How it all started
Polling station wheelchair access
What I did to try to overcome it
I could not get into a polling station to vote. So contacted local council and ask them about it and the electoral office at local council they didn't have a clue about what equality act was. So contacted electoral commission they don't have a complaints department? Then contacted the equality commission and they were not bothered as it was a local council not a company.
How it made me feel
The time when the officer brought the ballot paper and ballot box out into the car park one for me to lean on and put paper into ballot box and had people looking at me in my wheelchair I felt embarrassed I haven't been in chair long and it's the thousand eye feeling.
The outcome
There was not as equality commission where not interested in any way and could not believe how it was a case of if you want anything done about it do it yourself. Council had the same attitude and all they said was by the next time we hopefully by then we might of done audit on access hopefully but when a year later we had local election and had issues I got in after about 20 minutes later. Electoral commission said they would raise the issue in a meeting about any issues at polling stations but don't know if it was.
Final thoughts
Equality commission didn't want to know as it wasn't a company it was a local council. For example when there was talk about football ground access equality commission we're happy to talk to media saying they would prosecute the clubs. That's a example probably because I follow football so was in my interest but it comes over as we will go after the big boys but not government offices as that's who we help that's my opinion.
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