Disability Discrimination Act - Access to Goods and Services for the Disabled

Making Access to Goods and Services Easier for Disabled Customers: A Practical Guide for Small Businesses and Other Service Providers

About this guide

This practical guide is intended to help small businesses and other service providers in all sectors of the economy find ways of providing better access to goods and services for disabled customers. Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA), if you provide goods or services to the general public - whether paid for or free-of-charge - you are a "service provider" and you have responsibilities under the Act.

Small service providers are likely to be independent rather than part of a chain and to employ only a small number of people, and they are unlikely to have in-house technical resources such as a building services department or facilities manager.

The guide will help you:

• understand the implications of Part III of the DDA
• think through how customers with different disabilities would access your premises, goods and services and how this might be improved
• understand the issues better and guide you on how to make the best decisions
• focus particularly on making reasonable adjustments to the physical features of your premises in readiness for new duties coming into force in 2004
• find the advice, information and other help that you might need