We all use lifts so much, they have become so ingrained as part of our culture, that we perhaps rarely stop to consider where they come from and how much they have revolutionised modern life.  Its 152 years since the first elevator was introduced to the world and fans are keen to point out that our modern way of high-rise living would have been impossible if we were still dependant on stairs for ascending upwards towards the heavens.

The first lift was unveiled by Elisha Otis to much grandeur and drama at the New York City trade fair; he even cut the rope above the suspended lift carriage to show how well the brakes of the invention worked and attempt to prove its safety to sceptical onlookers.  The lift crossed the Atlantic to England in 1860, when the first one was unveiled in the Grosvenor Hotel in London. At this time it had the rather wonderful name of an “ascending room” rather than that of a “lift” or “elevator”.  Such ‘ascending rooms’ soon moved away from being the novelties of the uber-rich and entered the urban landscape of London. The notion  of being able to travel upwards with such ease and speed led to the realisation that sky-scrapers could be brought into reality and an entire 20th century ethos of business and architecture based on hierarchy and power was born.

Lifts are not only interesting because if their technological brilliance Psychologists, such as Gary Fitzgibbon, are keen to point out how lifts “break all the usual conventions about the bubble of personal space we carry around with us”; such studies and reports on the psychology of lifts point out that people tend to have a fear of them not because they fear they may plummet to their death but because they fear getting stuck in them, often with a group of complete strangers.

There is, of course, an element of sexuality involved with lifts too. The notion of bringing strangers together in an intimate space and then forcing them to make conversation or show their social standing through how they behave has fascinated anthropologists and led to many significant studies. Despite the old age of the lift, it keeps re-inventing itself. In Switzerland, a plan to build an underground railway station beneath the Alps means that an immense lift shaft would have to be built stretching almost a kilometre back to the surface!

A lift which had broken down a staggering 40 times in three years has now been the cause of one man’s tragic death; the 61 year old from Stafford plunged down the lift shaft during a rescue attempt.  The hotel chain has been fined £400,000 for not acting on over 30 recommendations to repair the lift. The ignoring of these recommendations has now led to one man’s death.

The company had said that the £20,000 needed to update the antiquated lift had not been readily available at the time and the defence council stated that: “The group did intend to fully modernise the lift but it did not do so in time”.  What makes Mr. Fareham’s death all the more upsetting is that it could have been avoided.  Health and Safety experts have confirmed that, if a steel apron had been fitted underneath the cage of the lift, as is standard with more modern lifts, then this would have caught the victim and would have more than likely saved his life and prevented him from serious injury.

The prior quoted Defence QC has said that the death is not the result of “turning a blind eye” or deliberate negligence on the part of the owners. He has claimed that the company was not made fully aware of the dangers the lift posed and has also pointed out that if Mr. Fareham had stayed within the lift he would almost certainly have been rescued by one of the safety engineers who were working to fix the problem. Mr Fareham had said that he needed fresh-air and was trying to lower himself from the lift to the second floor when the accident occurred. However, the group did plead guilty to the charges brought against it; those charges being a failure to adequately train staff and another one based around providing sufficient risk assessment. Such a guilty plea saved the group from paying two separate £300,000 fines but the £400,000 fine is still a stark warning to anybody else who may attempt to avoid making vital safety improvements to their lifts.

The lift has now been repaired and made fully safe and the hotel itself has been sold on to another company; this will be of little consolation, however, to those who are mourning the loss of Mr. Fareham, who was due to give a speech at a conference the day after he fell to his death.

India has been left outraged and appalled as an eight year old girl has been crushed to death by an escalator in the major airport of the country’s capital city. 

Jyotsna Jethani perished after an escalator in the arrivals lounge bizarrely ripped open after a passengers travel bag was caught up in it.  The horror of the incident was summed up by the Indian Times which said:  If escalators can kill in the capital of the country and that too at the airport, which is a gateway to India, things are quite bad”.  An immediate and prompt investigation has been called for the Civil Aviation Minister, with a two-member enquiry committee ordered to report back its findings on what went wrong within 24 hours. Such a speedy deadline only serves to re-emphasise the nationwide outrage which has greeted this tragedy.

