E60. Accessibility for homes and businesses with special guest and Access Consultant, Bianca

In this enlightening episode of the Building Design, Prime Time Podcast, hosts Amelia and special guest Bianca from Access for Life dive into the crucial topic of accessibility in both residential and commercial spaces. Special guest and access consultant Bianca shares her expertise on creating inclusive environments that cater to everyone, regardless of their abilities.

Join them as they explore:

• The importance of accessibility in modern design
• Practical tips for making homes and businesses more accessible
• Key considerations for incorporating accessibility features during the design and construction process
• Examples of good and poor applications of accessibility in design

Whether you're a homeowner, business owner, or design professional, this episode is packed with valuable insights to help you make spaces more inclusive and welcoming. Tune in now to learn how to transform your environments into accessible and functional spaces for all.

Catch us for another exciting episode next week of the Building Design, Prime Time Podcast. And be sure sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode.

About us
Prime Design is a building design company locally owned and operated in Tasmania since 2004.  Our goal is to share as much valuable information as possible about the process of building design, extensions, and more. We will talk about a different topic each week. To suggest a topic you would like us to talk about contact us at info@primedesigntas.com.au

Disclaimer
The information provided on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, individual circumstances, or remedy. We strongly suggest you consult a qualified professional before taking any action based on the information provided in this podcast. The views, opinions, and information provided in this podcast are those of the hosts do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organisation, employer, or company. All content provided on this podcast is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind. We make no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this podcast and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, or damages arising from its use. We reserve the right to change content or delete any information provided on this podcast at any time without prior notice.

Transcript

E60. Accessibility for Homes and Businesses with special guest and Access Consultant Bianca

INTRO

(0:08 - 0:39)

Hello and welcome to the Building Design Primetime podcast, focused on providing valuable information for anyone looking to undertake a new build or extension project. We'll share our tips, tricks and stories from a building designer's perspective. 

(0:40 - 0:50)

Amelia: Hello and welcome to the Building Design Primetime podcast. I'm your host Amelia and we're missing our Frank Geskus this week, but we've got a special guest in today. We've got Bianca from Access for Life. Welcome.

(0:50 - 1:08)

Amelia: Thanks. So you're an access consultant, is that right? 

Bianca: Yep, that's me. 

Amelia: And so what does an access consultant actually do? 

Bianca: So an access consultant is a professional who assesses and advises on how to make buildings and environments accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities.

(1:08 - 1:29)

We review plans, conduct site inspections, ensure that both new constructions and existing structures comply with the accessibility standard. And our goal is to remove barriers and create spaces that are usable by all people to the greatest extent possible. 

Amelia: So you do this for residential buildings and commercial buildings, is that right? 

Bianca: Yeah, so any building class.

(1:29 - 1:52)

Amelia: And what sort of things do you have to consider when you're looking at access? 

Bianca: Lots of things. Obviously, we need to make sure that there's minimum compliance with the current standards that we have in place. But also I can look at best practices and make recommendations on improvements that may be exceeding the minimum, but hopefully a client is interested in taking on board.

(1:52 - 2:04)

Amelia: And so you do building design as well. And so how does that, I imagine that ties in quite nicely with your building design work. How does that work in together? 

Bianca: Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. (2:05 - 2:25)

It depends which hat I have on on that day. But yeah, you know, it's good, particularly working in commercial spaces, knowing the requirements for accessibility really early on in the project instead of trying to chase my tail down the line. For anyone that has particular interest or specialty in certain parts of building construction, they know the stuff straight up.

(2:26 - 2:45)

So that does help. And even residential stuff, you know, it is part of my passion, residential accessibility. So, you know, having that in mind and talking to clients about that, just as it might seem a little bit like agenda pushing, but it's also trying to look out for what's best for my client.

(2:45 - 3:12)

If they're wanting to stay in a house for long term, if they're wanting to raise a family, like all of that is included in accessibility. 

Amelia: So you said you were very passionate about accessibility. What sort of made you want to get into going down that path? 

Bianca: So I actually started going down that path from designing social housing, which at the time had the minimum requirement of Liveable Housing Australia design guidelines silver level.

(3:13 - 3:25)

And so that sort of just dipped my toe into it, learning about what that's trying to achieve and how we can do even better. It's really about the principles of it. And then from there, yeah, I just got interested.

(3:25 - 3:36)

I did the access consulting course and was hooked.

Amelia: I'll be honest. I'd never heard of an access consultant before up until working at Prime Design.

(3:36 - 3:49)

Bianca: Yeah, there's not many of us around. 

