Enhancing the accessibility, adaptability and usability of Scotland's homes: consultation

Annex A – Section 1 of Part 1 of the current Housing for Varying Needs design guide: People’s needs

The clauses within Section 1 of Part 1 of the current Housing for Varying Needs design guide are set out in the table below.

1 People's needs

1.1 General needs

1.1.1 People's needs and abilities differ, but to live independently everyone needs a home that they can come and go from without difficulty, in which they can access and use the accommodation and fittings and operate the controls and services. Houses and flats should be designed to make this so for as many people as possible, including those whose mobility, dexterity, hearing or sight is impaired.

1.1.2 Many people have such impairment. The Scottish House Condition Survey 1996 [1] indicates that 144,000 households include a member who walks with the help of a stick or a frame, or who uses a wheelchair. Older people constitute almost a sixth of the population of Scotland and this proportion will grow. These two groups overlap, but nevertheless they form a sizable part of the population and their needs must be recognised in the design of housing.

1.2 Older people

1.2.1 Older people are generally defined as those over the age of 65. This gives a possible age range for the group of 25 years or more, during which time people's needs are likely to change.

1.2.2 Older people's main need in the design of their home is that it allows them to live independently and provides a safe and secure environment. Not all older people are significantly impaired, though obviously there is a likelihood of them becoming less mobile, less dexterous and less able to reach or bend and less able to see or hear well.

1.2.3 Most older people live in ‘ordinary’ housing and wish to remain there as long as possible; the design of their home should assist in this. Even when a move is necessary, usually to a smaller house or flat without the need to climb stairs, most people continue to lead relatively active lives. Their home should be of a size that allows them to entertain friends, pursue hobbies and retain favourite belongings. If they become less able to be out and about, such things become even more important.

1.2.4 It is known that there are around 61,000 people in Scotland with a diagnosis of dementia, 60% of whom live at home and the vast majority of whom are in the older age group. Their disabilities take the form of impaired memory, learning and reasoning and their need is for fittings and components that are easily recognised and for visual help in finding their way around.

1.2.5 It is not anticipated that self-contained housing will be designed specifically for people whose mental state is impaired, but that adaptations may be required to compensate for their disabilities. The needs of people with dementia can conflict with older peoples’ other needs; ‘novel’ fittings, such as lever taps and pad type switches, though easy to operate will be confusing. Guidance on the specific design needs is given at appropriate points in this text and summarised in Chapter 20 (20.3). However, it should be noted that knowledge on designing for people with dementia is at an early stage, though developing rapidly.

1.3 Ambulant disabled people

This description embraces a wide group of people with a range of mobility problems or lack of agility and strength, but whose physical disability permits them to walk with or without the use of walking aids and some may occasionally use a wheelchair. The majority will be in the older age group but many people may have problems with mobility at other times in their life, due to accident or temporary illness. The design need is for a home that is easy to move around with a walking frame or sticks or crutches, has a bathroom that can be adapted to their needs and fittings and service controls that are within reach and easy to use.

1.4 Wheelchair users

1.4.1 People who use a wheelchair for most or all of the time have this particular feature in common but otherwise their needs will vary considerably. They may or may not have upper body strength, which affects their reach, their dexterity and their possible need for additional technological aids and/ or resident carers. Some people have multiple disabilities. Some will have a progressive illness.

1.4.2 A wheelchair user may live alone, or with a carer or partner or be part of a family unit. In family housing it can be an adult or a child that uses a wheelchair or in some instances there will be more than one member of the household who uses a wheelchair.

1.4.3 The design need is for a home that provides a completely step-free environment, space for a wheelchair to circulate and access all rooms, a kitchen and bathroom that suits the occupant's particular needs and fittings and services that are within reach and easy to use.

1.5 Other specific needs

1.5.1 People with impaired sight need good levels of light and tactile indicators on controls. Those with impaired hearing need visual or tactile alternatives to bells or alarms.

1.5.2 Other factors such as mental health or the need for support needs will affect the form of housing that is most appropriate. In some instances this will be shared or group housing with integral support (see Part 2).

1.6 Meeting these needs

1.6.1 Housing has to be adaptable to suit these different needs. One of the overall problems of meeting the housing requirements of people with a particular need is matching people to suitably designed housing. The more flexible and adaptable housing is the less this problem will be. It is possible to list precise impairments against specific design needs, but housing should be of a design that allows flexibility over its lifetime for the different needs of occupants with different abilities.

1.6.2 When design briefs are being prepared every opportunity should be taken to consult with likely occupants.