Effective Consultation

The Equality Act 2010 sets out a clear duty on public bodies such as local and highway authorities to promote equality of disabled people in the practices and policies they undertake and to engage and involve them in:

• Policy development
• The design, delivery and implementation of developments such as the provision of streets and external spaces.

Consultation with local people, including disabled people, older people and children, should be a fundamental part of any street design process, and details of the extent and scope of the consultation should be clearly identified in any Design and Access Statement prepared for planning permission.

Design and Access Statements are part of the Access Statement process which should start at the strategic or briefing level of any development and “grow” through the planning and design stages to guide and inform the management of the completed development.