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Dear Anne, Just to fill you in on some context around my question. The conference is held at the College but organised and hosted by an external organisation. We provide the venue and accommodation - the Conference and Events department being our income generation arm of the HEI. In this case the carer has contacted us directly to ask about access and about suitable and accessible accommodation. The question of charging wasn't raised at this stage. The query was sent to me in anticipation of the issue being raised. In the case of events we organised internally, the reasonable adjustment principle would have applied and no charge would have been considered for the carer. My advice to her was that she informs the organisation that it is their responsibility for the additional costs but also be reasonable about it and maybe offers a discount so share some of the costs to enable the disabled particpant to attend. I didn't suggest Access to Work as like you said, it is a drawn out process. Best Wishes Susan Susan Lee Equality and Diversity Officer Royal Holloway University of London Egham, TW20 0EX E: [log in to unmask] T: 01784 41(4103) http://www.rhul.ac.uk -----Original Message----- From: HEEON equal opportunities list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Anne Mwangi Sent: 14 February 2014 11:05 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Concessions for Carers Dear Susan, I agree with advise given by colleagues regarding making a reasonable adjustment for the disabled person attending the conference to ensure they can access the conference and its facilities like other attendees who are not disabled. For example when I attend conferences with my support officer, I would expect a reasonable adjustment to be made by not charging her conference and accommodation fees. However it may depend on the resources of the organisation. Looking back at my paper work for attending HEOON conferences, I have had to pay for accommodation and food whilst ECU have not charged me for her accommodation. This raises the issue of how we accommodate colleagues RA in similar circumstances. Should they be met by Access to work (process of applying for additional funds is quite complex and time consuming), the disabled person's employer or the event organiser? Your thoughts on this would be appreciated. Kind Regards Anne Anne Mwangi Equality and Diversity Advisor University of Hull Cottingham Road Hull HU6 7RX telephone 01482 466333 Internal Ext 6333 www.hull.ac.uk/equality -----Original Message----- From: HEEON equal opportunities list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Lee, Susan Sent: 13 February 2014 13:38 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Concessions for Carers Dear Colleagues, I would be grateful for some advice on handling the situation below. We have a Disabled Participant who is also a Wheelchair user wishing to attend a Conference to be held at the College and she will be accompanied by a Carer. I have been asked as to whether we can charge the full additional B&B rate for the Carer. Applying the additional cost may mean disadvantaging the disabled individual as it will cost her/him to attend when compared to the other delegates. We are sure yet as whether the carer will be attending the conference. I suppose the same question will apply if she is attending. Many Thanks Susan Susan Lee Equality and Diversity Officer Royal Holloway University of London Egham, TW20 0EX E: [log in to unmask] T: 01784 41(4103) http://www.rhul.ac.uk <http://www.rhul.ac.uk/> http://www.rhul.ac.uk/siteelements/external/logo/standard.gif