With less than a month to go before new disability legislation comes into force, thousands of small businesses across Hampshire have failed to prepare for the changes.

And campaigners have warned they are at risk of being sued as the extension of the Disability Discrimination Act comes into full effect on October 1st.

Under the legislation, employers will have to make sure that disabled customers and staff can gain access to their premises and services. This could mean fitting ramps for wheelchair users and rearranging office or shop layouts.

Smaller employers - with fewer than 15 staff - will have the same responsibilities as larger firms. Bosses caught breaking the rules will be subject to the same penalties as those who discriminate on the grounds of race, sex or religion.

They could end up facing an employment tribunal, or be hauled before a judge in a county court, with fines running into thousands of pounds.

The aim is to give the disabled equal rights of access to employment and everyday services that others take for granted. But recent research suggests that many small firms are unaware of the disability legislation update and risk breaking the law.

According to RNID, the biggest charity for the deaf and hard-of-hearing, just one in five small businesses is aware of the extension to the Disability Discrimination Act and over two-thirds have failed to prepare for the changes.

Janet Marshall, of the Southampton Centre for Disabled Living, advises local authorities, employers and small businesses on the changes. "I don't think a lot of small businesses and employers have taken the new legislation on board, although some are doing good work to make disabled customers welcome.

"Under the Act, firms are required to make 'reasonable adjustments' to their premises or services to make them accessible. The Government says this is a 'common sense approach', so businesses won't be bankrupted by changes they can't afford, but disability rights campaigners have condemned this clause as a potential loophole.

"One of the biggest problems is the word 'reasonable', because there are no fixed goal posts and each case will be judged on its merits.

"What may seem reasonable to me as a disabled person, may not seem reasonable to a small business owner. In some ways, it is a cop-out if it means firms can get away with doing nothing. This is the only piece of anti-discrimination legislation which says if you can justify it, you can still do it."

She added that the law would only become clear when it was tested. "The big charities, like Scope and Mencap, will take the first cases to court. It's just a matter of time."

John Harrocks, chief executive of Winchester Chamber of Commerce, said: "The one concern businesses have had about any new legislation is additional expenditure and red tape, but I think most are looking at it positively.

"Disabled people represent a big market. It makes good sense to make premises and services more accessible to them as potential customers. But there will still be firms out there who don't know anything about the extension of this Act.

"What we are trying to do is get the message across that it is going to happen and they will have to implement it."