There has been a lot of talk about Universal Design in New Zealand, unfortunately, not to many designers, property developers, architectural house designers and Building designers were not aware of the Universal Design for all People with disabilities including older adults. The other problem is a high cost to installed for every people BUT ended up not accessible design to meet the price they can afford. Any people with a disability adapted, add special equipment or to remove their home layout design to make more accessible home at their own cost or by the funding under the Ministry of Health/ACC (Accident Compensation Corporation) they sourced.
A question to ask you… Do you have any idea and look out there is everyone are the same which can function themselves in many ways of doing activities and working? Have you thought about people/children with disAbilities can’t do function the same way as you? What about your grandparents, even great grandparents?
We were lucky to found a home with several custom equipment like handrails, low steps, heating, easy to look out through the windows and the driveway already there for us. Because of my deafness and age within another 5-10 years or more, it is essential to meet our needs. It saved us the cost to install the equipment or ramp when one of us get older and finding it difficult to access or manage thing around the home. We have got three dogs to keep an eye on me as working/pet dogs in the vast property.
Back in 1997, Ronald Mace led the team in the North Carolina State University to a working group which were architects, product designers, engineers and environmental design researchers. The working group created and developed the seven principles in Universal Design in 1997.
The purpose of the Principles is to guide the design of environments, products and communications.
But first of all before I typed what are the seven principles in the Universal Deigns.
I want to give you an idea of how people with disabilities manage in their own life even myself in society anywhere in the world.
Imagine a block of apartments with a lift/no lift – the size of one apartment is smaller than an ordinary house of two bedrooms. The bathroom, including the toilet, is small than average size, the kitchen is a ‘u shape’ layout narrow. When a wheelchair user rent an apartment but this person missed out the ground floor because everyone is there already. then this wheelchair person has to go up in the next level if there is any lift available. The wheelchair user found it is difficult to manoeuvre around the kitchen, the bathroom otherwise to go forward and backward without turning around as in 360o. Or having a shower in the cramped bathroom, there is no space to get out/get on the wheelchair. If there is a fire happening in the next floor up, the wheelchair user is unable to get out if the neighbours do not realise a wheelchair user is living in the same apartment.
What about any Deaf people? It is okay to live there, BUT there is no flashing light system in the apartment and the flashing light system come in with a doorbell, fire alarm, break in security, baby crying, a phone ringing, and security gate entrance from the car park. As well no visual contact like the security system when someone is visiting a deaf person via television screen or a small screen by the door as an intercom.
Today I went to one of the buildings in Frankton, and I discovered this building was not a friendly accessible for refugee people with disAbilities (wheelchair users, anyone finding it difficult to walk up stair/downstairs). There was no lift due to the size of the old building. The other problem was the lack of car parks for staff even for the people with disAbilities and their mobility car park holders. I spoke to someone who was in the same building, and the response was it was cheaper rent. Still, they did not think about any refugee people who may have disAbilities or finding it difficult to walk the stairs. Sigh! Other barriers from the landlord who owned the old building.
Life in Eureka 