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Key findings of the review

10 - Accessibility compliance

Purpose

To examine the Council's application and enforcement of the Building Code's requirements for access and facilities for people with disabilities.

Background

The Building Act and Building Code contain requirements to ensure people with disabilities are able to enter a building and carry out normal activities and functions within a building. These provisions include sections 117-120 of the Act. A range of training courses is available for staff to enhance their knowledge and skills in this area.

Initial review

The review noted a significant number of instances of accessibility non-compliance with sections 47A, 38 and 46 of the Building Act 1991. These included:

  • no signage for access or car parks for people with disabilities
  • accessible toilet area being used for storage
  • no accessible entrance provided to a main building.

It was evident that further training of Council staff in accessibility compliance was required.

Recommendations to and actions taken by the Council
Recommendations made to the Council Action taken by the Council before the follow-up review
Develop appropriate process support and documentation to assist building control staff to assess building consents for accessibility compliance and ensure completed work is also compliant. The Council had not implemented this recommendation.
Provide staff with training opportunities to ensure accessibility requirements of the Building Act and Building Code are consistently applied by processing and inspection staff. Six staff completed a Barrier Free training course.

Follow-up review

The Council had begun to implement the recommendations of the initial review, with six staff having attended Barrier Free Trust training on accessibility. Despite this training, the Department found evidence that compliance with accessibility provisions was still not being consistently achieved and that access and facilities for people with disabilities was not being consistently considered by the Council when inspecting and signing off work.

The Department also identified that the Council does not have a formal policy or procedure for assessing accessibility compliance. While the Council's processing checklists include information on accessibility compliance, there is no specific inspection sheet to address access and facilities for people with disabilities.

Recommendations to and response from the Council
Recommendations to the Council Response from the Council

Consider methods of improving accessibility compliance such as:

  • developing an inspection checklist specifically for the assessment of accessibility compliance
  • developing and implementing formal policies and procedures for inspection work to ensure all inspection staff use a consistent and effective methodology
  • conducting regular audits of consents processed to ensure accessibility has been adequately considered and training provided to staff is being effectively applied
  • developing and implementing an on-site peer review process for accessibility compliance.
The Council advised that considerable effort has been made to upskill staff in accessibility requirements. It also advised it considers it has sufficient skill coverage in this area.

Conclusion

The Council has partially implemented this recommendation, but has further work to do to develop a policy or procedure for assessing accessibility compliance.