Accessibility Policy - Part 2

Principles

Responsibilities

The DDA has introduced new duties on responsible bodies of Schools from September 2002 to protect current and prospective disabled pupils from discrimination in every aspect of School life: admissions, education and associated services, and exclusions. At Hawkhurst Primary School the responsible body is the Governing Body in conjunction with the Local Education Authority.

Responsible bodies have two key Duties

• not to treat disabled pupils less favourably.
• to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled pupils and disabled prospective pupils are not put at a substantial disadvantage.

The Less favourable Treatment Duty

This duty requires the responsible body to address 3 questions when determining whether unlawful discrimination has taken place:

• Is the treatment related to the child’s disability ?
• Is the treatment less favourable when compared with a child to whom that disability does not apply ?
• Can the less favourable treatment be justified ?

Less favourable treatment may be justified if it is the result of a permitted form of selection in relation to admissions, or if it is for a reason that is material and substantial i.e. there has to be a clear connection between the reason given and the circumstances of that particular case. Less favourable treatment may not be justified if a reasonable adjustment could have been made but wasn’t.

The Reasonable Adjustment Duty

This is an anticipatory duty and requires the responsible body to consider:

• What might constitute as a substantial disadvantage?
• Does the duty apply to all disabled pupils?
• Is there a breach of duty to an individual?

There is also a requirement to keep policies, practices and procedures under continuous review, and a formal review is undertaken by the Governors annually. The Governors may take into account:

• Standards
• Resources
• Costs
• Practicality
• SEN provision
• Health and Safety
• The interests of other pupils

There are two exemptions from the reasonable adjustments duty which are the provision of auxiliary aids and services, as this is met through the SEN framework and the physical adaptations to buildings, which are developed in a strategic way over time and covered by the planning duty.

The Planning Duties:

The planning duty requires Schools to produce written accessibility strategies and plans. Schools are required to plan for:
Increasing access for disabled pupils to the school curriculum.

• This covers teaching and learning and the wider curriculum of the school such as participation in after-school clubs, leisure and cultural activities or school visits. Improving access to the physical environment of the school.
• This covers improvements to the physical environment of the school and physical aids to access education. Improving the delivery of written information to disabled pupils.
• This includes planning to make written information available to disabled pupils e.g. handouts, timetables, textbooks and information about School events.

Accessibility Audit

Following an accessibility audit undertaken by the Headteacher and supported by the AEN Governor and the buildings advisory service (KCC approved), we have developed an Accessibility Plan with short term, medium term and long term targets covering a period of 5 years.
Targets address inclusion with regards to the building, teaching, organisation, and staffing, and the associated costs will be incorporated into current and future budget commitments, using both delegated and devolved funds.