HISTORICAL pubs, shops and churches across the district are struggling to implement new disabled access laws by the October 1 deadline which could leave them open to litigation if ignored.

Companies which fail to provide "reasonable" disabled access to their premises and services could be sued under the fourth and final phase of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995.

The Act requires all public service providers, from libraries and public transport to restaurants and shops, to offer the same level of accessibility to a disabled person as they would to anyone else.

This move has been welcomed by equality campaigners and disabled people but the district's many listed and historical buildings are proving a stumbling block.

Essex Access Forum chairman Peter Lainson said: "In Epping Forest a lot of buildings have such history that it makes it more difficult to make appropriate provisions for disabled people than it would be in a new town."

What is deemed "reasonable" access has yet to be tested in the courts, although the need for some flexibility is widely recognised.

Epping Forest Chamber of Commerce president Heather Thirtle said: "Listed buildings are a real problem here. Most churches are raising money to put in wheelchair ramps and disabled toilets but it's not easy for them."

Disability advisor to Epping Forest Council's disability advisor Peter Smith said: "A balance needs to be struck between picking our heritage apart and catering for the disabled."

Stuart Poulton, of Beaconfield Avenue, Epping, was disgusted by the service Pizza Hut in Edinburgh Way, Harlow, offered his eight-year old son Jack, who suffers from cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, branding the premises an "absolute joke".

He said: "The tables were all upstairs and for him to get up there he had to go outside to take a ramp up and come back in, which isn't fair. There was an open-plan lift by the entrance to take a wheelchair up the few steps but it wasn't working and was filled with boxes.

"The staff told us it hadn't worked for a year."

Pizza Hut has apologised and said the lift fault was only temporary.

There are 766 adults and 158 children registered disabled in the district.

Mr Lainson added: "Hopefully they'll recognise there's a lot of value in making the changes and broadening their customer base.

"These provisions should be a win-win situation for everyone."