Caerphilly County Borough Council continues to deliver improvements to make its public buildings accessible for all.
In the last financial year around £410,000 of funding made available from the Council’s Disability Equality Group was used to carry out improvements to 55 properties, including schools, community centres, libraries and offices across the county borough.
The county borough’s school network has seen a wide variety of improvements, including automatic doors, ramps, guard rails and intercom systems. Access at five schools – Heolddu Comprehensive, Rhymney Comprehensive, Lewis Girls’ School, Bedwas Comprehensive and Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni – has been improved significantly thanks to the installation of flexi steps. At the push of a button these unique steps convert to a platform lift to enable safe access for mobility impaired people and wheelchair users. After use the system can convert back to a set of steps.
St Cenydd and Blackwood comprehensive schools already have the flexi steps system installed, along with Machen Primary School.
All county borough schools now have a hearing loop system in place to support those who are hard of hearing. Primary schools have a portable system located at the main reception, while secondary comprehensive schools have a powerful static system in their main halls.
In completing this recent round of works, the number of properties now deemed as being ‘reasonably’ accessible to the Foundation Standard stands at 198. Efforts will now be made to bring even more Council properties up to the Foundation Standard, as well as carrying out further works to bring more properties up to the next assessment level, Foundation Standard +.
Further access works planned for 2014/15, funding permitting, include full access audits of all major sites, assessment of polling stations, and comprehensive assessment and improvement of emergency egress for disabled users from Council public-accessed buildings.
Cllr David Hardacre, Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Performance & Asset Management, said: “The Council has a responsibility to ensure we are providing equal opportunities for our visitors and residents regardless of their age, gender, race or disability.
“While we are all pleased with the significant progress that has been made over the last eight years, there is still work to do to help break down the access barriers preventing some people from accessing our buildings and services.”
