Day Care Centre Embraces Equality Act

Aug. 31, 2011 - PRLog -- Many older adults lead active happy lives, but those living on their own sometimes find themselves a bit lonely. Indeed, with age comes the inevitable decline of health, which often makes day-to-day socialising difficult.

However, for people living in Petworth and the surrounding area, help is at hand. Petworth & District over 60’s Day Centre is at the heart of the community. Open twice daily,  it offers older adults the chance to get together, take part in activities such as raffles and bingo, or just have a cup of tea and a natter.

The Day Centre was established in 1972 and opened its doors in January 1973 in New Street, Petworth Charity No. 265875. It moved to its present premises in Trumper's Lane, (Off East Street,) Petworth in 1984.

Established nearly 39 years ago, the centre has over 80 members. It recently installed a movemanSKG Prima platform lift to allow those with mobility issues to overcome a short flight of steps and access the building. The Centre was very fortunate to receive a Legacy of £10,000 to enable them to provide this important and necessary facility to upgrade the Centre.

Ruth Vivian, Chairperson of the committee that runs the centre, explains: “Making premises accessible to the less able is not just ethical, it is a legal requirement of all public buildings under the recently introduced Equality Act, which strengthens anti-discrimination laws in the UK.

“We fully support the Equality Act and, after consulting movemanSKG, decided a platform lift would be the best solution. However, we faced certain challenges. The main entrance is a confined area and our budget could only stretch so far. Also, we were keen to provide a lift that members could operate independently. movemanSKG recommended Prima.”

Prima has a platform measuring 1220 x 750mm, making it highly compact. This mean it fits in tight spaces, yet is spacious enough to comfortably accommodate a wheelchair user. The controls are user-friendly and ergonomically positioned, enabling simple independent operation. In addition, Prima represents outstanding value for money. For Petworth & District Day Centre, it was a perfect choice.

movemanSKG’s team installed Prima quickly and efficiently, minimising disruption to the centre’s activities. It makes the building fully compliant with the Equality Act and helps less able centre members enjoy an active social life.

Prima lifts 225kg short distances, which makes it popular for customers with light-duty access requirements. A shallow ramp allows users to enter and exit the lift, and forms a wheel-stop when the unit is in motion.

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movemanSKG is a supplier of specialist lifts. It supplies platform lifts and service lifts for industrial and commercial applications. These include schools and colleges, hotels and restaurants, shops, leisure centres, churches and libraries.