Hi Malcolm
I can just picture it now, a guy on sticks talking to his girlfriend in
a wheelchair in the 20th floor refuge as the flames penetrate the 30
minute doors. 'but Fred, I do not understand this! I know this building
has a certificate of compliance with Part M'.
until emergency evacuation is included the physical suitability of the
building for children, older and disabled people's use has not been
fully addressed.
there is still no adequate method of challenging poor decisions on the
part of building control officers and approved inspectors, Part M
requirements are still regarded as a tag on, bonus elements by too many
of these certifiers.
In England the PPG's have helped to address this to some degree by
requiring access statements but these do not apply everywhere in UK.
the DDA2005, may have some impact where council approvals apply but are
approved inspectors acting a as public authority when they are approving
buildings?
and this only addresses the physical elements of a building/service
provider's efforts, it does not address the operational and managerial
side of inclusiveness.
Regards
Dave Croft
Malcolm Crate wrote:
> Hi all
> I noticed this in the Construction Expert Barbour Index Briefing
> note today and thought it was an interesting way forward for us
> building control officers to take on more responsibility for ensuring
> designs are inclusive! A number of people have said recently that new
> buildings they had been to, failed to comply with even minimum
> building regs. Of course maybe this would also be a backward step in
> only encouraging compliance with a minimum?
>
> *The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in
> Ireland, Mr Dick Roche, announced proposals for a new Disability
> Access Certificate last month. "The design of all new non-domestic
> buildings and apartment blocks will have to be certified, by the local
> building control authority, as complying with Part M of the Building
> Regulations", said Minister Roche. "This will be similar to the
> existing Fire Safety Certificate system, whereby designs must be
> certified as compliant with the relevant Building Regulations before
> construction can commence". The new Certificate forms part of the
> requirements of the new Building Control Bill 2005, the draft of which
> is due for publication before the end of the year. It is hoped the
> Bill will strengthen the enforcement powers of Building Control
> Authorities and simplify the process of taking legal proceedings under
> the Building Regulations. "My Department will also initiate a further
> review of Part M of the Building Regulations, as already outlined in
> the Department's Outline Sectoral Plan, under the National Disability
> Strategy," added the Minister. *
>
>
> Malcolm Crate
> Access, Building Standards and Housing Grants Manager
> Department for Sustainable Communities
> Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
> 01851709325
>
>
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