Assistance Dogs, Staffordshire Libraries and the Equality Act 2010

We do not allow animals on our library premises unless they are Assistance Dogs.
The definition of an assistance dog can be found below as defined by the Equality Act 2010.
The Equality Act lays out that in relation to protecting the rights of disabled people when accessing private hire transport, an assistance dog means

(a) a dog which has been trained to guide a blind person;
(b) a dog which has been trained to assist a deaf person;
(c) a dog which has been trained by a prescribed charity to assist a disabled person who has a disability that consists of epilepsy or otherwise affects the person’s mobility, manual dexterity, physical coordination or ability to lift, carry or otherwise move everyday objects;
(d) a dog of a prescribed category which has been trained to assist a disabled person who has a disability (other than one falling within paragraph (c)) of a prescribed kind.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission states that assistance dogs:

• are highly trained
• will not wander freely around the premises
• will sit or lie quietly on the floor next to its owner and are trained to go to the toilet on command and so are unlikely to foul in a public place
• most are instantly recognisable by the harness or identifying dog jacket they wear they wear, although this is not a legal requirement.