About Build for Life - Welcome

This website provides you with design ideas to create an accessible home, using information from the book Welcome - Design Ideas for Accessible Homes. To view pages from Welcome use the navigation tools on the left hand side. Alternately you can purchase a hard copy of Welcome from the Building Commission.

An accessible home is about freedom - freedom to move about with ease and confidence, knowing that regardless of our circumstances we will have access to the spaces 'we call home'.

Too often our homes are not equipped for changing needs, from raising small children, to welcoming or looking after ageing parents, to recovering from a sporting injury and needing to use crutches or simply finding that the stairs are steeper than they used to be.

Designing an accessible home will not only produce a sustainable home but one you could live in comfortably for a lifetime.

This could not be more relevant than now. As our demographics continue to change, we need to find better ways to design and construct our homes to allow us better access for the future.

Consider these facts:

  • One in five Australians has a disability. This is expected to grow as our population increases
  • The Australian Bureau of Statistics says the population aged 65 years is projected to increase from 2.3 million to 6.8 million in 2051. At this time, one in four Australians will be aged over 65.

What does this mean? If, in 15 years time you, your parents, your children or someone you know is 65 or older then you or they will be part of Australia's fastest growing population and there is a strong chance you may need a home that is more accessible.

News

Practical and accessible homes for all Victorians
A package of measures to encourage Victorians to Build for Life was launched today by the Minister for Planning, Justin Madden, and the Minister for Senior Victorians, Lisa Neville.
Build for Life video
The Build for Life video is a quirky clip that shows how a couple learn that their new dream home is an inaccessible nightmare.