Vol. 453 No. 3
142 Miss M. Wallace asked the Minister for Education the efforts, if any, that are being undertaken by bodies reporting to her to ensure that architecture students are trained in designing buildings accessible to people with disabilities; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9373/95]
Both University College Dublin and the Dublin Institute of Technology run five year courses for the training of architectural students.
In UCD students are required to prepare designs for new buildings, or for the conversion of existing buildings, and it is a requirement that all such designs must take into account the aspect of access for disabled people. From time to time, also, students take part in architectural competitions which focus on access for disabled people.
In the Dublin Institute of Technology students are introduced to the issue of designing for the disabled in year two of the course. From then on all building design projects must include provision for the disabled as a matter of course. In addition some projects have the specific objective of accommodating the needs of the disabled.
All design projects undertaken by students of architecture have to comply with the current building regulations which contain specific requirements dealing with access for disabled people.
