Project in progress: J's carer-friendly wet room full of sentimental features

It's a pleasure to be able to share with you the kinds of projects we're currently working on. Here's a design we created for J and her husband. 

The brief

J got in touch with us after her husband experienced a deterioration in a long-term condition that meant he would no longer be able to wash and go to the toilet unassisted. This meant they needed a level access shower and some extra space and support around the toilet.

J told us that her husband was also starting to experience problems with his memory and that last time he came out of hospital he wasn’t able to recognise their home immediately.

Their house was built in the 1800s so they wanted a bathroom that suited their property’s aesthetic. During a recent refresh of the bathroom they had made a feature of some beautiful William Morris tiles. They’d found these on their travels and they meant a lot to them. They also had an antique basin that they were keen to keep, along with their coral colour scheme.

J also wanted to build in flexibility for the future, thinking about other family members who might use the space but not require all the access features.

About the design

We kept the bathroom in a broadly similar layout to keep the tiles. It is also important with conditions affecting cognition and memory, such as dementia, to maintain a sense of familiarity with the look and feel of spaces.

The basin was maintained since it was a wall-hung style that was already perfect for use with a wheelchair. We just changed the taps to a more grip-friendly lever style, and moved it across a little to make room for a hinged grab bar beside the toilet. All the brassware comes from our Brooke Collection which has beautiful classic styling and ceramic detailing.

Our access specialist and interior designer, Ricardo, who lead on this design said:

“We always ask what do they need, what is already working, what are their tastes? There is no need to reinvent the wheel. If something is working for them, then we keep it”.

We removed the bath and added a level access wetroom with a simple horseshoe shape shower seat and safety glass bi-folding screen. This allows easy carer access for washing.

We also suggested a vinyl wall covering instead of paint. This is very hard-wearing and easy to wipe clean should it be knocked with a wheelchair or shower chair, but looks high-end.

We changed the toilet to a comfort height one from our more traditional Hyde collection with black wooden reinforced seat that picks up on the black and white accents throughout the room.

We used grab rails from our Circula range throughout the bathroom because of their clever removeable feature, giving J’s family lots of options for the future.

The result is a design just for them, perfectly suited to their needs over time, and in their aesthetic.

If you need to make changes to your bathroom and want to see how we might be able to help, get in touch to talk to one of our experts now.