What Dementia-Friendly Design Means for Aged Care at Home?

The first Home Matters: Rethinking Aged Care Design webinar brought together lived experience, aged care leadership, and dementia design expertise to explore a simple but powerful idea: the spaces we live in shape how we feel, function, and connect. 

While the discussion included residential aged care, many of the strongest insights also apply to aged care at home—especially for people living with dementia and the families who support them.

For many older Australians, home is more than a place. It is where routines feel familiar, treasured belongings offer comfort, and everyday life still feels like their own. For people living with dementia, these things can play an important role in reducing distress, supporting confidence and helping preserve independence for longer.

Why do familiar surroundings matter in dementia care?

One of the clearest themes from the webinar was that good care starts with understanding the person.

That means recognising preferences, routines, habits, identity and the small details that help someone feel safe and at ease.

In a home setting, this might be the morning cup of tea in a favourite mug, the chair near the window, a well-worn path to the kitchen, or treasured photos and keepsakes left in just the right place.

For people living with dementia, familiar surroundings can support orientation, reduce confusion and help everyday tasks feel more manageable. That is one reason many families look for ways to keep a loved one in their own home with the right support around them, rather than moving too soon into an unfamiliar environment, such as residential care or a nursing home.

Small changes at home can make a big difference

The webinar highlighted how design can either support independence or create barriers. In the home, dementia-friendly design does not have to mean major renovation. Often, thoughtful and practical adjustments can make daily life safer, calmer and more empowering.

Depending on the person’s needs, helpful changes may include 

• improving lighting
• reducing visual clutter 
• creating clearer walking paths
• using familiar objects for orientation
• supporting easier access to outdoor areas 
• making bathrooms and bedrooms feel safer and easier to navigate. 

The goal is not to make the participants' home feel clinical, but to create an environment that retains the hallmarks and character of home while being more enabling.

Independence, dignity and choice still matter every day

A strong message from the Home Matters webinar was that older people, including people living with dementia, should continue to have choice in the spaces where they live. 

In a participant's home, choice is often found in everyday moments: choosing what to wear, preparing a simple snack, sitting outside in the garden, deciding when to rest, or spending time with others on their own terms.

These moments matter. They support dignity, reinforce identity and help preserve a sense of control. 

In-home support should strengthen that sense of choice rather than replace it. That is why person-centred care planning is so important in dementia support at home.

Just Better Care works alongside customers and families living with dementia to shape support around individual routines, preferences and goals, helping support services to fit naturally into daily life.

Connection and community are part of living well at home

The webinar also explored how environments affect connection. 

For people living with dementia, social isolation can have a real impact on wellbeing. Home can continue to support connection when the right help is in place—whether that means seeing family, staying involved in the local community, keeping up a favourite activity, or simply sharing a conversation with someone familiar and trusted.

Good aged care at home is not only about practical support. It is also about helping people remain connected to the people, places and rhythms of life that matter most to them.

For families, this can also provide reassurance that support is not only meeting physical needs, but emotional and social needs as well.

What does this mean for families navigating dementia at home?

For families, one of the most reassuring insights from the webinar is that living well with dementia is not only about services. It is also about creating environments that feel familiar, supportive and respectful. 

When care, routine and surroundings work together, people living with dementia can often remain at home safely and comfortably for longer.

This may involve a mix of support services, such as 

• Personal care.
• Meal preparation.
• Respite for carers.
• Social support and community participation.
• Medication prompting and asssistance with medications.
• Travel & transport.
• 24/7 and overnight support.
• Or more complex in-home nursing and clinical support as needs change. 

What matters most is that support remains flexible and personalised.

Our local teams provide tailored support through a wide range of aged care services, including dementia support that evolves as needs change over time.

Supporting families with trained dementia care professionals

All Just Better Care team members who support customers and their families living with dementia undertake education and training from Dementia Training Australia (DTA).

DTA combines the expertise of four universities to deliver a coordinated national approach to dementia training for individuals and organisations. This commitment helps strengthen the knowledge, understanding and practical capability of our teams, so families can feel more confident that support is informed by current dementia care education and best practice.

This webinar marks the first in an eight-part series from Dementia Training Australia, created for aged care and design professionals. The series explores practical strategies, real-world case studies and expert insights to help improve the design of aged care environments. 

To learn more and register for upcoming sessions, visit Dementia Training Australia's Rethinking Aged Care Design.

Home still matters

For people living with dementia, familiar surroundings, meaningful routines, personal choice and specialised support can make a meaningful difference to wellbeing.

With the right support in place, home can remain a place of dignity, reassurance, connection and quality of life.