Media Release Universal Housing Design 04/11/2009
Media Release - Monday 2nd November 2009
Australian Network for Universal Housing Design
ANUHD applauds Parliamentary Secretary Bill Shorten's National Dialogue on Universal Housing Design.
Amelia Starr, National Convenor of the Australian Network for Universal Housing Design has applauded leaders of the housing industry and community sector for their commitment to developing a national strategy to improve the design and function of Australian homes for families, seniors and people with a disability.
The Dialogue was hosted at Kirribilli House on Tuesday 27th October 2009 by Ms Therese Rein and convened by Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities, Bill Shorten.
Critically, the Dialogue brought together 20 of Australia's national leaders from both housing design, development and construction industry and the community sector to discuss a nationally consistent way forward."We have agreed to work together to ensure that housing is designed and developed to be more accessible and responsive to the changing needs of Australians," Ms Starr said. "We thank Mr Shorten for leading this initiative and congratulate the Dialogue's participants for taking this necessary and courageous step towards ensuring that the homes we build today are fit for all of tomorrow's Australian's".
Ms Starr applauded the Dialogue's participant's for committing to participate in a high-level working group to develop the national strategy. The strategy will seek to codify basic universal design solutions through to more aspirational features for homes. Essential elements on which consensus was achieved include wider doorways and passages; wet areas, such as bathrooms, on an entry level; and reinforced bathroom walls to allow grab rails to be easily fitted in the future.
The dialogue saw consensus from industry leaders, advocates and government on an aspirational target that all new homes will be of agreed universal design standards by 2020, with interim targets and earlier completion dates to be determined for some standards.
Representatives at the forum included:
· Amelia Starr; National Convenor, Australian Network for Universal Housing Design
· Rhonda Galbally; Chair, National People with Disabilities and Carers Council
· Ivan Donaldson; General Manager, Australian Building Codes Board
· Graeme Innes; Race and Disability Discrimination Commissioner, Australian Human Rights Commission.
· Michael Small; Senior Policy Officer, Disability Rights Unit, Australian Human Rights Commission
· David Waldren; General Manager-Carlton Brewery,GROCON
·Rod Fehring; CEO, Lend Lease Primelife
· Mike Zorbas; General Manager Government Relations, Stockland
· Ron Silberberg; Managing Director, Housing Industry Association
· Peter Verwer; Chief Executive, Property Council of Australia
· Wilhelm Harnisch; CEO, Master Builders Australia
· David Parken; CEO, Australian Institute of Architects
· Chris Lamont; Group Manager, FaHCSIA
· Dougie Herd; Executive Director, Office of the Disability Council of NSW
· Angela Jurjevic; Executive Director, Housing and Building Policy, DPCD (Victoria)
For further media enquiries, please contact Amelia Starr, ANUHD National Convenor, on 02 9211 2269 or amelia@dadhc.nsw.gov.au
The summary statement of the outcomes of the National Dialogue.
There was a clear consensus about the critical nature of the issue of universal design.‘Universal' means designing Australian homes to meet the changing needs of their occupants across their lifetimes.
We all agree that we need to provide Australians with choice about housing design and work harder to explain the benefits of universal design. In other words that universal design is about making life easier for young families, people who have short-term injuries, as well as senior Australians and people with disability.
We agreed on the need to codify a national approach. This would incorporate:
1) The value of universal design to the community
2) A definition and a set of principles of ‘universal design'
3) What its features are in relation to housing, of which, there is already a fair amount of recognised consensus.
We agreed it is important to have a national approach, in other words the code should apply nationally to allow harmonisation across the country. The code will deal with the minimal or basic solutions to design, through to more aspirational features for homes.
Essential elements on which consensus was achieved are:
wider doorways and passages;
wet areas, such as bathrooms,
on an entry level; and
reinforced bathroom walls to allow grab rails to be easily fitted in the future.
More than 15,000 public and social housing dwellings are being built under the Rudd Government's economic stimulus plan that incorporate universal design features. This will provide important feedback about universal design and lessons for the future.
It was agreed that there is a need to work closely with industry and the community, including around education and training. It is understood that all participants need to be included and that change won't be instantaneous. Everyone is committed to forming a high level working party to achieve substantial progress in the next six months.
Part of the document to be developed by the group will be technical in nature and will be accessible to designers, builders and consumers. As an aspirational target, all new homes will be of agreed universal design standards by 2020, with interim targets and earlier completion dates to be determined for some standards.
Amelia Starr - Senior Policy Officer (Mon-Thurs)
Office of the Disability Council of NSW
Level 19, 323 Castlereagh Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Phone: 02 9211 2269 (Direct)
Phone/TTY: 02 9211 2866
Fax: 02 9211 2271
TOLL FREE (voice & TTY): 1800 044 848
http://www.disabilitycouncil.nsw.gov.au
National Convenor- Australian Network for Universal Housing Design. www.anuhd.org