Direct Access refuse to Comment on their Disability Equality Assessment Report!

Thank you to everyone who has signed our petition. We now have the support of 200 people. To bring you up to date.....

On 14th December I sent an email to Direct Access the company that WCBC chose to give their thumbs up to the proposed footway construction on Holt Road in Rossett. The email contained a 3 page letter accompanied by 5 other associated documents.

They refused to comment and suggested we speak to the Council! That must be the Council that refuses to talk to us about this matter?  Below is a copy of the email.

Thanks for your support and please share the petition.

 

Dear Sirs,
 
I refer to your Disability Equality Impact Assessment report dated 15/12/2021 to the Interim Head of Service Development Control at Wrexham Council. (Otherwise known as the Planning Case Officer).
 
To Summarise: 
 
From National Statistics (Wales) it is conceivable that 22% of the population are disabled in some form or other. 
 
A number of experts (in their reports) have already condemned the Councils proposals as unsafe for pedestrians and is likely to cause an increase in accidents.
 
From the developers own documents they claim an additional 365 vehicles and 700 people will be accommodated further along this narrow roadway (which is the shortest route to all the village facilities). 
 
It is estimated that approx. 154 of the new residents living in this proposed development will be disabled. 
 
Wrexham Council want to improve a footway along this road that cannot meet national safety standards for any pedestrians let alone pedestrians with protected characteristics. Your report suggests that 150+ disabled persons should be put at risk because you feel that the footway would be safer but not safe.
 
At times this road becomes a very busy “agricultural highway” and the term used in the report “lightly used” is rather ambiguous, especially when a further 365 vehicles from the new development start to use the route.
 
Your report suggests that the footway would be ok for disabled persons, but you go on to state at the end of your report that you distance yourselves from the conclusions that you reach and that the council should employ some experts - the Council seem to believe that Disability Access are the experts and were looking for your approval which you appear to have given and then withdrawn in the Disclaimer. Which is it?
 
It is with the Councils inability to view without prejudice the safety of pedestrians on this road that we (Rossett Focus Group) have launched a petition to which over 160 residents have already signed.
 
I note that your report is a desktop exercise which brings obvious limitations. Your references indicate that you missed: (a) a key piece of legislation “Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015”, (b) any communications with Disability Wales, and, (c) interviews with local residents.
 
Please see attached letter and associated documents regarding your rather confusing report.
 
 
Yours sincerely