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A sign of the times

In this nanny state in which we live, do we really need to put up signs in public toilets that say “Now please wash your hands”?  Isn’t it our upbringing and preference for personal hygiene that determines the likelihood of us washing our hands, rather than a public sign?

And in this politically correct world, I feel as though we may be going a bit far when those signs saying “Now please wash your hands” are also printed in Braille.  Have you noticed this is becoming increasingly widespread in public toilets in pubs, hotels, trains?

I just want to be clear before I continue.  I have absolutely nothing against blind people and am in favour of legislation that helps to fight discrimination.

Instead, this is about the response of some of us and how inappropriately we react to disabled people.  My concern is that this solution smacks of someone with sight, not thinking through their actions. 

We’re not quite sure what to do, so rather than do nothing or design something suitable, we make up an ill-conceived attempt at a solution to make ourselves feel better and tick a box of political correctness.  Because how useful is it for blind people for those signs to be stuck on a wall.  What are the chances after they come out of a cubicle or having used a urinal that a blind person is going to feel their way around a toilet facility to establish if, by any chance, someone has put up a sign specifically for them in Braille? 

Speaking to a representative from JMU Access Partnerships, one of the UK's leading access consultancies, that works alongside the royal National Insitute of Blind People (RNIB), she confirmed that as a blind person herself, these signs were completely pointless because she didn’t even know they were there.  She acknowledged that Braille on doors, in lifts and for directional signage were however helpful.

Equally absurd are the yellow hazardous signs proclaiming ‘Slippery When Wet’, which also come with a Braille inscription.  Is it not possible that as a blind person, by the time you get to discover the sign, you’ve already had an accident?  But fear not, you can also buy a sign, with Braille, identifying the First Aid kit.

But doesn’t this just sum up the situation when it comes to average corporate communications in many large businesses.  There’s the Boardroom message which is evident everywhere, but in the wrong format with no-one actually finding it.

Meredith