Challenge 1

1a

First, I would prepare a small 2 person interview team (even if the overall team is larger) for the care
home by studying care homes in the area and looking at news stories about the homes, for example
their neglectful handling during the pandemic. This would open the teams’ eyes to the nature of the
often isolated residents of the homes.

The small size of the team would allow for all perspectives to be seen by each person as they
interview the people in the home about why they felt the way they did about the old lounge. All
interviews would be conducted on a 1 on 1 nature and framed as a conversation; its better to learn
what people want than what people don’t like.

The interviews themselves would be conducted over the period of a week, allowing the team to
introduce themselves to the residents as semi permanent members of their care group rather than
contractors here for the money (even if we are). The interviews would be open to revisitation by any
resident as well as input by staff members with more logistical point of view (how important is ease
of movement and repair for furniture in the home).

1b

The understanding of the residents is important, at least one member of the team will be at the care
home for lunch twice a week. They will aim to socialise with every resident each week meaning that
like in their home life, there is no active effort need to understand the residents beyond the normal
effort needed to build a friendship. This will build an organic and sustainable bond between the team
and the residents.

The first resident is Samantha, she suffers with arthritis and osteo perosis. It is important for them to
have furniture that is easy to get into and out of and is comfortable for long periods of time. Their
conditions mean it is important for them to be safe in and around any chairs designed for them and
that the furniture is ergonomic so that it doesn’t cause any stress to use.

The second resident is Albert, He is socially anxious and wants not only a space where it feels safe to
engage with others but somewhere they can feel safe in their solitude without the stresses of social
interaction. For them the furniture needs to mould the space it’s in to make it a more socially
comfortable environment that can support them if need be.

The third resident Is Caroline, she has severe dementia and has lost her ability to walk. The furniture
for her needs to be easy for a carer to interact with to help her out of her chair as well as in a place
she feels comfortable both while lucid and not.

1c

Over the course of the project the team would see why residents prefer to socialise else where as
they build friendships in the environments around the home and seek to adapt the elements that the
residents like around the house into their new lounge. This process would be ongoing for the whole
project but would start with a three week period of visiting twice a week before any prototypes are
made, but sketches can start before this period ends).
As sketches are built up they are shown to the resident and in a teambuilding exercise they van be
taught sketching skills themselves to allow valuable input from the residents. This will not only mean
that the team views the residents more so as peers and reduce any bias they have, but it will also
mean that the residents feel that they can input to the project directly.

Communication will be an important skill to develop here as sit makes our job more efficient and our
ideas more helpful as well as maintaining a good relationship with the residents, wo beyond being
people, are also our most valuable source of information.

Sensitive aspects of this area might be that the residents feel they are being patronised, this makes it
important to allow residents to opt out at any time and tell the team directly or through carers that
they don’t wish to be involved in the process. Another area may be the clashing ideas of residents
who are involved. Where this happens team members will be assigned specific residents to help so
both ideas can be developed and any drawbacks to their ideas will be explained as they occur

1d

I imagine that the area may be poorly lit and may have been decorated cheaply as to allow for the
funding of the home. Lighting will play a large part in the project as it allows for a place to feel mor
inviting. This may also help Albert with his concerns.

I also Imagine that there aren’t enough individual spaces for residents to sit alone making the
residents with physical conditions like Samantha uncomfortable.

challenge 2

2a

Firstly, during the threeweek introductory period the residents would be taught how to sketch, this
will allow them to develop ideas as they occur to them in much the same way as designers use
sketches as a tool. This will also act as a teambuilding relationship and allow them to theorise not
only new configurations of the room, but entirely new pieces of furniture. This session would run
once with additional individual lessons available on request.

Next the residents will be given paper cut-outs of the social room and furniture and asked t layout
the furniture in a more desirable way, this will allow us the pickup on common themes throughout
the resident’s qualms with the current social room as well as allow the designers to suggest ideas to
the residents in a more visually appealing way. Lastly, this will also allow residents with conditions
that prevent them from sketching (like a tremor) to take part in the process. This session would run
once with additional individual lessons available on request.

