Multigenerational kitchens | PRODUCT FEATURE


Blum’s Space Step enables access to higher cabinets and creates extra storage space in the toe kick of base units


With more people in the UK choosing a multigenerational lifestyle, what exactly is a 4G kitchen, what should it include and how can it best serve a variety of ages and abilities? Francesca Seden reports


A they


ccording to a recent survey by Legal and General of


more than


1,000 UK residents, an increasing number of us are living


in


multigenerational households. Around half of respondents said


believed it would be positive if multigenerational living became more popular, one-in-three thought multigenerational living would one day


become more popular than


nuclear family households. Four-in-five respondents who lived in multigene- rational homes believed


they were


better off because of it, supporting the view that living with multiple generations can yield important intangible benefits, such as combating loneliness. The Office for National Statistics in


2019 found 222,885 households that included a person under 45, an over- 69 and someone in between. A study by the Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research (CCHPR) in 2019, found that amounts to around 1.8 million multigenerational house- holds. A 2020 study by Aviva said a third of UK households could be classed as multigenerational. Whatever the right figure may be, the Founder of Futureproof My Home,


December 2023 •


Franke’s Box Flush Premium built-in cooker hood allows access to some features using voice controls


Karen Fardell, says “a massive 91% of UK homes lack the basic features required to make them accessible, and kitchens are part of this problem”. She adds: “Homeowners over 50 own half of the UK’s housing stock and they want and need to future- proof their homes to make them easy to live in. Research by Future Proof My Home shows they will spend £10,000 more to do so.”


Part of the reason that more aren’t already doing it is because there are lots of resources required to facilitate


it. You really need to own a property and, potentially, land to extend on to. Another contributory factor around the rise in interest could be the language we now use around it.


Needs


For example, Johnny Grey developed his 4G kitchen in collaboration with Professor Peter Gore at the Newcastle University Centre for Ageing, with the aim of creating something that accommodated different levels of need, and which worked for everyone,


All under ONE ROOF


without stigmatising anyone. Grey says that it was “always Peter


Gore’s vision that we move away from talking about ageing and disability and instead start talking about multigen- erational design, and now you do see in design magazines and elsewhere, talk about multigenerational design, not accessible design”. Another reason we are so interested this


in graphics,


lifestyle and


is down to demo- the


fact that it is


demonstrably good for us. As Blum UK ageing and ergonomics specialist Amanda Hughes notes: “One of the fastest-growing demographic areas is the ageing population and, when surveyed, the desire from this group is to age at home and not be moved into institutional settings. This has led to an increased demand for housing that is suited not only to the elderly or mobility impaired, but all stages of life. “It is no surprise that not only do the elderly benefit from being cared for in a family unit, but all ages benefit from this model, emotionally, societally and cognitively.”


kitchen


So, what should a multigenerational look


like? For wheelchair-


using, award-winning designer, Adam Thomas, all multigenerational


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