Jordon Steele-John has been in Parliament House for less than two days, but he's already in pain.

This morning the High Court announced that the disability advocate would replace Scott Ludlam as the Greens senator for Western Australia.

The 23-year-old has already overcome several barriers; he is not only the youngest person to ever serve in the Senate, he is also the first person with a disability to sit in the Upper House.

But the obstacles he confronted on day one in the building were prosaic — and unyielding.

First, his wheelchair barely fits through the narrow doorways of Parliament House.

That means he has already scraped his knuckles bloody and raw on the doorframes while moving from office to office.

Jordan Steele-John says he's scratched his knuckles trying to navigate his way through narrow doorframes ( ABC News: Stephen Dziedzic )

The new senator was not bitter about it, but could not help but wonder why it was so difficult for him to move around an institution, which is meant to welcome all Australians.

"This isn't a reflection on any one person involved in the running of our wonderful Parliament House, the staff have been fantastic," Senator Steele-John said.

"We have to ask ourselves the question, though, why our parliament, which is the people's place, the people's house, never considered that someone with a disability would be a minister, an MP or a staffer."

Staff in Parliament have been scrambling to install ramps throughout the building to ease the new senator's passage.

They are also making some major adjustments to his office, although it will take weeks for it to be ready.

Parliament House staff have been busy modifying the Senate chamber in preparation for Jordan Steele-John's arrival. ( ABC News: Nick Haggarty )

Senator Steele-John's wheelchair is not the first to travel down the halls of power. Labor MP Graham Edwards, who lost his legs during the Vietnam War, served in the Lower House from 1998 to 2007.

But the new Greens senator's slow and sometimes painful progress still surprised leader Richard di Natale.

"For a building that's only 30 years old it's remarkable that it takes someone like Jordon to come into the parliament to demonstrate it's completely unsuitable for someone with a disability," he said.

"The nearest [disabled] toilets are a long way away — just getting along the carpet has proved to be a huge problem."

Jordon Steele-John has already faced several obstacles trying to make his way around Parliament House. ( ABC News: Stephen Dziedzic )

The new senator's arrival will not only bring physical changes.

Under existing standing orders for both houses of parliament, members must rise before they address the parliament.

But one of the first items of business on Monday after the new senators are sworn in will be to change them, to ensure Senator Steele-John is not expected to stand.

Senator Steele-John was quick to laugh when discussing the way his arrival would overturn age-old precedents.