OVERVIEW

Businesses know that it costs an estimated six times more to get a new customer than it does to keep an existing one – so why have poor access to your services? Bad access results in 67% of disabled customers recommending an alternative while good access results in 92% returning and recommending your businesses.

Ensuring access for disabled customers raises the standards of access for all customers and users of public services. In the UK, 93% of disabled people live in their own residence and benefit from the provision of accessible goods and services as do 40% of the UK population who are over 45 years old.

Many adjustments needed to make goods and services accessible are of relatively low-cost and may only involve adaptive re-use of existing spaces or re-thinking service delivery. Alterations are beneficial to disabled and non-disabled customers alike, including families with children who often welcome buildings and facilities which have been made accessible to disabled people.

In the UK, 18% of potential employees are disabled in some form, including people with epilepsy, cancer, schizophrenia, Down’s syndrome and many other types of impairment. By creating an inclusive business environment, employers can avail of the many talented people who were previously unavailable due to lack of inclusive environments or business policies.

EMERSON ARCHITECT help businesses implement ‘best practice’ to make it easier for disabled people to use their services or gain employment. We provide Access Audits for existing premises and Plan Appraisals for renovations and new build projects, ensuring that new environments are fully inclusive.

We understand that financial constraints affect all businesses, despite their enthusiasm for change and by identifying barriers covering both physical and non-physical elements, we prioritise solutions. We can then help businesses to develop a strategy for change that is responsive to services, customers, employees, and of course their budget.

Many changes are as cost effective as re-use of existing spaces, yet to create a successful inclusive environment; people change is probably the other most important element.