1. Housing to Meet Special Needs of Families
Competency 1.03
Sherry Brooks
David W Butler High School

2. Developed by Ronald Mace at NCSU “ Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.”
The intent of universal design is to simplify life for everyone by making products, communications, and the built environment more usable by as many people as possible at little or no extra cost. Universal design benefits people of all ages and abilities

3. Special Needs for Children
Install gates at top AND bottom of stairs
Store all household (cleaners, medicines, etc) behind locked doors

4. Put plastic outlet caps over all unused electrical outlets
Tie cords of blinds high so children cannot reach them

5. Keep children away from any area that may have toxic or lead-based paints
Corrosive (such as acids, bleach, drain cleaner )
Flammable (burns easily Paint and Paint thinner)
Reactive (explosive or produces deadly vapors)
Toxic (poisonous to humans).

6. Elderly
Change all floors to be of one type (all wood, all vinyl) for better mobility. Remove all rugs so not to slip
Provide safety bars in the bathroom near toilet and bathtub

7. Provide safety seats in tubs
Provide additional lighting in hallways and night lights
Provide lever handles on doors

8. Strobe Smoke Detector

9. Impaired Mobility and/or Wheel Chairs
Trim doorway thresholds so they are flush with floors
Provide handrails on both sides of stairs and hallways. Should extend at least 18” beyond last step

10. Grab bars in bath and rubber or non-slip flooring
Seat in shower/tub, chairs with arms

11. Place to sit while preparing meals, varied height counters, room for knee space

12. Impaired Vision
Mark the flooring changes with wide strips of contrasting adhesive tape
Use large type or Braille on any product that would be considered poisonous (household cleaners)
Remove all furniture with sharp corners, glass tops, or that can turn over easily
Telephone should have large numerals or Braille. Pre-program all emergency phone numbers

13. OTT-LITE A hands-free magnifying accessory
OTT-LITE A hands-free magnifying accessory. The neck extends to cover large areas. The lens rotates for easy viewing. The flexible shaft provides universal positioning. 3X magnification.

14. Hearing Impaired
Install lighting to flash for doorbell, smoke alarms, and telephone
Use portable vibrating timers in kitchen.
TTY/TDD telephone (can type message into phone to be received)
Sonic Shaker

15. Resources Housing Decisions, pages 108-112
Housing and Interiors, pages 31-33
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