Creating a Lifetime Home: Design Solutions Part Two

ABOVE: Level thresholds — inside and out: A sleek, contemporary solution, level floor surfaces will make life a lot easier for all, but you’ll need to think carefully about drainage.

Read part one for advice on orientation and planning...

Materials: Maintenance can become a major issue in later life, and costly too. Plan for minimal maintenance by using tried and trusted natural-finish materials that don’t need constant attention.

Wide doorways: Extra-wide doorways are practical, especially for the main access doors, but can also make a great design feature; for instance, a pivot door or a set of sliding glazed patio doors.

Multi-purpose corridors: At 900mm wide, corridors become expensive access space, so why not widen them further so they can become multi-purpose spaces; for instance, a workspace, hobby room or library.

Level thresholds: Not just for those with mobility impairments, a level threshold is a great way to blur boundaries between inside and out, especially via frameless glazed doors.

Walk-in showers: Also known as a wet - room, the floor is sloped gently into a sub - floor drain to form a shower tray, tiled in with the rest of the floor. As well as looking sleek and being easy to clean, wetrooms are ideal for those with movement difficulties. A simple seat can easily be added later.

ABOVE: Open plan room dividers - The option to close off big open spaces is key to occupants’ sanity

Future-proofing: Consider creating a clear centrally located service duct from top to bottom of the property to make it easier to integrate new service runs between each storey, allowing new technologies to be added over the lifetime of the building.

Sustainable design: Energy-efficient features are worthy of serious consideration. Prioritise any available extra budget into building a highly insulated, airtight home with a very low heat requirement first, but if funds are available, consider going further.

Photovoltaics have a ten-year payback under the new Feed-in Tariff scheme and heat pumps have a similar payback, giving around four units of ‘usable’ heat for every kW of electricity consumed. Water conservation through rainwater harvesting has a payback of ten to 15 years.

Easy-access appliances: Drawer fridges, freezers and dishwashers are a good option as they can be set at a height that is most comfortable. In-line ovens, grills and micro - waves are also good options, set at eye level.

Lifts: A practical feature to install in any house with more than two storeys, especially split-level houses, where the entry floor may not contain the main living space or kitchen. Lifts that do not require a lift pit are considerably easier and cheaper to install. If you cannot afford a lift now – the cost will be approx £15,000 – design in the space for a lift shaft for future flexibility.

Separation: The key to survival is separation, whether it be from your children, parents, work, guests, tenants or even your partner. Think carefully how rooms are positioned relative not just to one another, but also through walls and floors. Place the master bedroom suite away from everything else and, if you can possibly find room, create a second living space, and invest in a good level of acoustic insulation between each storey and in between rooms.

Find out more about creating a lifetime home...

See an example of how a home can be designed to evolve with its users...

This article was written in conjunction with Richard Hutchinson, Warren Rosing and Agata Perepeczo, Directors of Kosi Architects, based in London and Chichester. Kosi won the British Homes Awards’ House of the Future competition in 2009 with Valentina Del Fuoco of Afterhourstudio, and is particularly interested in designing customised homes that can adapt to future requirements. Kosi Architects: 020 7622 2534 kosi-architects.co.uk

Further reading:

• Self-building for Your Special Needs
• Building Regulations
• Organic Architecture