The way we design care spaces directly impacts how people experience ageing
By Gary Caudrey, Partner at ORA Architects
"The pandemic exposed how social isolation can be just as harmful as any physical illness and reminded us how much the spaces we live in affect our wellbeing. With thoughtful design, care facilities should no longer be seen as places of foreboding, but as welcoming homes where residents can comfortably live the final years of their lives with dignity and independence.
Too often, however, care homes are shaped by policy pressures, planning hurdles, and budgetary constraints, rather than by the experiences of residents and carers. The result is caring facilities that may meet the basic standards of care but fall short of creating comfortable and joyful environments for older people to live with independence."