The girl’s parents, obviously devastated by the horrific way they have lost their child, refused offers of compensation, saying that had the money been 50 times as much, it still would not give them back their child.  The family had arrived for a regularly scheduled flight on Monday morning, but there trip soon turned into something akin to a horror movie when there was a minor stampede on an escalator when a passenger’s bag became stuck.  In the mêlée which ensued, the young girl became trapped in what has been described as the “gaping” hole which had opened up at the bottom of the escalator. “She was flailing her legs and screaming, but I could do nothing,” the girl’s mother has tragically recalled. She went on to reminisce about how nobody would help them, stop the escalator or help to pull her out. After the panic had settled two parents were left without a daughter and India itself was left with a national tragedy.

Consumers in a shopping centre were left shocked after a man tragically fell to his death off an escalator. The Cornerhouse Complex in Nottingham was left stunned when Christopher Harris fell two floors from the escalator on a Thursday.  He did not die instantly from the fall but, after being taken to the Queens Medical Centre he succumbed to the seriousness of his injuries.

Obviously, the first concern of the Health and Safety inspectorate was to determine what, if anything, might have caused the fall. An examination of the escalator determined that it was safe and that no faults had occurred to cause Mr. Harris’ death. Thus, it was an investigation which really raised more questions than it did actually answer, but the shopping centre itself will be relieved that they are not to blame for the tragedy which took place.

A spokesperson for the shopping complex has said that: “The Cornerhouse are working with the police and relevant authorities to fully investigate the incident and our deepest sympathy goes to all friends and family”. The spokesperson went on to reiterate that “The escalators are serviced and maintained to correct standards and were in fact inspected and cleared after the incident by a registered escalator engineer”.  This would seem to be backed up by the coroner who has confirmed that the death is not considered suspicious and will thus not investigated as such. Thus attention turns from trying to find someone to blame, as there is nobody to blame, to finding how such an accident took place and how Mr. Harris sadly lost his life.

We all use escalators every day and Mr. Harris was no different, stepping onto one at quarter-past four on a regular Thursday as he shopped in the Cornerhouse.  He could not have known the tragedy that was about to happen and his family and friends must be devastated at the sudden loss of Mr. Harris in such peculiar circumstances.  Hopefully the Nottinghamshire Police’s appeal for witnesses will be heeded and someone will come forward who will be able to shed some light on what actually happened. Whilst it has been made clear that nobody is at fault, nor that the death is suspicious, his family, friends, and the Cornerstone shopping complex as well will want the closure of knowing how such a horrific accident could take place and what measures are needed to stop it happening again.

An accident involving a ski-lift has raised concerns about its safety and the thoroughness of the safety checks which were carried out on the gondola a few short months before the accident occurred. Whistler is due to host many events in the 2010 winter Olympics and such publicity as this will not be welcome by a management who have just spent in the region of$52million promoting the brand new Peak 2 Peak Gondola.

More than 50 people had to be evacuated during the accident, which saw one of the towers supporting the gondola collapse. Skiers were trapped in around 30 separate gondolas for around 3 hours in temperatures which got as low as -10 Celsius.  The lift was built in 1994 and had recently undergone an extensive safety inspection. After this latest accident, one must raise queries about the thoroughness and acceptability of such inspections.

The main focus for Whistler now will be trying to distance the accident on Excalibur from the new multi-million Peak 2 Peak lift.  Whilst the troubled Excalibur links the base of Whistler’s two mountains, the brand new lift spans the near 3-mile gap between their summits.  It is an ambitious project and a lot of money has gone into ensuring that it is as safe as is possible. Clearly an accident that high up could be much, much worse than one which occurs at the base of the mountains.  The British Columbian Safety Authority loaded each part of the Gondola with 2250kg of concrete to test whether it could hold the weight (it could) and every possible back up, from power-supply to motor has been taken care of. The owners are clearly determined to make sure that mistakes, if there were any with Excalibur, are not repeated this time around.  The P.R campaign for Whistler is now shifting from promoting this new lift to repairing the reputation of the site in general; customers need to be confident before they step onto the fantastic new lift in the sky.

Whistler will now be looking towards the 2010 Winter Olympics to help rebuild its reputation and restore its prominence as a world leader in ski holidays. No serious injuries occurred in this accident which the resort must be thankful for. Its customers and its management have to pick themselves up, dust off the snow and begin to climb that tricky mountain towards consumer confidence once again.

