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Author: Colette Lowe

Design Insider Featured in Healthcare Property

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

The Care Home Interiors Company has been featured in Healthcare Property Magazine with an article by Kerry Southern-Reason titled “Make Your Home a Home.”

The feature explores a subject Kerry is passionate about and one that sits at the heart of every project delivered by The Care Home Interiors Company: the importance of creating care home environments that feel reassuring, dignified, welcoming and truly homely.

In a competitive care home market, first impressions matter more than ever. Families are no longer simply choosing a care home based on location, availability or care provision alone. They are looking online, comparing photographs, reading reviews and arriving for visits with a sharper eye. That is why the condition, atmosphere and presentation of a care home can have such a powerful impact.

In the article, Kerry explains that families naturally notice whether a home feels fresh, clean, loved and well cared for. They look at entrances, lounges, bedrooms, dining rooms and corridors. They notice clutter, tired furniture, poor lighting, dated décor or spaces that feel clinical and impersonal. Fairly or unfairly, those details can influence how people perceive the care behind the doors.

A care home interior should feel like a home. It should support dignity, comfort, independence and belonging. It should help residents feel settled and families feel reassured. It should allow staff to take pride in the place they work. It should feel considered, maintained and loved.

The feature in Healthcare Property Magazine reflects Kerry’s long-standing belief that environment is not a background detail in care. It is part of the care experience itself.

For care providers, this also has a clear commercial impact. In a private-paying and increasingly competitive market, the homes that stand out are not only those that are well-run. They are the homes that understand the relationship between care, environment and expectation.

Kerry’s article, “Make Your Home a Home,” is a timely reminder that care home interiors should never be treated as an afterthought. They are part of how a home tells its story. They reflect pride, standards, investment and care.

At The Care Home Interiors Company, this thinking guides every project. The aim is not simply to create beautiful spaces, but to create care environments that feel human, homely and fit for modern expectations. Because a care home should be more than well-designed. It should feel like somewhere people can belong.

You can read the full feature here page 32.

A Refurbishment with Meaning to Encourage Connection

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

When The Care Home Interiors Company was invited to support the refurbishment of Fordingbridge Care Home by Allegra Care, the brief was never simply to “make it look nice.”

This was a high-functioning dementia care environment, and the design needed to work hard. It needed to support daily life, encourage movement, create moments of interest, aid orientation and help residents feel more confident, more connected and more at ease within their surroundings.

Working alongside Fed3, The Care Home Interiors Company approached the project with one clear objective to turn underused spaces into meaningful places. Before the refurbishment, the corridors were dark, bare and uninviting. Like many care home corridors, they served a practical purpose but offered little in the way of warmth, recognition or engagement.

For people living with dementia, this can make an environment feel confusing or even disorientating. Long, featureless corridors can become spaces to pass through, rather than places to pause, understand and enjoy. The solution was to introduce a series of purposeful, themed destinations throughout the home. Each space was carefully designed to provide strong visual cues, familiar references and opportunities for interaction.

Rather than relying on flat artwork alone, the design included layered, 3D elements and recognisable objects that could be touched, explored and discussed. These small details are powerful. They can prompt memories, encourage conversation and help residents make sense of where they are.

One end-of-corridor space became The Workshop, a tactile, familiar feature designed to spark recognition and reminiscence. With authentic, real-world cues, it created a strong orientation point while also offering a hands-on moment of interest.

Another destination was designed around the theme of a train carriage. More than a decorative idea, it created a purposeful place to pause and reminisce, using familiar travel cues to support both wayfinding and conversation. It transformed what could have been “just the end of a corridor” into a place with meaning, character and emotional connection.

A retro music wall was also introduced, using recognisable album art to create both an orientation point and a natural conversation starter. Music is often deeply connected to memory, identity and emotion, and familiar visual references can unlock stories, comments and shared moments. A corridor that once had little to say now had the potential to invite memories of dancing, favourite songs, concerts and moments from the past.

The refurbishment also included a garden and activity-inspired area, designed to feel calm, familiar and inviting. Shelving, objects and styling were used not simply as decoration, but as prompts for participation and gentle engagement. In dementia-friendly design, these touchpoints matter. They quietly invite people to explore, browse, remember and belong.

The biggest change was not just visual. It was atmospheric. On the final visit, the difference could already be seen. Individuals were moving more naturally through the spaces, stopping, looking, chatting and engaging with their surroundings. Corridors had become destinations. Empty walls had become prompts. The environment had become easier to understand and more enjoyable to live within.

For The Care Home Interiors Company, this is exactly what good design in care should do. It should support the people who live there. It should make daily life feel calmer, safer and more meaningful.