Lastly, the designers on the team will run sessions where they show their designs to the residents as
it allows for direct feedback rather than just inspiration, this makes the designs mor susceptible to
suggestion by both residents and staff while continuing to develop relationships. If possible, the
prototypes should be physical and able to be left at the care home. This will not only serve as a
reminder to those with conditions like Caroline’s, but also be a fun keepsake for all involved. This
session would run twice consecutively, once to show designs without input and once to show designs
with input.
2b

First there would be the three week introductory period, the last week involves a sketching workshop
with the residents being taught how to sketch interpretable designs and encouraged to pick up this
process whenever they have an idea, even a bad one.

After this week CAD would start on new layouts of the room running with the paper cut-out
workshops. Both allowing not for new designs, but new layouts, aided by the knowledge gathered in
the previous four weeks. From this week on new furniture designs would start

The next two weeks would both feature a brief 15 minute presentation about the new layouts
proposed by the residents, staff and designers as well as the new designs proposed by designers

The presentation the next week would detail the reconceived designs that the staff residents and
designers critiqued last week.

The residents would suggest new layouts that would not only inform the layout of new furniture but
also the designs of the new furniture.

2c

Though I believe these methods to be comprehensive, their drawbacks may affect the outcome of
the project.

The sketches may not be a method that all residents can engage with – physical conditions like a
tremor may residents from being fully enthused to be part of the project, in addition, workshops of
any kind may not be useful to people like Caroline who may find drawn out sessions frustrating.
Lastly the idea of having these sessions in such a rigidly formatted way may mean that those with
debilitating physical conditions may not be able to attend.

The paper cut out method is highly flawed as it feels patronising and is easy to lose or accidently
alter making it more frustrating, it also involves cutting out many copies of printed furniture which
would have to be done in advance as bringing scissors int a place with very physically and mentally
vulnerable people may not be a great idea.

Challenge 3

3a

Sadly, from my real world experience of care homes, they are less of a home and more of a removal
service. Nobody I know who has been sent to a care home has enjoyed their twilight years and the
overly bureaucratic way homes are managed are often debilitating to people. They cause people’s
mental conditions to fall far from their original state because of a lack of the need to makes decisions
about yourself. I fear that the visits of a group of people only there because they are paid to be may
become a highlight for the residents. Nevertheless…

The social room would have an area with only two chairs allowing more intimate and private
conversations, these would face the room’s centrepiece (fireplace if there is one or widow
otherwise). The other seats would be formatted in such a way that anyone who is sitting down cold
talk to each other. There would be a third seating area with arm-height desks to allow for hobbies
like writing, painting, or any other task that requires a desk.

The seats would all be easily accessible to staff and any adjustments like support or height could be
made whilst on the chair (by a resident) or standing near it (by a carer).

The seats would also be made in the style of the residents choosing and designed to match the
aesthetic of the garden the room looks onto or the house itself.

3b

The space would be focused on lighting: if a place looks like somewhere you want to be, it will be
somewhere you go, the designers will create a natural flow the room by arranging furniture in ways
that facilitate the purpose they a re designed for: communal paces will feature many chairs gathered
around a central space, isolated spaces will allow a resident to relax alone, and hobby spaces will
facilitate an needs with chairs, tables and storage units of a more practical manner allowing residents
to be fully engrossed in their tasks. Importantly

NO TVs

If the oldies grew up without them, they can survive without one now. The social room is for social
activities, the TV should be in a different space.

The residents are encouraged to suggest changes to the orientation of the room and the communal
areas should be designed to accommodate most, if not all, of the residents as well as
accommodating for visiting loved ones and tired staff. The place should not bed designed to “fit” the
old, no antiquated styles because it will make the m feel more at home, choices like that will make
the place feel like a service, not a home, and nobody thinks of themselves as old.