On one of HomeSmiths’ first postlockdown visits to a care home, I was interested to hear from my client on how she felt her care home environment would need to change. Her feeling was that she still very much wanted the home to feel like home and her concern was that, in the spirit of infection control, by moving towards finishes and furnishings more in line with hospital requirements, the home would become too clinical.
Of course, interior design starts with considering who uses the space, what they use it for and - to me, this is critical how do we want them to feel?
Residents, carers and visitors want to feel safe - this is incredibly important. Yet the care environment will still need to be relatable and domestic in aesthetic.
It also needs to support how we need to do things, as we adapt to living with current and future threats of a pandemic. Physical as well as social needs still need to be met. Carers still need to be able to deliv