In a care home supporting people living with dementia, design has a vital role to play. It can help with wayfinding, reduce uncertainty, encourage independence and create natural opportunities for interaction. It can make a building feel less institutional and more like a home filled with familiar, recognisable and comforting cues.

The Fordingbridge refurbishment is a powerful example of how thoughtful interior design can transform not only how a care home looks, but how it feels and functions.

Featured in Knight Frank Luxury Care Home Guide 2026

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

The Care Home Interiors Company is proud to announce that three of its flagship projects; Cotswold Gate, Lea Grange and Barley Manor Care Homes have been featured in the Knight Frank Luxury Care Home Guide 2026.

The prestigious guide showcases the UK’s most exceptional care homes, recognising those that set a higher benchmark for later-life living through outstanding design, innovation and resident experience. This recognition reflects the company’s commitment to delivering environments where interior design is not simply aesthetic, but integral to how people live, feel and experience care.

Kerry Southern-Reason, Founder of The Care Home Interiors Company, said: “For me, luxury in care isn’t about creating something that looks impressive. It’s about designing environments that genuinely support people to live well, every single day. When design is done properly, it quietly enhances confidence, independence and overall wellbeing.”

Each home has been designed to support a holistic model of care, offering a choice of environments to suit different moods and needs. From light-filled lounges and cosy TV rooms to cafés, private dining areas, cinemas and gyms, residents are able to shape their day around their preferences.

A key feature across all three homes is the use of intuitive wayfinding, particularly beneficial for residents living with perception difficulties and dementia. Rather than relying on excessive signage, each environment incorporates recognisable visual cues such as furniture and familiar design elements to support navigation and independence.

Sustainability is embedded within the design and delivery of each project. By prioritising UK manufacturing, long-lasting materials and energy-conscious design choices. This approach ensures that sustainability is not an add-on, but a core principle that enhances both operational efficiency and resident experience.

The inclusion of Cotswold Gate, Lea Grange and Barley Manor in the Knight Frank Luxury Care Home Guide 2026 highlights a growing recognition that design plays a fundamental role in modern care delivery.

Kerry Southern-Reason added: “These homes demonstrate what’s possible when interior design is treated as part of the care model, not just the finishing touch. It’s about creating places where people feel comfortable, confident and truly at home enabling care to be delivered at its very best.”

Named Finalist in Care Home Awards for Best Interior Design

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

The Care Home Interiors Company has been named a finalist in the Care Home Awards in the category Best Interior Design.

The recognition celebrates design excellence in care settings where interiors go beyond aesthetics to actively support resident wellbeing, independence and day-to-day activity, including environments that facilitate active retirement living.

Kerry Southern-Reason, CEO of the Care Home Interiors Group, said: “Being named a finalist in this category matters because care home design shouldn’t be ‘nice to look at’ it should help people live better. When a space supports confidence, movement and connection, it can transform daily making it easier for care teams to deliver outstanding support. We’re proud of this recognition because it reflects the purpose behind what we do.”

The Care Home Interiors Company’s approach is rooted in the belief that great interiors should quietly enable life to continue with dignity and enjoyment. The company focuses on design elements that help residents feel safe, capable and at home.

As care models continue to evolve, the company believes the physical environment plays a vital role in supporting later life living. Design can remove barriers and help everyday life feel more natural.

The Care Home Awards bring together care providers and sector partners to celebrate excellence across the industry, with finalists recognised for outstanding contributions to care and resident experience.

Shortlisted for Best Dementia Care Design

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

We’re delighted to share some wonderful news. Cotswold Gate Care Home, part of Porthaven Care Homes, has been named a Finalist in the Best Dementia Care Design category at the Healthcare Design Awards.

As the interior designers behind this project, we’re incredibly proud to have helped shape an environment designed to support dignity, independence and wellbeing for people living with dementia.

The Healthcare Design Awards celebrate innovation and excellence in the design of healthcare facilities and care homes. Being shortlisted in a dementia-specific category shines a light on something we believe deeply; design is never “just aesthetics” in a dementia care setting.

Thoughtful interiors can help people feel calmer, more confident, and more like themselves, because the right environment reduces friction in everyday life. It supports routines, strengthens a sense of familiarity, and helps residents navigate their world with greater ease.

The Healthcare Design Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on 12th February 2026 at London Hilton on Park Lane. Whatever the final result, being shortlisted is already something we’ll celebrate because it reflects a shared commitment to raising the standard of environments for people living with dementia.

Named Global 100 Design Business of the Year 2026

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

The Care Home Interiors Company has been officially announced as the Global 100 Awards Design Business of the Year 2026, marking a significant achievement for the Hampshire-based specialist interiors firm led by CEO Kerry Southern-Reason.

