Accessible homes benefit everyone | #ForAccessibleHomes News

#ForAccessibleHomes is a critical campaign. We are all getting older, we have an ageing society across Europe and beyond, and with age comes an increasing likelihood of disability and impairment.

Designing homes from the outset that have some elements of inclusion, and thinking ahead in terms of accessibility, is a brilliant way of stopping bedblocking and all the distress and other difficulties that come with falling ill, and suddenly finding yourself in a home that cannot be adapted for your needs either temporarily or permanently.

I think across the UK the baseline standard should be equivalent to Category 2, which is similar to the Lifetime Homes standard. Basically, it’s future proofing, so it predicts that over your lifetime there will be some change in your circumstance. Whether that’s using a double buggy when you have children or maybe you temporarily need crutches and require wider doorways, if you’re caring for someone or have a disability yourself.

All of the features included in the Category 2 standard, such as building in a way that supports future adaptations, aren’t very costly and are easy to do from the outset when developing new homes. We need this to happen on every new build in the UK. Accessible homes benefit everyone, and I hope that #ForAccessibleHomes will bring this issue to the forefront of everyone’s minds.

For more information on supporting our #ForAccessibleHomes Day of Action on Friday 8 September visit our page for supporters. You can support the campaign on social media by signing up to our Thunderclap.

Jean Hewitt is Director at the Centre for Accessible Environments (CAE), the UK's leading authority on inclusive design. CAE works with a number of clients across the UK and overseas providing advice and support, consultancy services, design appraisals, access audits, training and writing editorial and design guidance to help clients deliver more inclusive environments.