Modern Senior Living: Invisible Design and Wellness-Focussed Retirement Communities

Untold Villages have reimagined modern senior living, bringing contemporary design, subtle safety measures and capable independence together to form retirement communities with our residents at the heart, empowering a sense of freedom that retirees deserve to feel in these special years. Living in an Untold Village ensures retirement doesn’t bring a sense of slowing down, more of the opposite. Remember, retiring from work doesn't mean you’re retiring from life. Step foot into one of our retirement communities and be graced by like-minded residents, all focussed on living their retirement with wellness and lifestyle at the centre stage. 

Great design is invisible

Our communities are designed with seniors in mind, however we appreciate that by even saying this we are, for many people, conjuring up images of a Care Home. Nothing could be further from the truth. Untold Communities have the feel of a modern boutique hotel where tasteful design is blended with practical living and social space. All of our communities have their own unique character designed to reflect their location and local heritage. One size never fits all.

Our social spaces focus on providing natural light and quiet acoustics (why are public spaces so noisy these days?), designed to create a space for real social connection and conversation. Some of our spaces offer individuals and small groups a sense of privacy, and some allow the whole community to meet at once. Mix this with comfortable and stylish furniture and you have a variety of social spaces for residents to enjoy.

Our apartments and bungalows include 1,2 & 3 bed homes and are all level access. We design advanced supportive technologies into our new developments which every resident, and their family, have the right to use should they wish to. (See Technology link here). This concept of ‘stealth design’ is important to us for while assistive technologies need to be embedded in the fabric of the community, there is no reason for them to be garish and ugly, it can just as easily be subtle and stylish, so that’s what we do.

Wellbeing is much more than a word

If Integrated Retirement Communities have a universal philosophy it is this: ‘prevention is better than cure’. Our communities are designed to pro-actively promote health and independent living. A simple way to express this concept is, if using stairs causes or exacerbates knee problems, don’t use stairs. Furthermore, if a fall at home is becoming an increasing risk, design out the risk by living in a facility with lifts and level access. It is not unusual for residents who arrive with walking sticks to be free of them after a few months.

Our wellbeing measures cover a range of elements:

Air – All of our communities are designed with the concept of ‘Fresh Air’ being best. With biophilic design our buildings ‘bring the outside inside’ with the extensive use of planting and greenery indoors. This design approach helps promote a personal connection with nature, promotes better mental health and keeps the air inside our communities fresher.

Water – Staying hydrated is vital, and whilst we do not monitor an individual’s hydration (Note: we can via a formal care plan if it is required) we make it as easy as possible for our residents to stay hydrated. Free to use tea, coffee & water stations are available throughout the community and filtered water is provided with every meal.

Nourishment – Healthy food, locally sourced and freshly cooked is on offer 7 days a week at Untold villages. Our bistros serve a range of simple but healthy meals three times a day and residents can choose to eat with us as much or as little as they like. Food packages are available (a good way of ensuring that a home cooked meal is eaten at least once a day) and we change our menus regularly to bring variety and choice.

Light – Natural light is a cornerstone of our design principles and whilst individual apartments and bungalows have varying degrees of natural light, depending on their orientation / time of day etc. our social areas are designed to let in as much natural light as is possible. Need to get as much sunlight as you can in the bleak midwinter? In an Untold community you can, but with a hot chocolate in your hand.

Movement – ‘Motion is lotion’ as they say, and in a world where it is all too easy to be stationary we actively encourage physical movement in our communities. This is not just through the use of organised community activities such as: chair yoga, walking groups and community outings etc. but in the way our communities are designed. Post and parcels need to be physically collected by residents, and if a resident elects to use our ‘wearable tech’ our systems allow us to passively track movement. It may not be 10,000 steps a day, every day, but with data we can always find time for a conversation about what we can do to make movement more a part of someone’s daily routine.

Thermal Comfort – Staying warm enough, but increasingly cool enough, is a genuine challenge in a world where climate change is turning our temperate climate into a more extreme one. All of our new communities are built with a ‘fabric first’ principle and are well insulated against heat and cold. All of our social areas have comfort cooling / air conditioning and we continue to search the market for innovations and design solutions that can mitigate the threats of extreme temperatures.

Sound – All of our interior design is built on the foundation of excellent acoustic damping. Noisy and busy social spaces often produce a cacophony of sound that can make it very difficult for anyone to hear and hold a conversation. At Untold living we are acutely aware of how isolating and uncomfortable this is for many people so we have placed the invisible art of acoustics high 
on our priority list.

Materials – The materials used for our building and landscape influence how they relate to their surroundings and how they are experienced. By focusing on blending practical, durable and attractive materials into all of our developments, our communities look good and feel good for the long term. Of course much of this does come down to individual ‘taste’ but all of our communities have their own character, like our residents.

Mind – The emotional wellbeing of our residents is not something we have direct agency over, but during the early stages of a move to a community (the first 100 days) we go to great lengths to help individuals or couples to feel at home through a ‘buddy system’ and by easing them into community life at their own pace. Our regular social activities are always there to provide entertainment and engagement and our colleagues are always there to listen if need be.

Community – Daily interaction with other human beings is one of the main benefits of living in a Retirement Community. By providing the social spaces where residents can meet, eat or play together we lower the chances of loneliness. By taking the time to get to know the interests and values of the individual before people move in with us, our activities coordinators get an understanding of what existing social networks might best fit. Community is what you make of it, but we are in the business of creating communities and it is our belief that if Untold Living is for you, then you can find your place if you want to.

Technology plays a part in wellbeing

As the world becomes more connected Untold needs to adapt to the changing needs and preferences of our residents. Writing about technology is risky given that no sooner have you placed the last full stop, you are out of date, but our resident tech strategy is really very simple:
We want to build a technology infrastructure that everyone loves using and that affects everyone positively.

Our customer facing systems will include:

Resident engagement platform - Will be used to aid communication internally and provide residents with reminders about activities and events.

Digital billing - Having visibility on costs is as important for transparency as it is for budgeting. We want a no-surprise culture.

Smart sensors – With a plethora of evolving technologies in the market place our new developments will be equipped with near invisible technologies that can monitor movement and detect falls

Wearable tech – The days of the pendant are long gone and Untold residents will be provided with the latest wearable technologies that look good, are comfortable and provide protection.

Untold will address digital literacy. The residents of our community will have a range of technological competency so we will host tech workshops, offering elements of technical support and devise a mentoring program where residents can help other residents.

Untold Living’s wellness measures create a retirement sanctuary, cultivating friendships, modern living and most of all, freedom. To discuss living in one of our retirement communities, or have any questions relating to how we do things, contact us today.