The Global 100 Awards recognise outstanding achievements in business leadership worldwide, celebrating innovators and organisations whose dedication, expertise and forward-thinking approaches are redefining excellence within their industries.

The Care Home Interiors Company has taken the top international design accolade, a reflection of its transformational impact on care-home environments across the UK.

Under Kerry Southern-Reason’s leadership, The Care Home Interiors Company has gained a reputation for delivering interiors that do far more than look beautiful. Her approach blends design insight, manufacturing excellence, and research-informed best practice to create environments that actively support residents living with dementia, frailty and age-related conditions.

Working closely in collaboration with care-home operators, the company creates bespoke interiors tailored to each home including handmade furniture designed and manufactured in-house.

Kerry has long championed the need to move away from the stark, clinical aesthetics historically associated with care settings. Instead, her company’s design ethos prioritises homely, cosy, familiar and safe spaces; interiors that feel deeply personal and reflect the rhythms of everyday domestic life.

The Global 100 judging panel highlighted the company’s consistent innovation, its commitment to solving complex design challenges in the care sector, and its ability to transform lived experiences for older adults.

This international recognition places The Care Home Interiors Company among the world’s leading design innovators and shines a spotlight on the vital importance of thoughtful, research-led interiors within social care.

As the industry continues to evolve, the company’s work demonstrates how design can help people live well, safely and independently during the later seasons of their lives.

Care Home Living Through Thoughtful Design

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

There is a moment in every project when we pause, look around the space, and consider not just how it will function, but how it will make someone feel. Because designing for care homes is never simply about furniture or finishes. It is, at its heart, about people.

Dignity, comfort and independence are the key brief objectives to support the gentle rhythms of daily life. For those living the winter of their lives, the environment that surrounds them takes on a profound significance. Familiarity matters. Softness matters. Light matters. Design becomes something much deeper: it becomes a companion, a quiet source of reassurance, a supportive presence in the background of every day.

At The Care Home Interiors Company, we believe that interior design has a true and lasting role in enhancing quality of life. Not in a decorative way, but in a deeply human one. We bring together practicality, design insight and manufacturing excellence to create spaces that embrace people, sustain dignity and support every moment lived within them.

Great design in a care setting is seldom loud. It whispers. It gently guides. It enables and in many of our schemes, it wows the beholder in a positive way with many saying: ‘I never thought I’d live in a place like this’.

A corridor, for example, is not just a connecting point between rooms, it becomes a place where someone regains confidence in their own movement. A chair is not merely a piece of furniture; it is the difference between hesitating and feeling safe enough to sit. A dining room is not simply functional, it is somewhere to gather, to talk, to taste, to belong.

Every detail, from light levels to upholstery, is chosen with intention. We think carefully about how colours influence mood, how textures soothe the senses, how the placement of furniture can encourage conversation and mobility. We design not just for practicality, but for emotional ease and to promote wellbeing.

Designing for care is unlike designing for any other environment. It requires an understanding of how people see, move, navigate, rest, socialise and feel safe; all of which change with age, health and cognitive ability.

We observe how residents interact with the world around them; how light affects depth perception, how the tone of a floor can influence confidence, how a warm fabric can provide sensory reassurance. These insights shape everything we create. They allow us to transform spaces into places that gently support the people who use them, without ever feeling clinical or institutional.

In this way, the design becomes a partner in care: subtle, supportive and always centred on the resident’s experience. And of course it means people want to live their too. Happy enabled people living in these environments make for relaxed and happy care teams.

The ideas we imagine are not limited by what already exists. If a care home needs a solution that is unique, we build it. A recessed bookcase can transform a blank wall into a place of warmth and familiarity. A built-in alcove seat can turn an overlooked corner into a cosy resting point, somewhere to pause and gather your thoughts before carrying on. A piece of furniture designed specifically for one room can bring harmony to the entire space.

Because we craft these pieces ourselves, we ensure they feel homely, are built to last, and meet the realities of everyday life in a care environment. They are not add-ons; they are part of the home, part of the architecture, part of the story.

Ultimately, everything we do comes back to the belief that people deserve to feel at home regardless of age or ability. The right interior can offer a sense of belonging that is both grounding and uplifting. It can restore confidence, nurture independence, and create moments of connection between residents, carers and loved ones.

As we approach this final chapter of our lives, it isn’t time to fade into the background, it is time to flourish, be supported, safe and valued in warmth, understanding and beauty.

