Consumers buy things that they want and need now rather than purchasing things with the future in mind. Well, that makes sense. For everyday items this poses no problems. But for expensive, longer lasting items, such as a home, it can be a problem. Many older Australians live in a home that was purchased in mid life. It was suitable then. But now that cherished home is challenging their independence in older age. That’s why all homes should have universal design features.
A new report based on a survey of care-givers, both paid and unpaid, provides insights into their experiences and observations on the impact of home design on their caring role. The researchers found that housing design features and proximity to amenities had a value that extended beyond those of residents. That is, it facilitates community capacity and social engagement, physical wellbeing and ease of providing care services.
The executive summary concludes with a statement that supports universal design in housing for people to age well:
“The public value implicit in universally designed housing is conceptually demonstrated by associated increases in ageing well outcomes and reduction in the need for, the level of, and the time spent on, care to support positive ageing outcomes (ie. generating efficiency gains in achieving ageing well outcomes).
The key findings of the study
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- Universal design features impact on the level of care needed to support ageing well.
- The location of the home and access to amenities also has an impact on the level of care needed.
- The time needed to support people with basic living activities is reduced.
The title of the report is, Exploring the economic value embedded in housing built to universal design principles: Bridging the gap between public placemaking and private residential housing.
The study was undertaken by RMIT University and the Longevity Group Australia.
From the abstract:
We explore the public value implicit in housing incorporating universal design principles. Value is conceptually demonstrated by identifying housing design and location attributes, associated with increases in ageing well outcomes via the reduction in the time spent on caring duties.
A survey captured the experiential knowledge of in-home care service providers and their observations of the impact of the home on the ageing well outcomes.
We found that certain housing design and location features have value that extends beyond that experienced solely by its residents. It also facilitates community capacity and social engagement, physical wellbeing and ease of delivery of public services such as care support.