Clubs fail on disabled standards

Only Bolton and Blackburn meet the recommended spacing requirements outlined by the association, although Arsenal come close with 96%.

Tottenham, Portsmouth and Fulham fall short with less than a third of the required space at their grounds.

It is estimated 30,000 disabled fans regularly attend matches in England.

The National Association of Disabled Supporters (Nads) laid out their recommendations in their Accessible Stadia Guide in 2003, which was endorsed by the Premier League and the Football Association.

However, the majority of top-flight clubs are failing to meet the required wheelchair spaces four years on.

A report by 5 Live drew responses from Chelsea, Portsmouth and Fulham with Chelsea, who provide less than half the required seating, pointing out that they provide free tickets for disabled fans at home matches.

Portsmouth said they would aim to increase their capacity for wheelchair spaces should they move to a new ground in the future.

A Fulham statement said: "Fulham Football Club has recently received approval by the local authority for planning consent to redevelop areas of the ground.

The club will continue to investigate ways in which improvements can be made to the current facilities at Craven Cottage for all of our supporters.

"This is in-line with the club's guiding principle of providing a 'Best in Class' service and to be inclusive to all fans."

However, a Nads statement said: "Nads feels that is important that clubs meet these demands whether they are in the business of building new facilities or not.

"Nads believes that clubs should now be moving towards reconciling disabled seating supply and demand and the guidelines.

"It may be that with the pressures exerted by owners and shareholders to maximise profits, the only way forward will be through government intervention and clear legislation."

Exhibit celebrates the beauty of the disabled

In a bid to change the way society looks at disabled people and to celebrate their beauty, the City of Cape Town is to launch a photo exhibition featuring French models with various forms of disability.

The dramatic photo exhibition, which will take place from 2 to 29 February 2008, will be officially opened by the Cape Town mayor, Helen Zille on Friday as part of the Suidoosterfees to promote cultural exchange.

"I fully support this initiative to reconcile the notions of disability and beauty and to change the way society looks at disabled people as well as the way people with disabilities look at themselves," said Mayor Zille.

Entitled "Aesthetic and Disability", the exhibition will be held in the Cape Town Civic Centre concourse.

The city said that the powerful gallery of images was conceptualised by Deza Nguembock, and produced by top photographers, Angele Etoundi Essamba of Amsterdam and Cherif Boubrit of Paris.

Mr Nguembock and Ms Essamba both live with the after effects of childhood polio.

"We decided to launch the exhibition in Cape Town because the Executive Mayor, Helen Zille, was the first public figure to respond positively to our invitation," said Mr Nguembock, who was born in Cameroon but now lives in Paris.

He said they wanted to use their talents to rehabilitate the image that society has for disabled people, and to enrich the image of disabled people in different societies.

"I am thrilled that the world premiere is taking place in Africa, where people with disabilities are not set apart, but form an integral part of society.

"The world will be looking to Cape Town to see how people react to this concept," said Mr Nguembock.

The exhibition includes photos of Nicholas Bissardon of Lyon, a 25-year-old upcoming model who has a birth malformation in his limbs and Evelyne Breton of Marseilles, France - the country's wheelchair marathon race champion for 2000, who became a paraplegic following an accident.

The self-funded project took 12 months to complete and most of the photos were shot in a Paris studio.

After its Cape Town showing, the exhibition will return to Paris and possibly tour New York and Tokyo later this year. - BuaNews, Cape Town

Arc aids developmentally disabled

To some, cleaning tables, swiping cards and interacting with customers is just another tedious day at work. However, it is a step toward independence and a sense of accomplishment to the people the Arc of Orange County serves.

The Arc of Orange County works with local developmentally disabled residents to help incorporate their skills into the community.

The nonprofit is increasing the resources available to these residents with the newly formed Employment Support Services.

The main focus will be to assist individuals in finding paid employment, said Christian Keller, director of group programs and specialized services.

"These guys have a lot of viable and useful skills, but they just need that extra support to go through the process," Keller said.

The month-old department is working with eight people currently, and new referrals come in everyday, Keller said.

"We're just starting to expand the program," said Michelle Antonelli, employment specialist for Arc. "Our goal is to serve many more than that."

Arc works to provide disabled residents with the resources they need to locate, secure and maintain a competitive employment position.

Keller said they try to place clients in jobs that complement existing interests and skills.

"If someone really loves music, we'll look into some of the record stores or a place where they can be working with folks that play instruments," Keller said.

Arc has provided this aid before. They've set up summer internships and volunteer opportunities for clients at local businesses for years.

"We have done bits and pieces of employment support services but nothing to this extent," Keller said. "Now we can put all of our energy and time into helping clients find jobs."

One client already works at Café Carolina in Meadowmont Village.

"It allows him to be around and talk to people he wouldn't normally be exposed to," said Sam Rhule, Café Carolina general manager. "He gets to learn … communication skills and how to deal with people."

Rhule said he would encourage other businesses to become involved with Arc's employment services.

The most successful part of the program is the individual's sense of pride and independence in their vocation, Keller said.

"It's a real job. It's not something that's made up for them," Keller said. "They're in a real business with a real job. They are being able to be productive and contributing members of a society."
Source: The Daily Tar Heel

Disabled parking rules should be enforced

(From UK)
I Sympathise with Jane Ogilvie and Paula Caulton over their problems with Blue Badge parking (Letters January 1 and January 7) Unlike them I have never felt discriminated against or asked why I am parking there.

I actually look disabled as I am an elderly a wheelchair user with one leg.
For me it is a necessity to park in a Blue Badge bay and like Jane and Paula I have problems when these bays are abused by people without a Blue Badge because it prevents me from shopping independently.
Today, thanks to the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act, disabled people are now being treated as equal members of society. We have dropped kerbs, automatic doors, wide shopping aisles, lifts, etc.
The service provider is at last beginning to value the customer with a disability, but not yet realising how important it is to be able to park their car. The spending power of the customers with disabilities is £70bn so why not help us spend it?
Monitor disabled parking bays and fine people using them without a Blue Badge.
John Coxhead.

Pay Toilets Welcome Wheelers

New York City opened its first of 20 wheelchair-accessible, self-cleaning, public pay toilets in Madison Square Park in December. The usage fee is 25 cents for 15 minutes, after which the automatic door swings open and a 60-second self-cleaning cycle begins.

Since the 1800s NYC has had public pay toilet problems. The city outlawed public toilets in 1975 because they discriminated against women — there were no stalls. Subsequently, the city won a class action suit in 1993 that originated because of complaints by a homeless group about the lack of public toilets. Cemusa, the Spanish advertising company that won the bid to install the new toilets, will also add hundreds of news stands and bus shelters. All surfaces of the outdoor furniture, even the toilets, will be sold for advertising.

Source: NewMobility.com