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Accessible Homes Design Tips for 2023

Jun 28, 2023

  1. Open Plan

There are many design features which make moving about easier. As a standard rule of thumb, an open-plan scheme with plenty of space around furniture always works best.

Wheelchair users, in particular benefit from additional open space. Wide doorways and pocket doors both create practical, aesthetic and space-saving capabilities in a home, making navigating around trouble-free and seamless.

  1. Accessible front doors & driveways

When considering your accessible design features, factor in the best solution for entering and leaving the home and entering and leaving your vehicle. Space around your vehicle is key as well as a suitable area for positioning a ramp. Also, a gentle slope leading to the front door is enough and there be a zero-step entrance. If there is an unavoidable level change, opt for handrails which come in many finishes to suit your style.

  1. Inclusive Layouts

Everyone living in your home should have access to every part of your home and be able to use everything in your home. Kitchen designers often vote for a triangle formation between sink, fridge and cooker, but this layout is impractical for someone with limited mobility. The better option is a task orientated layout where there is plenty of space around each area and your design plan is based around different chores. Fold-out and extending worktops, lower surfaces and appliances set at a good level all make life easier.

  1. Moving around the Home

There are many clever design features which improve your experience when you move around your home. Good sound insulation for anyone with limited hearing decreases reverberation between rooms and soft surfacing, such as carpeting, adds to this effect further. For limited mobility a stylish home lift is a wonderful way to make your route between floors safe and smooth, with no risk of tripping or falling. Lighting is also important depending on your condition. Consider glare, illuminance level, light colour quality and light distribution.

 

  1. Universal Design

Universal Design represents an approach to choosing features things that can be used by everyone, everywhere. It is a movement as well as a philosophy of design, one that is rapidly picking up in popularity because homes become fully inclusive for you, for every life stage and for visitors or elderly relatives or friends. Zero-step entrances, accessible half-bathrooms, and a wide-enough path of travel connecting activity areas makes your come design a ‘visitable design’ and a considerate design. Light, sunny rooms with generous views to the outdoors and design features which are appealing and practical for everyone, encapsulate the ethos of Universal Design. A beautiful aesthetic as well as being enormously practical design.