We were delighted to be asked by the Housing Learning and Improvement Network to showcase our student design for aging project, Designing for the Future, at their annual conference in London this week.
The Housing Learning and Improvement Network (LIN), formerly responsible for managing the Department of Health Extra Care Housing capital programme, is the leading ‘knowledge hub’ for a growing network of housing, health and social care professionals in England involved in planning, commissioning, designing, funding, building and managing housing with care for older people.
Before a very enthusiastic audience, we talked about some of current innovations in good design for aging – products such as the Ode, Sabi’s beautiful pill boxes and the kings of inclusive design, OXO Good Grips as well as discussing some of the barriers to market – not least the fact that it is a market struggling with “nomenculture” – no one wants to be thought of as old.
Designing for the Future alumnus, Chloe Meineck was on hand to talk about her Music Memory Boxes and how music can be used to preserve identity and communication within families coping with dementia.
Chloe can be heard talking about her work here on the Design Dimension on BBC Radio 4 http://t.co/cp1Icqj720