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  • JR v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust [2017] A home adapted for a child who sustained a catastrophic brain injury at birth.

JR v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust [2017] A home adapted for a child who sustained a catastrophic brain injury at birth.

JR sustained a catastrophic brain injury at birth. At the time of settlement, it was the largest court award for compensation made.

This property was purchased on behalf of a Trust for JR, a young individual who required this two storey family home to be made fully accessible and support continued rehabilitation. This design features a new upstairs 'link' walkway, to facilitate access to all areas of the property; a through-floor lift; bespoke hydrotherapy pool...complete with a Sheffield Wednesday crest tiled into the pool floor!

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Project Specifications
AR-0601
Inclusive Design
Adaptation + Extension
Key Build Features:
Carers accommodation
Hydrotherapy
Sensory garden
Smart tech
Sustainable
Therapy room
Wheelchair accessible

Brief

Our initial instructions were to undertake a design review of the present schematics in place, to carry out a study on whether or not was an opportunity to improve on the loss of perceived value to the property as a result of adapting a home for a disabled person.

In many cases, significant investment and capital is put into a property to adapt a home to suit the needs for a disabled user. This can often come at the cost of a loss of bedrooms, a compromised layout, and significant wasted space. Circulation routes in a home offer very little value from a property value perspective and if possible, should be reduced or utilised as an alternative space such as, for open plan, entertainment, or bedroom uses.

What we did

France + Associates took over this project from another architect. We presented a design to the client that included the construction of a feature entrance extension which ties up the various extended areas of the original home, and reduces circulation space with it forming a coherent link, accommodates the difference in levels; and by way of reducing the circulation space within the original homes, retains bedrooms that had previously had been envisaged to be lost, and provided sufficient space for three large double bedrooms.

The scheme retained two stair cases within the home to access the first floor with a lift placed furthest away from the centre of the home, with differences in floor levels on the first floor, dealt with the ramps, further increasing the amount of circulation and “wasted space”. The proposed scheme prepared for the client, by previous architects, did not deal with the issues already orient within the significantly extended home

The successful design was worked to a technical drawing package and work began on site in Autumn 2018 and the property was completed in September 2019.

Accessiblity and other Features

+ Level access into the dwelling, with primary entrance door being automated allowing for access via app base controls

+ Access to garden areas, improvements made to facilitate future use and interaction with garden areas

+ Lift access to the first floor, to access bedroom accommodation (controlled by app base controls)

+ Remodelling of the property to make accessible throughout, to allow client to use electric wheelchair independently, to access all habitable rooms and areas

+ Key doors inside the property are automated and doors widened for wheelchair access

+ Kitchen has a height adjustable work top.

+ Therapy room to accommodate daily therapy requirements, interactive access with technology and large internal window overlooking hydrotherapy pool

+ Existing swimming pool converted into hydrotherapy pool with feature Sheffield Wednesday crest tiled into the pool floor as the client is a HUGE Sheffield Wednesday fan!

+ Hoists within the specialist bedroom and pool areas

+ Specialist toilet and washroom facilities provided to the ground floor for day to day use, and as an en suite off the specialist bedroom for the clients.

+ Carers accommodation

+ Storage for bulk order items and wheelchairs, to include charging points and methods to maintain products

+ Existing games rooms adapted to accommodate the client, app base controls incorporated for lighting, TV projector and cinema screen

+ Automated windows, curtains, lighting and doors, controlled by app. (The automation package cost £300k)

 

A virtual tour of the property can be viewed here.

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