Flat Spaces

Artist and developer Tom Yendell’s new concept in holiday accommodation, Flat Spaces, has been specially designed to take the worry out of travel for disabled visitors. In creating his new holiday homes which place as much emphasis on accessibility as well as aesthetics, he turned to Pressalit for their help in providing the wow factor in the kitchen and bathrooms.

Pressalit helps give Flat Spaces the wow factor

In designing and furnishing the holiday accommodation Tom, who is a mouth and foot artist, has used his experience of building his own home with his wife Lucy, to create living space that really works for his visitors. His aim has been to provide stunning, personal and high quality living space that disabled visitors can enjoy – and importantly rely on, to meet their specific needs.

Knowing that Pressalit is highly regarded for designing a range of attractive yet practical rise and fall products for the home, he turned to them when looking to furnish the kitchen, dining room and wet rooms in his new holiday accommodation.

Situated in Ropley, Hampshire, very close to the famous Watercress Line Steam Railway, the first Flat Spaces bungalow has recently opened.

“I’m fully aware of the requirements and worries of less abled people particularly when they stay away from their own home as I’ve been in that situation myself,” says Tom. “Overnight stays away can be a stressful experience for the severely disabled as the specialist facilities they require are either not available or are often poor and variable. We know many severely disabled people never go on holiday because of the fear of not being able to cope.

“So we did our homework very carefully before choosing the most appropriate furniture and fittings from Pressalit, to help Flat Spaces become stunning, self-contained holiday accommodation with a definite wow factor.”

For the kitchen and dining areas Tom has chosen height adjustable Indivo table frames and work surfaces that allow the height to be selected with a simple turn handle; in the bathroom he has fitted the specialist Pressalit shower corner with adjustable shower chair on a Plus horizontal track, together with shower, grab rails and shower curtain; hinged arm supports alongside the WC and Pressalit rise and fall basin, as well as adjustable grab rails by the bath for added support.

In an ethos shared by Tom, Pressalit designs each element to ensure that every consideration is given to allow disabled users the flexibility, independence and usability they need, while providing good looking furniture for a contemporary living space. Making life as worry-free as possible for guests enjoying a holiday at Flat Spaces, in Tom’s words, “access is assured and travel can be worry-free.”

Tom’s charity, Flat Spaces Foundation, aims to provide purpose built holiday and respite accommodation specifically designed to the highest standards, for the disabled, their carers and families. Each property will be internally identical, whilst taking on the local style externally, to give the traveller the confidence of knowing exactly what to expect from a Flat Space holiday. For more information on Flat Spaces, please visit: flatspaces.co.uk

Pressalit has been designing bathrooms and kitchens for over forty years where practicality is a pre-requisite.