Passengers at the Sunderland Metro Station can, if they’ve got any breath left after struggling with prams, heavy bags and suitcases, breathe a sigh of relief now that they are to be given a new lift.  It comes as part of a larger £7million refurbishment of the platforms and the station which has been funded by Nexus.  Amazingly the station’s main concourse, the main thoroughfare for the thousands of passengers which pass through every day, has been without a lift since the renovation work began in March. Passengers, and station bosses too, will likely now be very relieved that a passenger lift, an essential service, can now be offered once again.

Refreshingly, much of the renovation work which has been going on at Sunderland Metro Station has been carried out at night and thus passengers, whilst many have been without a lift, have not also had to combat severe delays and disruption.  There is now not just a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, but a dazzling shine, as passengers are spoiled for choice with two lifts and a brand new escalator all helping commuters and visitors to the station have a much more relaxing and enjoyable experience.

All walls, ceilings and lighting fixtures were replaced during the massive revamp and it is hoped that such changes, along with the afore mentioned introduction of an escalator, for the first time ever at the Sunderland Metro, will make the place more inviting and make it an integral part of the North’s 21st Century travel infrastructure.  The station has had problems in the past with vandalism and it is hoped this work will create a more enjoyable station for everyone to enjoy.

Ultimately the message seems to be one of convenience.  Passengers in wheelchairs, the elderly and those with small children will now find it much easier to navigate the station and travel, often stressful at the best of times, will now be that little bit easier. The inclusion of an escalator is also an important step in terms of bringing the Sunderland Metro Station into the 21st Century. Such inclusions will heighten convenience but, it is hoped, will also help curb vandalism by creating a station which has a much more modern look and feel. Commuters to and from Sunderland will now be able to lift themselves above the stress of travelling.

Going out to a nightclub is one of the fundamental rite of passage for any young person within our society however, for disabled people, such a rite of passage has long been much harder to achieve. New Government legislation is aiming to change all that. All clubs with at least 25 members would have to adhere to disability discrimination laws if Government proposals to close the legal loophole are accepted.

Private clubs have long been successful in resisting sex discrimination laws but they may well find it much harder to fight this latest attempt to make such notoriously restrictive clubs more accessible; accessible in both senses of the word. Such clubs will be consulted on the extension to the Disability Discrimination Act over a period of weeks. Under the changes, the clubs would not be allowed to discriminate against members who were disabled or disabled people who were prospective members of the clubs. They would also have to make “reasonable” efforts to make their spaces more disabled-user friendly by making changes such as bringing in lifts and ramps or widening entrances. Those clubs failing to comply with this legislation could, if it were passed, have to pay compensation or be liable to suing for not adhering to the new laws.

Its not just clubs which would be affected by this legislation, political parties themselves are deemed, under law, to be private clubs and thus ministers are hoping that the changes will help bring more disabled people into active engagement with the political process.  “The change will help to further open up all areas of social and public life to disabled individuals,” commented Bela Gor, head of legal affairs and policy for the Employers Forum on Disability.

The move has drawn objection from some members of private clubs however, who feel that their traditional autonomy and independence is being encroached upon with Government legislation. However disabled rights groups have claimed that a compulsory change in the law is the only thing which will help solve the current situation; they have pointed out that voluntary Civil Rights legislation have rarely worked.  The Royal Air Force Club in London is one such private members club which is leading the way, installing a ramp to help its members, the average age of who, in the non-serving members, is 65. It is hoped more clubs will follow this lead and ensure that they are accessible, in every sense of the word, to the disabled population of England.

The Government has made the bold statement that all homes must be wheelchair-friendly by the year 2013. This ambitious project is being spearheaded by Caroline Flint, Housing Minister and Hazel Blears the Communities Secretary and the two Government frontbenchers have published a list of 16 requirements which they say all new houses must meet.

By 2011, all social housing will have to be built to these “lifetime home” standards and, if private house builders are not following the standards voluntarily, then they could become compulsory in the private sector too in 2010.  The features which will have to be included range from adequate space for a stair-lift to an entrance-level toilet. It is hoped that spending money on such features when houses are newly built will drastically reduce the costs for older people in future generations of adapting their houses so that they can remain in them rather than entering the nursing-home system.

The money-saving won’t just stop in the home though.  1.25 million old people are admitted to hospital every year because of falls in the home and this costs the NHS about £750million. Adapted homes, it is hoped, could cut the number of falls by up to as much as a staggering 60% and this would obviously save the NHS a drastic amount of money which could then, possibly, be diverted into other budgets for care of the elderly. 

