I was wondering whether anyone has had any major building adaptations to their property to make the downstairs of their home into a living space with Wheel in shower and bedroom.
At present hubby goes upstairs on a stairlift and then has to get on a bathlift to enter the bath which as his MS progresses or he has a bad day all very difficult.
If we could maybe extend out and make everything downstairs it would be so much better for us all.
I will just point out we would have to fund it all ourselves. How would we get a good builder who knows how to do Disabled adaptions etc?
There was a small store room next to a smallish kitchen and we turned the use around and made a wet room and a new low level kitchen (wheelchair friendly) and I sleep downstairs.
This can be financed through a DFG, ( Disabled Facilities Grant ) which you need to get the council involved, they will send an occupational therapist to assessyour needs.
There is a financial assessment which is effectivley a means test, although itâs not painful.
You may be asked to pay something towards it.
One word of advise make sure you get what you want and not the council or the architect or the therapist.
They will try and push you in the direction that suites them, stick to your guns.
You may have to wait in a que, I donât know how the austerity cuts will affect this.
Itâs not as complicated as it seems.
Also remember think about your husbands needs now and in the future you may be there a long while.
Hi, I had a similar problem myself and downsized to a three bedroom semi in a shabby condition. I found my architect through the Planning Department of York Council lists and the question âhave any architects submitted plans for âdisabledâ housingâ? I do not care for this term but it is in use and worked. She in turn recommended the builder who she had worked with before. I saw the builders portfolio, visited their work and with that data took the plunge. All worked out to my liking and, like you had to fund the changes myself. I paid the builder per month. I was the project manager and kept a beady eye on developments asking the question âwhyâ for information as to what I was paying for. Costs were more or less accurate as per the estimate.
My wife was in a power wheelchair. She needed a large turning circle. The architect used the appropriate Government recommendations to extend out by 4m rather than the usual 3 and secured other benefits for us from Planners. See this website www.hunters.com, York, Bishopthorpe, BACKTâFRONTâOUSE (it is because the back is south facing and the original builder built it thus). The house has been modified recently according to my recent life-changes and is for sale but the original modified house can be seen at www.yorkbuilder.co.uk, Portfolio, Lang Road. I am a firm believer in âLifetime Homesâ, ie the house to modify as needs must, put up and take down etcâŚ
The wheelchair, also for sale, has a rise and fall action so spaces in the kitchen allowed for access to equipment and fixtures including lowered cupboards and pull out larders etc⌠The alternative is to instal rise and fall worktops, sinks etcâŚThe ground floor was an open plan series of living spaces for both of us to share. I installed a through the ceiling lift for my wife to reach an activity workshop/studio (she made stained glass) in two interconnected bedrooms leaving the third one as a guest double with the house bathroom for their use.
Downstairs has the wet-room with shower and Closomat toilet (with shower and drier for privacy use). The ceiling in the bedroom through to the wet room was fitted with additional beams to support a bed to toilet ceiling track and hoist which was on loan from the OTâs service. The bed had an air mattress also on loan. Access for district nurses and support carers was anticipated and provided by a door into the wetroom from the ramped entrance lobby and through to the bedroom. All the ground floor was flat except for two shallow and discreet ramps.
All doors needed to be gone through by the power chair were swing doors, either way, so that my wife just drove at them and the wheelchair feet pushed them open. All doors were wide and with level sills including the bifold doors into the wheelchair accessible raised bed garden. The patio is ramped onto compacted limestone chippings and each bed allows for full wheelchair access and reach.
I hope this is a flavour for you but I have the plans should they be of interest in any part. I would have to check with my architect of course as she has copyright but she is very accomodating, if you pardon the pun!! If I can be of help please ask.
Have you thought of putting in a lift and having a wet room upstairs? Just a thought. I have friends who have done the downstairs bedroom/wet room thing and another who has put in a lift.
I live in a bungalow so havenât had to move everything downstairs, but we have had to do a lot of work making the house accessible. I canât advise on how to get the work done really as we used a builder we knew to do a lot of the work. But the two things I would advise are first, you can get VAT relief (exemption) on products and services which are done expressly for the benefit of a disabled person. Have a look for HMRC disabled VAT exemption. Secondly, once you have made adaptations to your home for the benefit of a disabled person you should be able to get a discount on your council tax. The discount puts you in the band down from where your property is actually valued at.
All good stuff in these replies! Nothing much to add, except we used a plumber who did council DFG works. We changed a bedroom into a wetroom downstairs. We paid for it ourselves, with a bank loan, as after 9 months on the fast track waiting list, I was still number 161 on the council list!!!
I had the room done exactly as I wanted and called it Hollywood!!!
Just a quick update on this. Yesterday we had a man in who was recommended by an OT and he says we have enough room to put a through floor lift make a few doors here and there and make our large bathroom into a wetroom and also keep the bath.
I have sent an email to the OT seeing if there is anything she can advise on hoists etc.
Thanks again keeping my fingers crossed all will go ok.
Hope the work starts soon - it shouldnât be too bad to have done as it is all indoors. We have space for a through the floor lift - if ever we need one.
Can we get in touch with Nick Knowles for a DIY SOS for you. Friends of mine were going to do this for me if OH did not get the house sorted out. lt wasnât until he was taken very ill - and could not walk -that he realised how much l was struggling to live here.