If buildings could twitch or shuffle nervously, then many would be doing that now and we would be witnessing some very strange sights across our towns and cities.

Recent legislation means that by the year 2004, most structures will have to be accessible to all. The Disability Discrimination Act 1996 already makes it unlawful to treat people with impairments in such a way that those impairments become disabilities. And when the new regulations come into force, service providers will have to take reasonable steps to remove, alter, or provide alternatives to physical features that make it difficult or impossible to use a service.

To those of us with impairments - which are effectively disabilities because of society's lack of understanding and provision - this cannot come soon enough. We have dreamt of a barrier-free environment for a long time and welcome all moves to help create this. However, before steps and stairways can be bypassed, a lot of money needs to be spent and a lot of work to be done.

To make the transition smoothly, effectively and in time, there are going to be many demands for the services of people with relevant skills. People trained in the field of design, the built environment, and with knowledge of the legislation itself are what is needed. And this is precisely where the University of Northumbria in Newcastle comes in.

The university has a course designed to meet this need. The course is the Postgraduate Diploma in Accessible Environments and it addresses issues such as access design, access advice and discrimination legislation. The main aim of the project is to develop the concept of a fully accessible environment into mainstream education and to produce graduates with the ability to provide practical solutions. The units which make up the course include such areas as perspectives on disability, discrimination legislation, access design and access advice centres. Chris Rowlands, who leads the course, says: "Very often it is the environment that disables and, by giving all our graduates an awareness of this, we hope to make a positive impact on future construction projects."

The course attracts students from diverse backgrounds. Those with degrees from any discipline are welcome; those with other qualifications and/or suitable work experience can also apply; and people demonstrating a willingness to work hard but without an academic background will be considered. As Chris Rowlands explains: "There is no need for prior knowledge. We are happy to look at applicants from all walks of life. You don't necessarily have to possess a first degree, or even come from a construction background. The main thing a student would need to possess is commitment to the idea of improving access."

One person who backs the need for such thinking is Niall McMurtry. He graduated from the course two years ago and now works as an access adviser for Disability North, an access and information organisation for disability issues based in Newcastle. Niall, who is visually impaired, said: "A whole range of people can be affected by a lack of thought in the design of our environments. My job is to look at how that can be remedied, not only for disabled people but also for older people and other groups."

Other areas graduates from the course might typically move into are access auditing, advice offices, answering inquiries from surveyors and local authorities and the qualification could act as a springboard for work in any number of different fields. Students can go on to work in a wide variety of occupations, all equally influential when it comes to improving access.

The cost to students is likely to be in the region of £2,500 for this full-time, one-year course. But there may be help at hand for those who meet the eligibility criteria due to support from the European Social Fund. Prospective students classified as disabled or unemployed usually qualify for help in respect of course fees, travel, subsistence and other associated costs such as child care and carer assistance. So, effectively, there ought to be few, if any, restrictions on attending the course for those who feel compelled to work in this area. Any queries are welcomed by the university at the address in the panel, right.

Most responsible owners of properties affected by the new legislation will not want to fall foul of the law. They will seek advice from course graduates regarding cost of alterations, penalties for failing to comply, design matters and interpretation of the Act. Costs can be considerable - such as £8,000 for a wheelchair lift - and owners will want realistic advice on this and sources of grant aid and possible donations.

There is already an obligation in law that service to disabled people should not be refused, or of a lesser standard than it is to others on the grounds of disability alone. From October 1999, additional requirements were made such as exempting working dogs from dog-free areas and bringing shop goods to areas where they could be reasonably seen by shoppers with problems of access to regular displays.

At present, the onus is not on physically altering buildings, fixtures or fittings to aid access but it is this aspect that will change in 2004. From that point onwards, physical changes will be required to be made by law. In premises that can now only be reached by steps, physical changes will be required to be made by law. Premises will need to make permanent alterations such as installing ramps for wheelchair users. These rules will apply to any place that the public can enter - cinemas, nightclubs, restaurants, cafes and local authority buildings, for example.

Service providers responsible for such venues will undoubtedly wish to comply with these new demands. They will perhaps feel it would be more cost effective to make these changes before 2004 and the Act does not prevent this. Questions will need answering and these answers can be met either by directly attending the university's course or by consulting those who have graduated from it and have the required expertise to help.

Since discrimination is often unintentional and usually stems from a lack of awareness about disability, it is important that service providers can access support and information. A situation where the provider might wrongly assume that it could not cope with serving a disabled person must not be allowed to arise. Similarly, one where the provider might assume that their particular service would be of no benefit or interest to a disabled person.

It is to be hoped that dialogue will open up in the intervening years between service providers and service users with disabilities. The information provided by the University of Northumbria's course should go a long way towards making that happen.

Published: February 13th 2001