This section reports on how agencies have made their buildings accessible and safe for disabled people.

Key achievements in having accessible buildings (see graph five)

• Several agencies have moved buildings, and have ensured their new premises are accessible.
• Several agencies who lease buildings have presented their concerns to the building owners regarding accessible features like talking lifts, Braille signage in lifts, accessible entrances / toilets etc.
• Some agencies who own their own buildings have had them audited for accessibility and are working through the audit recommendations.
• In 2006, 70% of responding agencies met the regulatory access requirements including compliance with NZS 4121:2001. This has increased to 74% in 2007.
• There was a substantial increase in the number of agencies confirming their offices have Building Code compliance – this rose from 70% in 2006 to 87% in 2007.
• There was a substantial increase in the proportion of agencies who reported they had passed accessibility audits – from 15% in 2006 to 42% in 2007.
• In 2007, new questions were asked on whether agencies had clear walk paths through floors (76% of responding agencies replied they did), whether there are assistive listening devices available (21% of agencies replied yes), whether they had talking elevators (11% did), and whether they had Braille labels in elevators (39% of agencies advised they had these).
• Another area where good gains were made was in having accessible reception areas. This increased from 75% in 2006 to 84% in 2007.
• In 2006, 50% of agencies reported they had lowered public counters for people in wheelchairs or with height and reach limitations. This increased to 68% in 2007.
• Disability responsiveness training was completed by only 30% of responding agencies in 2006, but in 2007 this has doubled to 60% of responding agencies.
• A similar increase was recorded of staff being familiar with the New Zealand Relay Service. This increased from 35% of agencies in 2006 to 58% in 2007.
• In 2007, 71% of agencies reported having clear and visible signage, and 53% had accessible car parking nearby.
• There was an increase in the percentage of agencies that have included accessibility as a requirement in their IT procurement contracts. In 2006, 40% of agencies did this, and in 2007, this rose to 47%.
• The final two questions in this section are new. Agencies were asked if they have safety and evacuation procedures that specify the needs of disabled people (staff and visitors) and 71% of agencies said they did. In addition, 18% of agencies reported they have fire alarms with flashing lights to alert hearing impaired / Deaf people in emergencies.

Graph five - accessible buildings