Amelia: Yeah, it's not sort of a career that sort of jumps out when you, you know, you do those tests on Google that come up with your career path. I've never seen access consultant come up.

(3:49 - 4:02)

Bianca: But no, I think I remember at school there was like almost a phone book of potential careers you could do. And it's pretty certain it wasn't in there. I don't think it was even a thing then really, maybe an obscure one.

(4:02 - 4:15)

Amelia: Although there are also some other unusual ones that are on those things that you can do on Google. I think mine initially back in high school I did it. I was a music therapist or something strange like that.

(4:15 - 5:00)

It's nothing like what I'm in, but anyway, I digress. Can you talk about residential accessibility and in terms of homes and the types of considerations that you can incorporate for design and being more accessible? What sort of things can people incorporate? 

Bianca: Yeah, so in residential homes, you know, some accessibility considerations can be, you know, making sure that you've got wide enough doorways. In the approach to your house, have you got, you know, a flat path and ramp maybe instead of a couple of steps or stairs up to your house? You know, making sure that your bathrooms are designed in a way that they're friendly for mobility aids and have allowances in place, say you need to install grab rails down the line.

(5:00 - 5:16)

It doesn't affect what your bathroom looks like when you're designing your beautiful bathroom right now, but it could make the difference down the line about whether you can stay in your house if something happens. 

Amelia: And you talked about before Liveable Housing Design Australia. 

Bianca: Yep.

(5:16 - 6:04)

Amelia: And so how does that governing, are they a governing body? 

Bianca: No, so Liveable Housing Australia is an organisation that advocates for homes to be designed and built to meet the changing needs of the occupants. They have a set of guidelines known as the Liveable Housing Design Guidelines and they provide criteria for creating more accessible homes and they have three levels within that, which is silver, gold and platinum. When incorporating the LHA principles into residential design, you know, we're making sure that homes have step-free entrances, reinforced bathroom walls, which I just mentioned for future grab rail installation, and even thinking about the location of your switches, like how high off the ground they are, making sure they're not too close to corners, things like that.

(6:04 - 6:33)

But the Liveable Housing Design Guidelines have recently been adapted into the National Construction Code as the Liveable Housing Design Standard and so that is becoming a mandatory minimum requirement for residential dwellings. But it is only in the states that have adopted that part of the NCC and Tasmania is one of those states that is adopting it in October this year. 

Amelia: That must be really exciting for someone like you that probably sees a need for more of this sort of stuff incorporated into design. (6:33 - 6:56)Would that be correct?

Bianca: Yeah, absolutely. You hear about it all the time that, you know, people age and they can no longer get to the top floor of their dwelling or, you know, you have a family and your house is no longer suitable for your family for whatever reason. And some of that Liveable Housing stuff can really mitigate those risks of that happening and create a better home for you.

(6:56 - 7:05)

And it's not just about disability. The Liveable Housing isn't intended for someone that is in a wheelchair. It is for day-to-day improvements.

(7:05 - 7:26)

So, you know, Nan can stay in a home for longer and she doesn't have to move into a nursing home. It means that, you know, you break your leg and you can actually get into your house and have a shower without risks of slips or trips or falls and things like that. So it's not just for the visible disability that people are often associated with.

(7:26 - 7:55)

Amelia: Now let's talk about what the differences are between, say, if you were going to do something like that for a new build as opposed to trying to retrofit something. Is it much easier to do something and incorporate it into a design and make it brand new than retrofit? 

Bianca: Absolutely. Always, always recommend that if you're building new, make allowances for it because retrofitting is expensive if the base stuff hasn't been done ahead of time.

(7:55 - 8:19)

You know, instead of, for example, the grab rails in the bathroom, instead of just installing some grab rails because you've already got the sheeting behind the wall, you're looking almost at a full bathroom renovation. You know, if you've got a step into your shower, again, full bathroom renovation to fix that. While if you consider that in the design of your home when it's new, you're not going to face those challenges down the line.

(8:20 - 8:51)

Amelia: So potentially for someone, for example, like myself, who hopefully down the track, a year or two looking to build, are some of those standards that you said are being incorporated from October? 

Bianca: Yep. So if you're looking at getting your building approvals pretty much any time after October, there's a very good chance that your building survey is going to require it. There may be some grandfathering in of projects that have substantially started, but if you're looking at starting to design your home now, you need to start thinking about it right now.

(8:51 - 9:22)

Amelia: And so how do the changes that you have to incorporate into a design, how does it accommodate, like do the LHA guidelines accommodate for everything? Because obviously every person's situation is completely different. And as you said, you know, it might not be someone in a wheelchair, it might be someone that has other types of mobility issues. How do you work around that? Because I can't imagine the guidelines can accommodate for everything and every single person's situation.

