“True accessibility is about not having those barriers in place, not having to do all the thinking to be able to visit somewhere and alert someone to the fact you’re there. Just being able to do things as everyone visiting that place is.”
- Disabled Persons Assembly of New Zealand chief executive Prudence Walker
Not Built For Me: Auckland mum's sadness as disabled son excluded from society
Stuff is running a series on how people with disabilities are forced to navigate a world that is often not built to suit their needs.
This one in particular struck me, especially since Auckland Council has just recently opened a brand new swimming facility in Albany, which has no dedicated changing area for disabled patrons. There are pool ramps for water wheelchairs and pool hoists which is great but the lack of space to get changed is a pretty obvious gap. This is being addressed, but will cost about $205,000. Estimates suggest that providing for these sorts of facilities during the design and construction reduces the cost ten-fold.
While it’s good that we’re fixing the gap, we must make sure we don’t repeat these mistakes. There are plans to build a new aquatic centre in Ormiston and we must take this opportunity to build a world class facility not just for some, but one that's accessible to all.
If we get this right, it will be the first of it’s type in the upper North Island, going a long way to closing a pretty significant gap in access to something that most kiwis would consider a fundamental part of living in NZ - swimming.
Access for all must be core to the design, not an afterthought or retrofitted.
Full article is here: https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/300468379/not-built-for-me-auckland-mums-sadness-as-disabled-son-excluded-from-society