Welcome! We hope you find our new website helpful and easier to navigate. It's now as easy to use on your smartphone as your desktop. Take a tour and please tell us what you think.

Accessibility

The Municipality of West Perth is committed to ensuring that our goods, services and facilities are barrier-free to everyone.

The Province of Ontario released Provincial legislation called the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act in 2005. The County and the Member Municipalities must meet the requirements of accessibility standards including:

  • Customer Service
  • Information and Communications
  • Employment
  • Transportation
  • Design of Public Spaces

The Municipality of West Perth is responsible for filing a bi-annual Accessibility Compliance Report with the Provincial Government. Members of the public may request a copy of the Municipality of West Perth Accessibility Compliance Report.

In order to help us meet the requirements of the AODA, we have created:

The County of Perth has a Joint Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) made up of people who live across the County. Under the law, the majority of AAC members must be people with a disability.

Some of the activities of the Perth County AAC include:

  1. Reviewing site plans and drawings for new or proposed improvements to a property.
  2. Reviewing designs for new or proposed improvements to outdoor play spaces, external pathways or recreational trails.
  3. Reviewing multi-year accessibility plans and annual status update report
AAC Meetings

The County of Perth AAC meets at 1:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Perth East Municipal Office, 25 Mill Street East, Milverton, ON.

AAC Meeting Agendas and Minutes

Perth County Joint Accessibility Plan

The County of Perth has approved the 2023 Status Update of the Joint Accessibility Plan (2023-2027) for Perth County.

To review the document, click HERE

If you require this document in an alternate/accessible format, please contact info@perthcounty.ca or call 519-271-0531 ext. 210

As outlined in our Corporate Accessibility Policy, we are committed to providing accessible customer service. Upon request, we can help you if you need a different format of a document or communication supports.

Do you Respect Accessible Parking Spaces?

It is important to leave accessible parking spaces open for those who are legally entitled to use them. Please respect the space.

What are Accessible Parking Permits?

Accessible Parking Permits are issued by Service Ontario to either a driver or a passenger with a disability or health condition. When people use mobility devices such as wheelchairs or walkers, their disability is obvious. However, some health conditions are invisible, for example, people with heart or lung conditions. Permits are issued to people, not vehicles so that people living with a disability can use the permit in any vehicle. That person must be in the car for the permit to be valid.

The province began issuing new accessible parking permits with enhanced security features in 2016. The features, which include machine-readable barcodes, raised markings and serial numbers, help to confirm that a permit is authentic. An Identification Number contains key information that describes the permit holder including first and last initials, gender and decade of birth. Permit abusers are easily identified.

In the Municipality of West Perth, if a person uses a permit not issued to them or parks in that space without a permit, it can result in a fine of $300, and the car may be towed and the permit may be seized.

Parking in an accessible space with no permit?

What are some valid reasons for parking in an accessible space without a permit?
There is no good reason to park illegally in an accessible space.

None of these excuses will get you out of the $300 fine:

  • I need to drop off a few heavy things
  • I won’t be a minute, I only needed to pop in to pick up something
  • I have a disability, I just forgot my permit
  • I don't have a permit, but I find it very difficult to walk
  • I am a pensioner, so I am entitled to park near the shop
  • I was going to miss my flight if I didn't park there
  • I'm doing a few things for my dad and it's his permit
Can I park in the striped space (access aisle) beside an accessible parking space?

The short answer is NO.

In addition to the accessible parking space, the striped access aisle next to the accessible parking space is needed by people using wheelchair lifts and/or assistive devices to get in and out of their vehicle. It is never okay to park in the access aisle, even if you have a permit.

#RespecttheSpace

Please do the right thing. Accessible parking spaces help to reduce barriers for people living with disabilities. You can help remove these barriers: Respect the designated parking spaces and the people who need to use them.

Print and Post a Poster!

Businesses in the Municipality of West Perth are encouraged to print and post one or all of the #RespecttheSpace posters to share this important message!

Parking in an accessible space with no permit? Running Late? Lazy is not a disability These lines are not for parking

I'll just be a minute Would you pay $300 to park in any other spot? No Parking Permit? The access aisle is off limits

For more information, contact:

Accessibility Coordinator

County of Perth

519-271-0531 extension 141

Email the Accessibility Coordinator

 Accessible Documents
  • WCGA 2.0 Level AA: The Municipality of West Perth is required to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA for content on websites. If you are providing services that will result in the creation of documents for the Municipality of West Perth, then you will be required to create those documents in an accessible format in order to meet WCAG 2.0 Level AA.
 Accessible Location Applications

There are several applications or ‘apps’ that will show you accessible businesses, hotels and restaurants in Ontario, Canada and the world. ASXMap, and AccessNow are just a few in our part of the world. All of these apps rely on the public to keep the information up to date.

Accessible Transportation Services 

There is a listing of accessible transportation services provided by organizations servicing member municipalities, the City of Stratford, the Town of St. Marys, and surrounding areas within the County of Perth, including the Municipality of West Perth. This information is available on the Southwest Healthline website, under "Transportation - Accessible - Huron and Perth."

 Winter and Summer Accessibility Tips

Barriers exist for people with disabilities year-round, but some of these barriers are increased at different times of the year. There are some simple things that you can do to reduce or eliminate barriers in your community and make the way safer for everyone.

Winter Accessibility Tip Sheet

Summer Accessibility Tip Sheet

Service Directory for People With Disabilities

There is a directory of services for Huron and Perth Counties which support people living with intellectual or physical disabilities; for families and caregivers as well as individuals. This information is available on the Southwest Healthline website, under "Huron-Perth - People with Disabilities."

 Age Friendly Community Planning

The Municipality of West Perth, along with the other Member Municipalities in the County of Perth is committed to Age-Friendly Community Planning. Go to the County of Perth Age-Friendly Community Planning page to find out more about how Perth County is planning for meeting the needs of our aging population.

 Accessibility Resources for Designers, Builders, Architects and Engineers

If you are working with the Municipality of West Perth on any infrastructure improvements (buildings, external pathways, recreational trails, etc.), please refer to our Accessibility Resources for Designers, Builders, Architects and Engineers.

Contact Us

Municipality of West Perth
160 Wellington Street
P.O. Box 609
Mitchell, ON N0K 1N0
Phone: 519-348-8429

Subscribe for Updates

Stay up to date on the municipality's activities, events, programs and operations by subscribing to our News and Notices.

Sign Up Today!