(9:23 - 9:40)

Bianca: No, they don't. And so you do have to take in your considerations as well. You might have a disease that is a progressive disease and that's, you know, when a lot of people do think about this stuff, but what if it's in your family and there's the potential that you might also get it, things like that.

(9:40 - 9:54)

But in saying that, you can't design for everything. Even our standards and regulations today do not accommodate for every single person. It accommodates for the average and you may fall out of that average.

(9:54 - 10:19)

Amelia: But does that mean that you can still adapt things as long as they're within obviously the NCC guidelines? 

Bianca: You can accommodate and adapt things to an individual's needs to a degree? So that's the intent is that the core things that cost the most amount of money to update down the line are more easily able to be updated and tailored to suit you. 

Amelia: That makes sense. Yeah.

(10:19 - 10:31)

Bianca: And that's why the bathroom is a big one because everyone needs to use a bathroom. No, it's not saying every bedroom needs to be compliant. It's just wanting, you know, paths to the habitable rooms or the ground floor.

(10:32 - 10:48)

They want the step-free entry so that you can get into your house. Going above and beyond that is more than what's mandatory at the moment, but it's also a good thing to consider. I think the other thing too is people automatically assume that it can be quite easy to do.

(10:48 - 11:06)

But depending on the site that you have, assuming that it's a new build, it could be potentially challenging, especially, you know, if the house or the block is on quite a significant slope. Which we have a lot of in Tassie. We have a lot of sloping sites, and we see it every day.

(11:06 - 11:21)

People go, oh, I've got a flat site, and then you go and you look at it or you get a detailed survey, and it's not so flat. And so it does pose challenges, particularly when they've got this beautiful home that they've, you know, who knows how long ago they've built, but they love it. It's their house.

(11:21 - 11:30)

It's their home. And now they might be facing reasons they can't stay in it anymore. 

Amelia: Yeah, and I guess that's the whole reason of bringing in these guidelines from October.

(11:30 - 11:39)

Well, for Tasmania, that is. 

Bianca: Absolutely. And, you know, don't just think of it as investment for yourself in terms of you immediately living in it.

(11:39 - 12:11)

People go, oh, well, I'm only going to be in this house for five years, and then I'm going to upgrade my house or something like that. But then who are you going to sell your house to? Are you building a small house for yourself and your partner now, and you're going to have children, so you're going to a bigger house down the line? Well, then who are you going to sell your smaller house to? Are you going to maybe sell it to people that are downsizing and moving out of that larger house? And they might be older, so you're broadening who you can sell your property to. Even, you know, people who do have mobility impairments or additional needs that would be looking for a house.

(12:11 - 12:26)

There's no reason they wouldn't be looking for a house. So that, again, just adds your property to a list for potential buyers. 

Amelia: Well, I definitely wouldn't say that it would be overcapitalising because you're actually appealing to a wider demographic.

(12:26 - 12:40)

Bianca: Yeah, exactly. 

Amelia: Which is awesome. So what are some of the challenges that you've faced when implementing some accessibility features? 

Bianca: So the most common ones is normally budget, especially in the retrofit projects.

(12:40 - 12:54)

That's why we do say if you're building new, start accommodating for it now because it can get expensive when you're going back and redoing things. But in terms of building new, yes, there's an added cost, but it is quite minimal in the scheme of things. And have a chat to your builder.

(12:54 - 13:21)

You know, how much is it to add the wall sheeting to all of your bathrooms instead of just the one bathroom that's mandatory in the incoming requirements? Because once the builders get on board and knowing how to do this stuff, they'll start smashing it out really quick and they'll know what to do, and it will be a pretty minimal expense, just an extra bit of ply underneath the wall sheeting of your bathroom. 

Amelia: That's just to reinforce it and for potential handrails and that sort of thing? 

Bianca: Yeah, exactly. That's exactly right.

(13:22 - 13:47)

It may change the way that we design. I think architects and building designers and such will maybe have to guide their clients a little bit more if a client has a particular idea about how they want things laid out in their house or something like that, then, you know, there might be some hesitation. They go, well, this is the house that we've dreamed of.

(13:47 - 13:59)

I can't do this now because of these requirements. But it's just, you know, weighing out the benefits for that. And that really comes down to the resistance from stakeholders, and that comes in not just residential buildings, commercial buildings as well.

(13:59 - 14:11)

Why do I need to put an accessible toilet? Someone in a wheelchair is never going to come in here. Well, hang on a second. Why aren't they going to come in here? Is it because you're creating a hostile environment that they can't go to the toilet in? 

