Corporate Kitchens accessible contract

Archive for June, 2010

Recent Accessible Kitchen Projects

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

We have recently completed some exciting kitchens for delighted clients. Showcasing the very latest techniques in inclusive design, these kitchens are put together by our designer Adam Thomas with enormous attention to detail and hidden features that help every member of the family access the kitchen and enjoy cooking and entertaining.

We use special handles with a soft profile that is gentle on hands when gripped and pulled. Our doors and drawers are fitted with soft-close mechanisms as standard. This means they close smoothly, and slowly, allowing clients an extra second to move their hands out of the away. And all our pull-out surfaces are fully heat-resistant allowing safe transfer of hot pans around the kitchen. These small details make all the difference in a kitchen, and give our clients many years of happy kitchen use. Here’s a sneak preview of two recent projects …

Access Matters kitchen with solid walnut shaker style doorThis beautiful walnut kitchen by Access Matters (right) is designed to suit a family home, and provides an elegant and flexible space for family meals and entertaining. The quality of the timber used to create this kitchen is quite breathtaking and the simple shaker styling allows the depth and beauty of the wood to take centre stage. Solid wood is surprisingly resilient to knocks and scrapes, and simply develops character over time.

In this design, a mobile height-adjustable table by Ropox of Denmark has been incorporated. The table has castors on the legs that allow it to be moved around the room and then fixed in place by locking the wheels. So there is plenty of room for circulation when the table is pushed against the kitchen units, but it can be pulled easily into a different position for more formal dining should the need arise. The height of the table can be adjusted by remote control, allowing comfortable use of the table in a variety of day-to-day activities.

The fabulous Access Matters painted shaker kitchen below shows how subtle use of colour can be used to create warmth and atmosphere. Each set of kitchen doors is is hand-sprayed from the same batch of paint to ensure a precise colour match, and this range is available in a range of soft colours. Here the oak grain of the wood shows through the soft blue-grey painted finish in bright sunlight, but appears more muted in lower light conditions.

Dusty Blue Access Matters kitchen with oak painted shaker style door

Lots of useful pull-outs have been selected by this client to make maximum use of the cupboard space, and a beautiful contrasting wooden worktop has been used to create a breakfast bar in the centre of the room. The colours and materials chosen for this room are a classic combination and will provide many years of pleasure.

We will upload more images of these kitchens soon. In the meantime please watch this space for our next project …

From the Archives: KBB Review Industry Awards 2006

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

As part of our project to transfer our News Archive to the new web site, we are posting an article about the KBB Review Industry Awards 2006, when Adam Thomas was awarded the first Designer Award for Accessible Kitchens.
KBB Awards Logo
In January 2006 Adam Thomas of Design Matters KBB Ltd was awarded the inaugural Designer Award for Accessible Kitchens by the KBB Review Industry Awards 2006 for his expertise in designing kitchens for disabled and older people in the UK. Designer Awards are given each year to the best designers in their field as an acknowledgement of excellence and success, and 2006 was the first year that an award was made in this category.

KBB Awards Pic
Being a wheelchair user himself, Adam has an inherent understanding of the requirements of specialised kitchens and is an acknowledged expert in his field. The Designer Award for Accessible Kitchens was made specifically for a kitchen Adam designed for a young wheelchair user who needed a fully accessible kitchen to maximise independence, yet in a modern, contemporary style. Another crucial part of the brief was to take account of the fact that the client uses both manual and electric wheelchairs, as they have different specifications in terms of height and depth of leg space needed. Adam solved these and many other problems with some unique ideas. He created additional space by knocking through into a small porch area next to the kitchen. Then he changed the layout in order to bring the oven, hob and sink together. The worktop height was then set to suit both wheelchairs and the client’s personal assistants.

Adam accepted the award at the gala KBB Review Industry Awards dinner at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole on January 23rd 2006.

From the Archives: Injured Jockeys Fund Selects Design Matters Kitchens

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

Oaksey House ExtAs part of our project to transfer our News Archive to our new web site, this article re-visits the opening of Oaksey House in Lambourn.

The Injured Jockeys Fund has installed two fully featured accessible kitchens by Design Matters at Oaksey House, its new residential home for injured jockeys in Lambourn Surrey. The kitchens have been designed to accommodate a wide variety of access requirements to ensure maximum flexibility and independence for future residents.

The Princess Royal, Patron of the Injured Jockeys Fund, opened Oaksey House on Monday September 21st 2009 and was received by Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of the Royal County of Berkshire the Hon. Mrs Bayliss. The Princess Royal spent more than two hours touring Oaksey House and unveiled a statue of Lord Oaksey, who established the LJF in 1964, she said “Oaksey House sets an example that very few other sports have been able to achieve. It is a step forward in every respect, and people are going to learn from this for all other sports”.

From the Archives: Design Matters at York St John University

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

As part of our project to transfer our News Archive to our new web site, we are focussing in this post on partnerships we have forged in the past with major institutions in the UK, such as York St John University.

One of the largest providers of occupational therapy education in the country, York St John University installed a Design Matters accessible kitchen in 2009 as part of its commitment to provide a high quality educational experience for its students.

Accessible kitchen by Design Matters at York St John University

The state of the art accessible kitchen is made from durable materials and is packed with features that showcase the best in inclusive design. It has colour-contrast edges to the doors and worksurfaces that provide good visual cues for people with a visual impairment, and softly shaped handles that are easy to touch and hold.

There are plenty of pull-out storage units and pull-out appliances to see, and the entire kitchen is fitted with high quality hardware and soft-close hinges.

Hob Detail - Design Matters Kitchen at York St John University

This kitchen is a superb teaching resource for the next generation of occupational therapists, and is a significant enhancement to the university’s teaching resources.

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