At The Care Home Interiors Company, our mission is to honour this chapter with interiors that don’t just meet practical needs but enhance the whole experience of living. Our interiors support, enable and dignify. They are made with care, for care.

Because everyone deserves a home that enriches their life; especially in the moments when it matters most.

Redefining the Future of Care Home Design

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

When two design-driven organisations share the same vision for excellence, something remarkable happens.

Elizabeth Gardens Care Home is the result of a close collaboration between The Care Home Interiors Company and Porthaven Care Homes. A partnership defined by innovation, attention to detail, and a shared belief that exceptional design has the power to transform the way we live, age and care.

As one of the most ambitious projects delivered by The Care Home Interiors Company, Elizabeth Gardens stands as a flagship example of what thoughtful, purpose driven design can achieve in the care sector. From the very beginning, the design brief centred on creating an environment that didn’t just look beautiful, but that truly felt like home uplifting, comfortable and deeply personal.

Every aspect of the home has been considered to enhance quality of life for residents, their families and the care teams who support them. The result is a care environment that blends sophistication with practicality, luxury with warmth, and design flair with deep empathy for the people who live there.

For The Care Home Interiors Company, Elizabeth Gardens represents not just a completed project, but a statement of intent: that care environments can be beautiful, innovative and life-enhancing. It’s a design that challenges assumptions, celebrates individuality, and proves that a care home can be both functional and inspiring.

Creating Care Environments that Truly Support Wellbeing

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

While we couldn’t share the stage with our presentation partners Danfloor Carpets at this year’s Birmingham Care Show, we’re still passionate about bringing the conversation to you because understanding the silent needs within care design is too important to wait another year.

Our planned presentation about recognising the silent needs that support wellbeing in care homes explores the subtle but powerful ways that flooring and furnishing choices impact daily life for those living and working in care.

Sensory comfort is often overlooked in care design, yet it underpins how people feel, interact, and thrive in their surroundings. Overstimulation, noise, glare, and fatigue can heighten stress or confusion, particularly for older adults and those living with cognitive impairments.

Noise levels in care environments affect everyone. Echoes and hard surfaces can amplify sound, leading to stress, agitation and fatigue. Soft surfaces such as carpet, upholstery, cushions and curtains help absorb sound, reduce echo, and create a quieter, more comfortable space.

Caring is a role that keeps people on their feet. Hard floors increase leg strain and musculoskeletal fatigue, while cushioned carpets support joint health and reduce plantar pressure. Softer, non-slip surfaces also mean fewer falls and improved comfort for care teams working long shifts.

From colour and texture to acoustics and lighting, every sensory element can either soothe or overstimulate. Designing for sensitivities means creating harmony. Environments that are calm, familiar and emotionally supportive, rather than clinical or chaotic.

When care environments are calm, familiar and sensory-balanced, residents feel more secure, emotionally grounded and staff teams experience less stress and fatigue. That’s the essence of good design; not just looking good but feeling good.

If you’d like to understand more about how these principles can enhance wellbeing within your care home interiors, get in touch we’d love to talk to you about the importance of sensory comfort.

Creating Comfort Through Thoughtful Design

Written by Colette Lowe on . Posted in Blog.

Creating Comfort Through Thoughtful Design for Porthaven Care Homes

Comfort is never an afterthought; it’s built into every detail of the Care Home Interiors design process. From familiar patterns to the soft textures of the cushions, and even a playful nod to classic games like Scrabble, care home spaces go beyond style. They’re carefully crafted to feel like home.

Unlike mainstream interior design, where trends and change is celebrated, consistency plays a vital role in residential care, especially dementia-friendly environments. Familiarity isn’t simply aesthetic, it helps maintain independence, reduces anxiety, and supports recognition.

For those living with dementia, surroundings become an anchor in an ever-shifting world. Even small changes to décor, layout, or colour schemes can cause distress or confusion, making it harder to navigate and settle comfortably.

That’s why, in our partnership with Porthaven Care Homes, we focus on interiors that support both practicality and emotional wellbeing. Every decision from the placement of a chair to the choice of wallpaper, is made with the resident in mind. Design is not about impressing, but about comforting.

We believe thoughtful interiors should:

Foster security and stability – spaces that feel familiar allow residents to relax and feel confident in their environment.

Encourage connection – warm colours, homely furnishings, and nostalgic touches create common ground for conversation and shared memories.

Support independence – clear navigation, subtle cues, and recognisable layouts empower residents to move about with ease.

By using heritage colour palettes, classic wallpaper designs, and recognisable furnishings, Porthaven Care Homes are creating homes where people feel safe, secure, and truly at home. Because when an environment is both delightful and homely, it becomes far more than a place to live – it becomes a place to belong.