Amelia: No, that's a good point.

(14:11 - 14:32)

Bianca: And just because someone uses a wheelchair doesn't mean that they're a full-time wheelchair user. They just may need to use it to travel long distances, and they might be able to stand or something within the premises for short periods or walk for short periods. So I think it's just the really narrow views of some people that really is the resistance, I think, that comes from it.

(14:33 - 14:50)

Amelia: Yeah, let's start looking at sort of commercial side of things because we haven't really talked much about that. We've focused more on residential. In a way, it's sort of a different beast because I think the rules are they're different and there are obviously more requirements for commercial because it's public generally.

(14:50 - 14:58)

Bianca: You can still have commercial buildings that are private buildings. The building that we're in today is an office building. It is not a public building.

(14:58 - 15:13)

It does not have the general public coming in and out of it every day, like, for example, Service Tas or a town hall or something like that might have. So there is a little bit of difference when you're thinking about those, but in terms of requirements, they're quite similar. Yeah.

(15:14 - 15:43)

Amelia: So I know I've seen a lot of photos looked around Launceston, and there are a lot of buildings that I look at and I think there is no way a wheelchair or someone with a pram or anything like that, they're not going to be able to get into that shop or that building. You must see this all the time, more than me probably. How do you deal with that, and do business owners, are they aware of this, do you think, or they just don't know? 

Bianca: I'm sure some business owners are aware of it.

(15:43 - 15:51)

Some of them might not care particularly. Other ones are just ignorant about it, not in a bad way. They just aren't aware.

(15:51 - 16:07)

They've got lots of other things to think about and consider. But it does happen, and it does happen a lot in older cities, which we've got in Launceston. In that we've got buildings that have been used for a really, really long time, and sometimes they have been used continuously for the same thing.

(16:08 - 16:24)

We have shops that have always been shops that have just had tenancies come in and out constantly. And so there needs to be a trigger to require someone to upgrade, and that could be building works that require a building permit. It could be a change of use.

(16:25 - 16:57)

So it could be where a shop is turning into an office, and that would be a trigger because that requires a building permit. But if you've got a shop that's always been a shop, then unless you've done any of those other things that have triggered a building permit or there was a significant period of time where it wasn't a shop anymore or it was not used, you can lose your usage rights. So essentially what that means is that the building or space has remained vacant for such a long period of time that if you want to do something in there, you need to apply for your permits again.

(16:57 - 17:04)

Amelia: Right, I didn't realise that. 

Bianca: Yeah, so that's why there needs to be that trigger. If there's never been a trigger, there's never been a reason to change.

(17:04 - 17:22)

Amelia: So there's probably a lot of non-compliant buildings out there in Launceston and wider Tasmania. 

Bianca: Yeah, but they were compliant at the time of their construction. So you can't enforce current standards unless there's a trigger if it was compliant at the time of construction.

(17:22 - 17:32)

And it is a building surveyor and council compliance thing as well. You know, maybe there was a complaint made. You know, it happens.

(17:32 - 17:42)

It's not often, but they do happen. And then someone's gone, okay, well, we're going to fix this because someone's made a complaint and I don't want this to happen. I didn't realise this was an issue.

(17:42 - 17:46)

We're going to fix it. 

Amelia: And some people just go, oh, you know, that's fine. You just put a ramp in.

(17:46 - 18:04)

Is it that simple? 

Bianca: Sometimes, sometimes not. Every building has its own complexities, whether it's, you know, the limitations on space, structure, heritage. You know, we can't use heritage as a reason not to provide access, but it does add complexities.

(18:05 - 18:20)

So it's not just straightforward, simple. 

Amelia: And I mean, even, you know, even if it was a matter of just putting in a ramp, there are then regulations on how steep that ramp is allowed to be. And is there a restriction on how long it's allowed to be as well? 

Bianca: Yeah, absolutely.

(18:20 - 18:52)

So, you know, the typical one we see is a 1 in 14 ramp, maximum nine metres long, has to have the handrails, has to have the tactiles. And obviously it depends on the height difference that you're trying to transition between and how that ramp might best work. You know, would it be better putting in a step ramp, which is a 1 in 10 ramp that is steeper but it is shorter because it does require a higher level of exertion and effort and force to move up the ramp at that steepness, but it's only for a short period? Yeah, there's a lot to consider.

(18:52 - 18:57)

Amelia: So there is more than one option by the sound of it. 
 
 

Bianca: Yeah, absolutely. You know, you could put in a lift.

