Access Audits assist you as a service provider or employer to increase the inclusion of disabled people in your business.

The audit does more than just look at the physical access. Barriers to inclusion are often found in every part of an organisation: the building, the facilities, the activities, promotional and informational material, staff and management attitude.  

Our audits consider the following four key questions:

1. How do you promote your service or job opportunities to disabled people?

2. How accessible have you made your centre or workplace?

3. How inclusive have you prepared the activities and the staff in your organisation?

4. What are the 'hidden barriers' that stop you implementing change in your business?

We carry out an extensive survey to identify these barriers and work with senior managers to find ways to overcome them within their budgets and resources.

Why have access audits?

First, you can increase the quality of your provision and employment by identifying changes that enable disabled people to take part in the same way as others.

Second, you can reduce the risk of a case being taken against you under the Disabilities Discrimination Act (1995), Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Act (2001) and The Equalities Act 2010 through treating disabled people unfairly.

What do access audits consider?

Accessibility

How do disabled people get to your premises?

How do they get in?

How do they move around?

What facilities can they use?

How do they get out?

Inclusion

What activities can disabled people take part in?

What assistance can they get?

How are they treated by staff and other users?

Information

How do they to know about your provision or employment?

What information is available at your site?

How can they get their communication requirements met?

What next?

We start with a pre-audit interview to establish your current situation. We then work with you to carry out the audit using a team of auditors. After which we assist you to plan and prioritise the changes.

Access Audit Tool

Adept has designed & produced a unique software audit-tool, which has now been used for over 250 audits. It has evolved and developed to provide clients from different industries a tool that is easy to use and accessible to people with different access requirements.

The software tool measures the accessibility of physical environments, information and service/employment. Once the questions are completed it delivers a summary planning report for decision makers and stakeholders, and a detailed information & action report for implementers.

Although designed as a self-assessment tool, it is greatly enhanced by using an experienced access auditor who both acts as a facilitator of the audit process and provides advice and guidance.

The on-screen display above shows the self-assessment question for promotional material. A section called guidance, which is usually additional information or sub-questions, supports it.

The More Info button takes you to a document containing detailed information regarding this question. For example, dimensions from Part-M, induction loop information from BS8300, or use of quiet room from 'Good Practice'. You can include the detail information in the report by pressing 'Store info'.

Priority

Each action is assigned a priority using the following criteria:

Is there a disabled person currently using the service, or about to use the service?

And ...

Does the barrier stop or hinder someone using the service?

From this, we can highlight to the service provider high medium and low priority actions.

Planning

This enables the reports to list actions by short, medium and long term planning.

Reports

The software can produce two types of reports:

a) Action Plan - containing actions by target with additional information and photos to carry out the change.

b) Summary Plan - which is in tabular form, used for planning with target, action, responsibility, timeframe and cost.

Accumulative Database

You can accumulate the data from many audits into one database. This is for organistaions that require access audits on multiple premises and will assist the provider to get an organisation-wide picture regarding accessibility and assign budgets accordingly.

Contact us for free exploratory discussion