As part of One Accessibility advocacy, we share information about disability issues, inclusion, and or accessibility features on Maps. Look out every week for this enlightening post.
Hello everyone and welcome to this week’s Accessibility Uncovered post!
As you might know by the last post of the series, our articles this month will be about Accessible Housing, meaning the construction or modification of housing where people with disabilities can live comfortably and independently. This is achieved by both architectural design and more features like for example modified furniture and electronic devices.
Besides learning about how living spaces should be like to allow people with disabilities to be independent, as Local Guides we can use this information to verify if a hotel room or place of lodging is accessible and let others know in our reviews.
This post will focus on accessible bedrooms, so you can easily compare the information to accessible rooms you might have stayed in, if you ever had a chance to stay in one in a hotel.
First things first, the entrance:
- The door should be 0.9 meters wide, so someone with a wheelchair can go through with ease.
- The door handle should have a lever-style door knob, so it’s easy to use them and no twisting is required.
- If possible, for easier use, have “pocket style” doors (the kind that slide to open), so no space is occupied in the hallway and left as an obstacle when open.
- The floor of the areas surrounding the room and the room itself should have minimal texture, as well as not be slippery, and the transitions between the floors of the rooms should be smooth. This means that it’s best if the rooms don’t have a carpet or rug, and don’t have slippery tiles either.
Related to the transitions between floors, even though an accessible housing can have more than one floor if there’s an elevator, it’s best if the bathroom and bedroom are both on the ground floor. It makes things a lot more comfortable for people with all kinds of motor disabilities and difficulties to access them quickly and don’t have to be going up stairs or elevators frequently.
Talking about the architecture of the bedroom:
- The room should be spacious enough to move around it, especially considering wheelchair users.
A room size of 10’x12’ is generally enough, but everyone’s needs is different so what truly matters is that the space around all furniture is enough for wheelchairs to turn. If you want the numbers, there should be at least 3’ of free room around the bed, but might be 5’ as the room needed for a wheelchair to turn is 5’x5’.
If possible, your bedroom will be most accessible if located on the first floor of your home. It is generally recommended for those with disabilities to reside in one-story homes to lower stress and strain on the body from climbing stairs. If your home’s bedroom is not located on the first floor, consider possible modifications in the rooms on the first floor to see if one of those spaces could function as a bedroom.
- The electrical outlets should be raised, and not so near the floor for easier access. There should be many too, and some near the bed to the person doesn’t have to move too much.
- The windows should be easily opened with one hand, like the doors. They should also be no higher than 90 cm so wheelchair users can enjoy the view, and there should be high contrast between the window controls and their surroundings to help visually impaired people.
- It’s best if the light switches are “rocker” style, which are easy to use with an open hand.
Now about what one could say it’s the most important part of a bedroom: The bed.
- Beds should have the proper height for easy access. This can change depending if the person uses a wheelchair or not. In case they do use a wheelchair, the bed should be on the same level as the wheelchair. If not, it should be around 50 cms high.
- The bed comforter shouldn’t reach the floor, it can be dangerous. Bed skirts also should be removed.
- Some people might need features to easily get to bed, like bed rails or grad bars to hold on to when they are getting in and out of bed. Ceiling lifts also exist, although not common in hotels, they are machines that lift persons out of a wheelchair to the bed.
- Adjustable beds are an option, you might have seen some of them in hospitals, allowing people to switch to different positions, more vertical or more horizontal.
The furniture is important too:
- Everything should be high enough to be within reach of a wheelchair user, including the insides of the closet.
- Furniture should be stable and sturdy.
Most of the features mentioned are only for people with motor difficulties, but there are also more things we can take into account when designing an accessible room for other kinds of people.
Neurodivergent people can have Sensory Processing Disorder (something that is common in developmental disabilities), and as a result the visuals of the room should be a certain way to make them comfortable:
- The colors of the room should be relaxing and calming, like neutral tones with low intensity. Bright colors and patterns can be overstimulating.
- There shouldn’t be much clutter, seeing too many objects and unorganization can cause anxiety.
- The lights shouldn’t be too bright, there should be soft lighting as well as darkness during the night.
- The bedding shouldn’t have much texture, as it and certain fabrics can be irritating for some. A weighted blanket also helps a lot to relieve anxiety.
Thank you for reading, I hope this article was helpful to you!
Have you ever stayed in a room that was described as accessible by the owners? Tell me about it! Did you recognize any of the features mentioned in this article?
If you have a question, suggestion, or contribution, feel free to comment below. You can read last week’s roundup article here and check the list of our other articles under "Accessibility Uncovered".
