information - Scottish Natural Heritage

Countryside Commission for Scotland
Battleby Redgorton Perth PH13EW
Perth (0738) 27921
GENERAL NOTES ON DESIGN FOR ACCESS TO
THE COUNTRYSIDE BY DISABLED PEOPLE
'Provision for all'
In general, an attempt should be made to cater for
all people, avoiding 'special' provisions for people
with disabilities wherever possible However, in
some instances — toilets, for example — special
facilities must, of course, be provided
By following this principle, misguided attempts to
provide facilities of too ambitious a nature in the
countryside for people with disabilities can be
avoided The countryside cannot be manipulated to
accommodate them to the extent in which the built
environment can; not only would it be impractical
and impossibly costly to do so on a wide scale, but
it is unlikely to be desired by the majority of those
with disabilities.
Information based on "Designing for the Disabled" by Selwyn Goldsmith,
RIBA Publications, 1976
©c.c s
INFORMATION
SHEET
17.1
Simple detailing related to popular sites with car
parking and toilet facilities will provide, at modest
cost, most of what is required by the majority of
people with disabilities when visiting the
countryside; most importantly, the provision will not
appear 'special' and may not even be noticed
except by people who have a disability. The types of
consideration and detail required can be
summarised as follows:—
I. If possible choose level sites.
2 Ramps and steps should be provided where
changes of level cannot be avoided See
Information Sheets 17.3 and 6 14/15/16/19.
3 Handrails should be capable of being gripped
by weak and stiff hands, and be weight
bearing. See Information Sheet 17.4
4 Unobstructed paths should have a
guide-rail/fence/tapping rail or some other
means of defining the route See Information
Sheet 17.4
5. Ground surfaces should be non-slip and firm.
See Information Sheet 17.6
6. Advice should be sought and followed on
specialised provisions such as Braille
Information Boards from the local Association
for the Blind
7. All toilets should have a disabled persons
compartment. See Information Sheet 17.8.
8. Furniture should be so designed as to
accommodate wheelchair users and other
people with disabilities. See Information Sheet
17.9
9. Barriers, such as kissing gates should,
preferably, be avoided, but where necessary
be designed to accommodate wheelchair
users. See Information Sheet 4 8.13.
10. Stiles should not have more thar, one upright
so that the walker with a stiff knee-joint can
swing over without difficulty. A hand-hold is a
great help See Information Sheet 4 9.12.
II. Treads to stiles and steps should be of a
generous proportion. See Information Sheet
4.9 12.
12 Provide reserved car parking spaces See
Information Sheet 17.2.
13. Install displays or direction signs at low level
so that wheelchair-bound people and children
— as well as the able-bodied — can read
them with ease.
14. Type size no smaller than 38 mm (1 J") will aid
legibility for those with impaired vision.
15. Access routes with physical restrictions on
either side (boardwalks, bridges, footpaths
etc.) more than a few metres in length should
be wide enough to allow the passage of a
wheelchair in one direction and a walker in
the other. See Information Sheet 17 9.
16 Remember that disability can take many forms
and vary in degree — joint stiffness,
amputation, paraplegia, deafness, blindness,
muscular weakness, respiratory and cardiac
impairment and so on