Question About Clients with Limited Mobility.

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Mrs.Clooney

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Hi Geeks, I wonder if anyone could please share their thoughts with me on the following: (and Sassy, I promise I'm not asking anybody to do my college homework, lol :lol:).

If one is planning to open a home salon in an upstairs room, are there any laws regarding this where clients with limited mobility eg. wheel chair bound, are concerned?

My thoughts on this are that one would regrettably have to turn away clients like this as they would not be able to access the salon via the stairs (and I've only ever seen one very old home with a lift!).

If this is the case, can this be counted as discrimination against people with limited mobility. Could it create legal issues.

Any thoughts peeps or any ideas on the legalities please.
 
I wouldn't have thought there would be any issue with this.

In my area there are loads of beauty therapists operating above hairdressers etc where they is only a narrow staircase as access.
 
I too have wondered about this. If anyone had a problem getting into my premises ( a few steps and not very wide entrance to my home salon) then I would go to them instead, this way I hope there would not then be a problem.
 
would you not need to check with the local authority

it may differ depending where you live
 
When I had a room upstairs in a salon I offered a mobile service to disabled or elderly clients because of this.
 
our salon is located upstairs and the way we get around the dissabilty dicrimination law is by offering a mobile service to people who can not manage the stairs:confused: luckily we have never yet encountered this problem but i think a part from having another way for dissabled to access your salon / room then offering a free home visit if required is the best way around this problem. if you simply said no then i think you could fall foul of the law? :eek:
 
Hi,
I'm giving you this information on the understanding that I am not a lawyer, disability rights person, etc. I am just interested in the rights of people with disabilities. These are my interpretations of the Act only.

If you look at the act (link below) it gives detailed info.
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (c. 50)


The parts that would particularly apply to you, I think, are as follows.

PART III
Discrimination in Other Areas
Goods, facilities and services

19 Discrimination in relation to goods, facilities and services (1) It is unlawful for a provider of services to discriminate against a disabled person—
(a) in refusing to provide, or deliberately not providing, to the disabled person any service which he provides, or is prepared to provide, to members of the public;

(In other works, you can't just say - Sorry, you're disabled. I'm not going to treat you.)



21 Duty of providers of services to make adjustments (1) Where a provider of services has a practice, policy or procedure which makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled persons to make use of a service which he provides, or is prepared to provide, to other members of the public, it is his duty to take such steps as it is reasonable, in all the circumstances of the case, for him to have to take in order to change that practice, policy or procedure so that it no longer has that effect.
(2) Where a physical feature (for example, one arising from the design or construction of a building or the approach or access to premises) makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled persons to make use of such a service, it is the duty of the provider of that service to take such steps as it is reasonable, in all the circumstances of the case, for him to have to take in order to—
(a) remove the feature;
(b) alter it so that it no longer has that effect;
(c) provide a reasonable means of avoiding the feature; or
(d) provide a reasonable alternative method of making the service in question available to disabled persons.

(This means that you should try to provide the service by other means if possible, e.g. offering to visit their home if this is practicable for you, or allowing them to have the treatment in a downstairs room, again if practicable ie not lugging treatment couches downstairs as this can cause you injury.)

As the stairs are in your home, you wouldn't be expected to put in a lift, etc. If you offered one of the above work arounds, you would be fullfilling your obligations under the act. Not sure what would happen if you didn't want to offer these to a disabled person if they asked. Probably nothing, as other areas in the home are used by family members and I wouldn't think you would be expected to make an area a "temporary salon" for the duration of their treatment.

Hope this helps, and remember these are just my opinions!
Marion X
 

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