48
ROUND TABLE REVIEW: DESIGN FOR DEMENTIA NETWORK 2: CREATING SUPPORTIVE SPACES FOR DEMENTIA CARE
HARNESSING TECHNOLOGY
Martin Quirke of the Dementia Services Development Centre explained how VR trials were successfully enabling people with dementia to contribute to building designs
A second project, Designing Homes for Healthy Cognitive Ageing
(
www.descha.co.uk), comprised 100 “professionals and people living with dementia,” in a “three-stage design for apartments and small houses.” Quirke said “a lot of really useful stuff came out of that, because we could make it hyper realistic, to the point where people were able to tell us, for example, that the doorway isn’t wide enough to get a wheelchair through.” Quirke said “what was really useful is that, in some cases, we were deliberately designing something that was bad, and the participants were telling us, you need to fi x that.” He gave the example of fl ooring contrasts around thresholds, and lighting (“The older someone was, whether they had dementia or not, they were more likely to say it needs to be brighter, while some of the professionals were saying ‘this is far too bright.’” Controversially, codesign approaches were not included in the RIBA’s 2023 ‘Inclusive Design Overlay’ to the Plan of Work, focusing more on including ‘Inclusion Champions’ in projects rather than recommending working with end users.
Session Two: Examples of Design for Dementia in Practice With Amtico International having dedicated considerable investment and focus to raising the profi le of fl ooring specifi cation for neurodiverse users (exemplifi ed by initiatives such as having products accredited by DSDC Stirling, and the fi rm hosting this event), they put several questions on the table for delegates to ponder. Karen Quarterman-Crisford, Design Manager at Amtico International, brought her own valuable personal experience as a carer for her mother, who has Alzheimer’s, and Dan Bowman, the fi rm’s London commercial team leader, gave his experience from
a range of new builds and refurbishments in care environments. He concurred with Donna Taylor’s view of colour and paint’s low position in the pecking order, in that fl ooring “tends to be one of the last things to get decided on, and fi ts around the rest of the scheme.” This could potentially cause risks in itself, if the wrong kind of pattern is used, for example. At the fi rst round table, Amtico asked how suppliers could ‘be enabled to work better and more closely with designers and clients,’ and Bowman outlined further why this was a challenge, with price and possibly an overt safety focus being drivers currently. The cost motive was particularly prevalent in the many refurbishments the fi rm is currently working on, he said, whereas new build care environments tend to have a “bigger budget and a lot more design allowance.” However, even in the new builds, he said that Amtico tends to “be brought in stage three or four on those projects, and I’m very rarely asked about anything other than LRV (Light Refl ectance Values) and slip resistance.” Fiona Walsh countered the misconception that it would cost more to design for dementia, “it costs no more to paint one wall one colour than it does another; it’s about knowledge.” A careful balance has to be struck in environments for people living with dementia, between safe navigation, regulated by the Equality Act, and interiors which work harmoniously for users and staff. Strict adherence to the rules on Light Refl ectance Values, for example, can result in some unsuccessful designs if incorrectly balanced using architectural and interior design nous. There may be no general truths beyond that need for balance when it comes to such environments, with each interior needing to be specifi c to the user group. However, Johnstone’s Trade Paints’ Donna Taylor asked the delegates what scope there was for designers ‘unlock‘ fl exibility to tackle the constraining ‘30 point difference’ rule in LRVs in the Equality Act, driven by the need for adequate contrast. Taylor, at the fi rst meeting, elucidated how in the fi rm’s experience, that part of striking the right balance could mean using the right lighting levels to achieve “more fl exibility in LRV percentages.” Using 200 lux lighting levels minimum allows specifi ers leeway to have lower contrast (down to 20 points LRV difference). Taylor explained that LRVs are also affected by fi nish, not just hue and shade, so attention needed to be paid to this in fi nding the right interior design, but that “there’s not a lot of talk about that.“ She said that in the months following the previous round table at RIBA, Johnstone’s had actually developed some innovative products which are designed for use in facilities for neurodiverse users, with fi nish as important as colour aspects. Fiona Walsh said that there is a raft of deep knowledge out there (such as guidance from on the effect of for example, color rendering and light wavelengths, and the guidance for the sector in terms of LRV levels was very unsophisticated. “It’s a massive fi eld, and unfortunately, if we’re just talking 200 lux and 30 points LRV, we have such a chasm to fi ll before we get to where we need to be.” There were ‘myths’ around the best colours to use in such facilities, said delegates. Walsh cited guidance such as from DSDC, Trinity House, and Fleming & Bennett), but added that “the problem is that a lot of design in this fi eld isn’t done by
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