Regional event: Scottish Forum - Customer & service user focus

Sponsored by HBOS

19th May 2009, 11:00am - 4.00pm, Edinburgh

In the current economic climate, it makes business sense to ensure that your goods and services are reaching as wide a market as possible. Disabled people form a significant market - worth an estimated £80 billion a year in the UK alone. However, many organisations are inadvertently turning away disabled customers by failing to recognise and address factors such as:

• Physical access.
• Inaccessible websites.
• Inaccessible telephone systems.
• Inaccessible printed information
• Lack of staff disability awareness.   

Providing excellent customer service is key to organisations securing repeat business and creating brand loyalty. Meeting service delivery targets and expectations are important considerations for both public and private sectors.       

From a legal perspective, the Disability Equality Duty (DED) requires public sector bodies to pay 'due regard‘ to the promotion of equality for disabled people in every area of their work. The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) Part III requires organisations to provide accessible goods, facilities and services. Failing to meet your legal requirements runs the risk of brand and reputational damage.

Regional forums are free to EFD members and provide up-to-date information on a specific theme, determined by member feedback from previous events. While enabling members to network and share best practice, they also highlight how to make the best use of the support EFD membership provides. Members receive an invitation with further details of about the event nearer to the time of each event.

Why attend?

This event enables you to:

• Discover the economic impact and social benefits to your organisation of providing delivering goods and services that are accessible to all.
• Hear directly from disabled individuals about their personal experiences of trying to access goods and services.
• Understand the goods, facilities and services provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA), including any recent cases and legislative changes.
• Identify potential barriers to disabled people in the way you deliver goods and services.
• Make reasonable adjustments to ensure that your products ands services are barrier free to your disabled customers.
• Reinforce your learning through group exercises on scenarios based on queries to our Disability Directions team.
• Share best practice and network with other EFD members. 

Speakers include:

• Rick Williams, EFD Associate and Director, FreeneyWilliams Ltd.
• Bela Gor, Legal Director, EFD.
• Billy Docherty and James Doherty, Senior Employment Advisors, National Autistic Society Scotland.
• Case study - HBOS/Lloyds TSB.
• Case study - Stuart McKenna, Diversity Manager, Merseyside Fire & Rescue. 

Who should attend?

Anyone tasked with creating organisational change on disability, specifically with regard to the delivery of goods and services e.g. customer service teams, diversity and disability practitioners. This event is primarily for EFD members only however, non members will be admitted at the organiser's discretion.