The digital Building Accessibility Handbook 2020 is now available.
The new Building Accessibility Handbook reflects the British Columbia Building Code 2018 accessibility requirements. The 2018 British Columbia Building Code is based substantially on the 2015 National Building Code. The handbook is a separate resource that provides explanatory text and illustrations to support Code users to better understand and apply the complex Code requirements to make buildings more accessible.
The Building and Safety Standards Branch consulted with accessibility partners, industry experts, and homeowners and applied Gender Based Analysis Plus principles to understand which features people found useful and those that could be improved.
The 2020 handbook is designed to support BC Building Code users to create more accessible buildings. Some key changes include:
- A refreshed title to reflect the intention of the handbook, which is to support universal design and access to and throughout buildings;
- Incorporating the British Columbia Building Code 2018 accessibility design requirements as well as intent statements and attributions to provide the reasons for requirements and support Code application;
- Renewed commentary, to increase clarity and readability, and illustrations, to represent diverse building occupants; and
- Links to leading standards, programs, and resources to provide additional accessibility guidance.
It is important to note the handbook is not a design guide or a training manual. It does not replace the need for formal Code education or qualified individuals trained on accessible building systems and design.