ABSTRACT

The Welsh Assembly Government has adopted Lifetime Homes principles for all social housing in Wales. Housing Sight is the first in the series of innovative guides to be published by RNIB Cymru and JMU Access Partnership which provides practical advice on building houses which are accessible to people who are blind and partially sighted. The approach taken in Housing Sight is that disabled people, including those with sight problems, should be able to participate fully in society safely, independently and without undue restriction. The design principles within “Housing Sight” explore the needs of people with sight problems in new housing, setting design standards across nine principal areas of the approach to the house, entrance and hallway, entrance level space, kitchen, circulation, bathroom, windows and doors, utilities and communal access homes. The Office of Population Censuses and Surveys have identified that the number of people with sensory loss of all types exceeds the number of people with mobility impairments.