CAN/ASC-2.8: Accessible Ready Housing
Scope:
The purpose of standard CAN/ASC-2.8 is to ensure the technical requirements for accessible ready housing are equity-based. This requires going beyond minimum technical specifications.
Accessible ready housing is a way to design homes that can adapt easily to an owner’s needs. It allows an owner to select features that they need without being required to adopt all features related to accessibility. This adaptability also allows an owner or new homeowners to easily make changes to the home to suit their needs or changing needs.
There are common areas in residential housing where people with disabilities may experience barriers. These areas include, but are not limited to:
- level entrances
- interior and exterior paths including ramps
- main floor washrooms
- kitchens
- laundry rooms
- stairs
- wider doors and doorways
means of emergency egress (exit)
This standard will set out accessibility requirements related to the elements for accessible ready housing, including but not limited to:
- level entrances
- interior and exterior paths including ramps
- main floor washrooms
- kitchens
- laundry rooms
- stairs
- wider doors and doorways
- means of emergency egress (exit)
This standard will enable architects, designers, and builders to design a house that is accessible ready, allowing homeowners to select those features that are most suited to their needs. This means that not all accessibility features would need to be included in the constructed home. However, because the house is accessibility-ready, current and subsequent owners will be able to make future changes to the home more easily and cost-effectively.
This standard will also align with the relevant technical requirements found in the following Accessibility Standards Canada standards:
- CAN-ASC-2.3: Model Standard for the Built Environment – Accessibility for Federally Regulated Entities as Defined in the Accessible Canada Act (under development)
- CAN-CSA/ASC B652:23: Accessible Dwellings
- CAN-CSA/ASC B651:23: Accessible Design for the Built Environment
Project need:
Accessibility Standards Canada was created under the Accessible Canada Act. Its mandate is to prevent, identify, and remove barriers to accessibility for Canadians with disabilities. In pursuit of this mandate, Accessibility Standards Canada develops standards based on the needs of people with disabilities. These needs have been identified in consultations with Canadians with disabilities, including the Governor in Council appointed Board of Directors, who are primarily people with disabilities and have approved the development of this standard.
Accessibility Standards Canada’s standards apply to federally regulated entities, including the federally regulated private-sector, as defined within the Accessible Canada Act and applies to federal government programs. Accessibility Standards Canada also works with Provincial and Territorial partners to identify additional stakeholder needs across Canada in order to increase harmonization.
In addition to these identified needs, Accessibility Standards Canada standards are developed following the principle of “nothing without us.” This means that Accessibility Standards Canada standards are developed with:
- research that has been led by people with disabilities or lived experience
the participation of people with disabilities on our technical committees. These committees produce equity-based requirements that take into account the needs and perspectives of people with disabilities.
This also means that the public review process for this standard will be accessible, allowing even more people with disabilities to be part of the standards development process.
Note: The information provided above was obtained by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and is provided as part of a centralized, transparent notification system for new standards development. The system allows SCC-accredited Standards Development Organizations (SDOs), and members of the public, to be informed of new work in Canadian standards development, and allows SCC-accredited SDOs to identify and resolve potential duplication of standards and effort.
Individual SDOs are responsible for the content and accuracy of the information presented here. The text is presented in the language in which it was provided to SCC.