There are many reasons why you might need to install an accessible bathroom in your home. You might have had an injury and need a little help, for example, or perhaps an older relative is coming to live with you. Whatever the reason, you’ll need to make sure that the bathroom is designed just the right way to combine practicality and accessibility with something that still looks great. The good news is that it’s perfectly possible, so keep reading to find out some of the things you can do when you need to start designing your new accessible bathroom.

Assess Your Needs

Before you can start thinking about what has to be included in your bathroom and what you can do without, you’ll need to assess your needs (or the needs of the person you’re building the bathroom for). What is it you need in a bathroom to make it easier to use, considering your specific access issues?

If you have a wheelchair, for example, you’ll need to include different elements than if you didn’t. If your vision is impaired, you might want some specific equipment that you wouldn’t otherwise need. The fact is, everyone’s access needs are going to be slightly different, so before you get your bathroom, you’ll need to know what’s going to make life easier for you.

Speak To Experts

Designing an accessible bathroom isn’t something you’ll be doing every day, and it can be hard to know not just what you need (or even what accessible bathroom equipment exists) and how to make it all fit in a way that looks good and works for you, too.

That’s why it’s usually best to speak to experts who design accessible bathrooms all the time and who know precisely what equipment you’ll need to make things easier for you. They’ll be able to find ways to use all the space wisely, and they’ll offer plenty of options so that the final design is exactly what you want. You can do it all yourself, but when there are experts out there who can do it for you, why take on the job and give yourself more to do?

Do Your Research



Whether you’re using experts or doing it yourself, research is key – when you start investigating, you’ll be able to get a better idea of the kinds of equipment you might be able to use and how to place it in the room for the best functionality.

You’ll need to think about how much space you have and to make sure you plan well so you can move around easily, whatever your access issues might be, and that’s perhaps the most important thing to start with. The last thing you’ll want is to get all your equipment and then find that when you try to install it, you can’t get it all in.

Other factors you might want to potentially include are grab bars, non-slip flooring, a roll-in shower, a raised toilet, lever handles instead of twisting ones for taps, and, of course, you’ll need plenty of good lighting.