Design for life: How our homes are focused on all family members’ needs

With the number of children living at home for longer reportedly on the rise, we’ve taken this valuable insight and used it to design new builds that work from a multi-generational perspective.

As an award-winning, industry-leading housebuilder, we’re continuously adapting the design of our new homes in response to people’s rapidly evolving needs. Over the last decade, this has involved focusing in on the larger family model, created by the ‘boomerang generation’ and older children still living with their parents, whilst ticking everybody’s boxes.

Highly sought-after feature

Open plan living is a feature that tends to be highly sought-after by larger families, and is something our 2.5-storey new builds have in abundance, alongside plenty of bright and airy spaces.

Contrary to popular belief, 2.5-storey properties are an excellent choice for families because of the open plan design, which gives them the flexibility to use and adapt their spaces as their family grows (in age and size).

For instance, the extra floor can be used as a grand main bedroom, freeing up space on the first floor for bedrooms or a modern home office, guest rooms or children’s play area. What’s more, these rooms can be switched around to suit everybody’s needs as the years go by.

Meanwhile, some of our 2.5-storey new builds feature two double bedrooms and a shower room on the top floor that are ideal for guests or as a teenager’s escape – they get to feel grown up by having their very own floor, which provides them with the space and privacy they need for studying and spending time with friends too.

Multitude of requirements

The flexibility offered by 2.5-storey living is extensive, making it an increasingly appealing option for multi-generational families with a multitude of requirements to meet.

Featured in the Housebuilders on Housebuilding column, our Design Manager, Neil Walker, shares some of the ways homeowners are using their homes to make sure the space works for everybody.

For the full details on how we’ve proactively adapted our design in response to the latest demographic trends, check out the latest edition of Professional Housebuilder and Property Developer (turn to pages 10 & 11).