A prominent group of Australia’s architects have today launched a national home renovation program aimed at providing Australian families with renovations and improvements that promise to make homes safer for children, adults and seniors – as well as providing first class sustainable economical designs and good capital gains opportunities.
Concept founder, architect Robert Caulfield, said that the new scheme has been developed under the name of Homesafe Group and is an extension of the already successful HomesafeKids child home safety assessment program operating in Melbourne.
Mr Caulfield said that statistics on the number of Australians injured in their own homes each year was staggering, with 320,000 children, 175,000 adults and over 100,000 seniors requiring some form of hospital treatment.
“Many of these injuries could have been avoided if homes had been more sensibly designed to minimise falls, slips, maintenance accidents and toddler injuries. With the assistance of Kidsafe, Monash University and The Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit, we have been able to compile injury data. From child home inspection research done by HomesafeKids, we have been able to estimate the percentage chance of dangers being present in average Australian homes.”
Mr Caulfield said that a home renovation project was the perfect opportunity to address these issues in the existing home.
“Home safety design does not add cost nor does it compromise design integrity, but it can save lives- there is no worse situation than seeing your loved ones injured in your own home, later realising that it could have been prevented.”
Typical home safety features include redesigned stairs, toddler proof doors, low maintenance roofs and gutters, non slip surfaces and safety lighting.
Homesafe Group has 40 architects and home safety professionals in Melbourne and Sydney – all experienced in new home and renovation design, sustainability, cost minimisation and home safety – who are able to provide concept designs for as little as $1,500. The company plans to expand its services to the other states within the next twelve months.
It is developing extensive research facilities and will provide regular updates on home injuries, design trends and building costs.
“We hope to develop a level of awareness of the home injury toll similar to that of the road toll and eventually reduce the enormous emotional burden on families, and financial health cost to government, due home injuries,” Mr Caulfield said.
Home owners can download a free child home injury fact sheet, do-it-yourself child home safety guide, and do-it-yourself home improvement guide at Homesafe Group. A home building and renovation cost guide will be available soon. The service can be contacted on 1300 88 7233.