Policy Director for Help the Aged, Paul Cann, has welcomed the move, stating that: “Older people often tell us that they want to live in their own homes for as long as possible. This strategy will hopefully be a springboard to this becoming a reality.” However, the Government’s proposals have not met with universal acclaim across the board. Builders are worried about the impact upon their business.

A spokesperson for the Home Builders Association has commented that:
“Until and unless government clarifies fully what it has in mind, we are concerned that this is yet another potentially costly policy initiative, in addition to the code for sustainable homes, renewable energy requirements, higher densities and more social housing.” 

Shadow Housing Minister, Grant Shapps has added his concerns: “we are concerned that the government has sprung these moves on to business … without any apparent consultation with the house-building industry.”

One thing is clear, that this could be a vital way to help old people retain their dignity and remain living in their own homes.

Charities such as Help the Aged have said that they are “appalled” by the latest Government action over old people.  The Government has announced that it will relax its proposed rules on room sizes and availability of single rooms, baths and other conveniences in nursing and residential homes throughout England.   Charities have said that it is elderly people who will suffer as the result of this latest U-Turn from Westminster.

Care Home Owners are likely to be pleased with the outcome, they had been lobbying for such a U-Turn to take place for quite some time; they claim the new rules will be too expensive to implement and thus many homes would be force to close.  Senior Policy Advisor for Help the Aged, Annie Stevenson, has commented that: “The real people who will lose as a result of the government u-turn are older people themselves. All older people, regardless of their income, should have the right to live in a room of their own, with space for visitors and some of their personal possessions. No older person should ever have to expect to share a room with a complete stranger.”

Health Minister Jacqui Smith has commented back, saying that the Government listened “to care home owners, residents and their relatives about the national minimum standards” and that “older people should not have to worry about how their home will meet the costs of some of the more challenging standards”. She went on to argue that now standards had been relaxed, care homes should be able to provide a better quality of care.

However, Help the Aged are not the only people unhappy with this Government decision; Gordon Lishman, the director-general of Age Concern U.K believes that the original aim, of improving the lives of elderly people in care, was being forgotten or lost. The Government does have at least some support for its amendments to the its policy though, the National Care Homes Association commented that the move marked a return to common-sense and pointed out that many homes had been struggling with the financial reality of implementing the changes the Government had proposed. The Chairman of the NCHA, Nadra Ahmed said that, for some care homes, it was already “too late”.

Let’s hope we can find a solution which will keep care homes open but also give our older citizens the care and dignity they deserve.

Arguably the most famous and prestigious theatre in the country, the Bristol Old Vic, has announced that it will be suddenly closing to allow for a £7million refurbishment of the premises.  The curtain will come down on August 1st 2007 with an expected reopening time being tentatively discussed as December 2008. As well as the obvious disruption to performances, 45 people are expected to be made redundant and artistic director Simon Reade will also leave the company. 

What’s troubling the theatrical community is that the opening production of the new season at the Old Vic was to be a production of Rough Crossings; a show which was a joint production with Headlong Touring Theatre, the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse and the Lyric theatre in London.  Ian Brown, artistic director of the West Yorkshire Playhouse confirmed such fears when he commented: “There’s a question mark now over how Rough Crossings is going to open and go on the road – that’s putting a lot of companies in a very difficult position”.  However, David Farr at the Lyric Hammersmith has said that the show will go ahead but added that:

“I thought we had seen the end of this short-term panic reaction where a theatre closes its doors with almost no notice”.

The  theatre has commented that the sudden closure has come after an unexpected £1million donation from the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts and that this money is being put to use carrying out essential repairs to the Grade 1 listed building as well as addressing health and safety concerns by working on the wiring and the plumbing within the theatre.  New seating, an air-conditioning system and better disabled access are all also expected to be improvements made with the donation. The donation is to be topped up by funds from the Arts Council, a local Council grant and an appeal.

Rupert Rhymes, the chairman of trustees for the theatre, has acknowledged the sudden closure of the theatre but has said that: “The decision is a difficult one, but we had little option given the deteriorating state of the building, issues of health and safety and the need to improve the comfort for audiences”

Hopefully when the theatre reopens it will have been worth the wait and many more seasons of groundbreaking original theatre will be able to take place in the newly-refurbished Old Vic.