A new RNIB Cymru guide on dementia, sight loss and the built environment aims to help housing providers meet the needs of current and future tenants
THERE ARE CURRENTLY nearly 100,000 people in Wales living with sight loss, and the number of people with sight loss is expected to double by 2050. Ensuring sheltered housing, care homes and Extra Care schemes can meet the needs of this growing cohort is critical: get it right and people can live safely and independently; get it wrong and people are dependent on higher levels of care, at greater risks of falls and accidents in the home and will generally experience poorer wellbeing and a lower quality of life.
Since 2007, RNIB Cymru has been running its Visibly Better accreditation scheme. Staff work with housing associations and other housing providers on the accessibility of their accommodation; as providers work their way through the Visibly Better criteria they then receive awards (from bronze to platinum) to reflect the level achieved. Training on meeting the needs of tenants with sight loss is provided alongside advice on making the physical environments more accessible. The scheme has proved incredibly popular with housing associations, with some who joined in 2007 still members today and new organisations continuing to join.
Now RNIB Cymru has produced a new guide on dementia, sight loss and the built environment, to respond to the growing prevalence of both conditions. A third of people with dementia will have a significant sight loss, and a large proportion of the rest will be experiencing deteriorating vision through aging. Meeting the needs of this rapidly expanding group of people it wrong and people are dependent onneeds of tenants with sight loss is provided alongside can be demanding and resource-intensive but is a challenge that housing providers are increasingly having to address. What this new guide aims to do is offer clear and simple guidance on how to design, refurbish and maintain accommodation in a way that will best support people with sight loss and dementia.
Jo Lawson, independent living manager at RNIB Cymru, explains: ‘Housing associations across Wales were telling us that some of the existing information and advice around dementia appeared to contradict other guidance (including in relation to sight loss) and that there was no definitive guidance for Extra Care homes looking to build EMI wings on meeting requirements of people who had both sight loss and dementia. Our new guide seeks to address this.’
The guide has been developed in conjunction with housing associations, academic experts, access consultants, people with dementia and organisations that support people with dementia. It has been written to support the requirements of the Welsh Housing Standard and the Welsh Government’s Development Quality Requirements, as well as legal duties under the Equality Act. Perhaps most importantly, it aims to offer clear and simple guidance that will help housing providers meet the needs of current and future tenants.
Jo Lawson explains: ‘Dementia and sight loss both have a significant impact on people’s ability to carry out everyday tasks and to get around safely and independently. When the two are combined, an individual’s ability to cope with either is further impaired. The visual cues people with dementia often rely upon to aid memory can no longer be used, whilst developing the skills to adapt to life with sight loss is much harder for someone with dementia.
‘In terms of their relationship with the environment around them, people are likely to have particular difficulties with depth perception and spatial awareness and become confused by shadows, reflections and patterns. This can result in increased risk of falls, or people simply not being confident to leave their rooms. Through the effective use of design, however, housing providers can reduce the impact of sight loss and dementia, maximise tenants’ independence and safety and reduce falls and other safety risks.’
For more information and to request a copy of the guide please contact Jo Lawson, independent living manager for RNIB Cymru – joanne.lawson@rnib.org.uk or 02920 828511.
Dementia and sight loss – key issues to consider
The publication offers design guidance on a wide range of topics including:
• Lighting (including natural light, glare, reflection and shadows)
• Use of colour and colour contrast
• Surface finishes
• Acoustics
• Wayfinding
• Signage
• Assistive technology
• Accessible gardens and external areas
• The provision of dementia wards
Working to Visibly Better standards – RCT Homes
Andrew Lycett, chief executive of RCT Homes, reflects on his experience of Visibly Better: ‘At RCT Homes we want people living in sheltered accommodation to continue to live their lives independently whilst enjoying being part of a supportive and sociable community. For this reason reaching the RNIB’s Visibly Better platinum standard was a fantastic achievement and something we have been very proud to be able to share with our tenants. We know it has already made a huge difference in enabling people to enjoy their homes and promote independence.’
The difference Visibly Better can make
Mrs Rees is a tenant in Llys Enfys in Llanishen, a Linc Cymru property that has received a Visibly Better platinum award. She says moving there in 2010 had a life-changing effect: ‘I felt extremely isolated and unsafe before moving to Llys Enfys. The staff within the scheme and the design of the scheme itself has helped and supported me and I have regained my independence and confidence.
‘The colour schemes on the different floors help me to identify the location of my flat. It is very helpful to me and I can easily identify communal furniture as the colours are bold and stand out.’
The use of braille on the lift signs also make life a lot easier for Mrs Rees as she’s able to identify her location easily within the building.