(18:58 - 19:38)

There's lots of different ways to do it. You know, you might have three steps at your front door, but you might have one step at the side door. So then you go, okay, well, are we going to change the layout of this building so that the side door becomes our front door? Like, are we on a corner block where that could be a perfectly viable option for our design? And that's where you've got to talk to your designer or architect about how you might resolve your spaces, what constraints there might be, but also, yeah, with your access consultant about what do you need to achieve? Do they have any suggestions or ideas about how that might work as well? 

Amelia: So the other thing I want to touch on is accessible toilets.

(19:38 - 20:13)

And I know you've sent photos around the office and, you know, you've said, oh, you know, can you point out anything that you think might be illegal about this toilet? And a lot of people couldn't point it out. So what are some of the things that you've seen that have been a bit odd or a bit that's not quite right? I've put you on the spot. 

Bianca: I've seen some interesting applications of grab rails, very, very interesting, where they've been put in upside down, where they've been put on the wrong wall, so there's no way you could physically reach them while on the toilet.

(20:15 - 20:28)

You know, and there's simple things too, like someone might use it for storage. And it's like, well, someone now can't use the circulation space for the toilet because you've put a cupboard there. Or for a less extreme example is a baby change table.

(20:28 - 20:32)

I've seen that. You walk into the accessible toilet. It's all compliant.

(20:32 - 20:58)

It would have been compliant when the building surveyor signed it off, but then someone's put a baby change table in there with the best of intentions, but it's just a, you know, your typical one that you'd buy for at home, and it's in the circulation space. Chairs, you know, someone's put a chair in there so someone can sit out of the shower and get dry or something like that out of the shower space. And best and best of intentions, but again, it's affecting circulation space.

(20:59 - 21:14)

Location of bins, you know, the sanitary bins do have a specified location so that they are not interfering with people's transfers onto the toilet. 

Amelia: Yeah, interesting. So there's a lot of considerations there that people don't always think about.

(21:14 - 21:32)

Bianca: Yeah, and there's things that are beyond the control of your designer or your certifier or anything like that. It's down to management as well. 

Amelia: So I guess whoever is running that business or space, they actually have a duty of care to be able to understand and look at these things, I suppose.

(21:32 - 21:41)

But what you don't know, you don't know. 

Bianca: What you don't know, you don't know. I suppose that's when the knowing in some way, okay, well, this is not my area.

(21:41 - 21:56)

Can I just make a quick phone call to someone? I'm happy to answer a quick phone call and someone says I want to do this so I can pretty quickly say not a great idea or I think that needs further investigation. Let's have a chat about how I can help you further. 

Amelia: Yeah, that's a really good point.

(21:56 - 22:16)

So how do you see the future of accessibility evolving over the next decade? 

Bianca: I see it becoming more integrated into mainstream design, hopefully. My goal, ulterior motive, whatever you want to call it. As awareness and advocacy continue to grow, more designers and architects will start prioritising it from the outset.

(22:16 - 22:38)

Advances in technology as well will start to play a role, offering new solutions that we probably can't even imagine currently. We'll start moving, I think, towards focusing on other accessibility items such as mental health and sensory and not just about physical accessibility. 

Amelia: Yeah, that's interesting.

(22:38 - 23:22)

That's sort of more of a holistic approach, isn't it? 

Bianca: Yeah, absolutely. 

Amelia: So what are some key points and resources available for anyone that's interested in maybe incorporating some more accessible areas either in their existing home or for their new build or even improving their business or investment? 

Bianca: Yeah, so I would start with the basics, a lot of things that we've already covered, step-free entrances, wider doorways, accessible bathrooms. And think about future-proofing by incorporating adaptable features, how you might be able to adjust your home or business in the future, things that are movable, even businesses' adjustable height desks, things like that.

(23:22 - 23:46)

Amelia: Yeah, that's a good option. 

Bianca: And consulting with an access consultant early on as well in design can save headache down the line. 

Amelia: So where can we find Access for Life? Are you on the socials? You've got a website? 

Bianca: Yeah, so we are on Instagram and Facebook and we are also online at www.accessforlifetas.com.au. 

Amelia: Awesome.

(23:46 - 24:00)

Well, we might wrap up there, Bianca. Thank you so much for coming in and talking about some accessibility points. It's certainly enlightened me on a lot of things that honestly I hadn't really thought about and I didn't realise would probably be incorporated into my next home.

(24:01 - 24:09)

So thank you so much for coming in and people can give you a call if they want to talk about accessibility. Yep, I'll be waiting to hear from you. All right.

(24:10 - 24:27)

OUTRO

Thanks for listening to the Building Design Primetime Podcast. We'll catch you next time. You're listening to the Building Design Primetime Podcast.