departmental building regulations and its recommendations are designed to encompass all forms of disability, not just physical disability. The National Disability Authority is a statutory body set up to develop standards in all areas of disability, from products and services in private industry through to codes of practice in public service. It also acts as an advisory body to government and the development policy. However, the chances of bringing the guidelines in current building regulations up to the high standard of "Building For Everyone" remain, at least for now, pretty slim.