Features by Diane Larner, founder and editor of Bathroom Review & Kitchens Review.
Diane Larner launched both titles over 15 years ago and has been writing about the bathroom and kitchen interior design industries ever since, publishing regular features across both sectors.
Accessible bathroom design represents a growing trend as architects strive to create spaces that are barrier-free, visually compelling, and future-ready. In addition, manufacturers are promoting design-led aesthetics that ensure the sector is no longer limited to bland institutional looks, but deliver stunning, adaptable designs that create a compelling focal point.
Advancements in technology also mean today’s inclusive bathrooms offer architects an opportunity to merge inclusivity with innovation, addressing the needs of an ageing population alongside everyday bathroom design.
In this feature, Diane Larner examines the latest products to reach the market – from touchless taps to slip-resistant surfaces.
The Magic Touch
Fitzroy of London Gosfield Collection
According to the World Health Organisation, over 1.3 billion people globally experience significant disability*. This represents 16% of the world’s population, or 1 in 6 of us. In the accessinle bathroom, safety and ease of use are essential. Touchless taps with thermostatic controls play a key role in preventing accidents, as well as limiting the spread of disease. For hoteliers, housebuilders and the healthcare sectors, these fittings not only enhance hygiene and accessibility standards but also improve the user experience. Additionally, integrated sensors add an extra layer of safety, helping washrooms meet water-saving and compliance demands while delivering a clean, modern look.
Fitzroy of London’s head of product, Mark Shepherd, agrees, “There are a variety of innovations that we are seeing when it comes to the luxury bathroom environment. Thermostatic precision, enabled by modern valve technology, ensures the consistent delivery of water temperature, helping to prevent scalding or cold-water shock when there is a significant change in the incoming water pressure.
“There has also been a significant increase in the demand for touchless activation, whether it’s using infrared sensors on toilet cisterns or taps, or through voice activation and smart home application integration.”
The Gosfield Collection by Fitzroy of London features advanced infrared sensor taps, along with precise control over water flow and temperature, ensuring comfort and safety in both residential and commercial settings. All products are WRAS-approved and Regulation 4 certified, meeting stringent requirements for water efficiency and compliance.
The collection includes beautifully crafted deck and wall-mounted taps, contemporary handheld and overhead shower solutions, shower arms, and precise shower mixers.
Staying Grounded
Incorporating a practical anti-slip shower floor into your next project is a simple, forward-thinking option that lends safety and aesthetics without compromising looks. Anti-slip solutions also provide long-term support for clients by improving durability, reducing liability risks, and contributing to safer, more inclusive environments in hospitality and healthcare settings. It is all about fostering a sense of comfort and safety.
Adam Teal – country manager Kaldewei UK, explains, “When creating and crafting products that enable accessibility within the bathroom space the design must also consider the dignity and autonomy of the end user. By doing this you can transform a daily ritual into an assertion of care, as well as making a positive design statement about inclusivity. In addition, this should not be about compliance—it’s about crafting spaces where everyone feels supported and empowered to move freely and safely.”
Kaldewei’s Invisible Grip is certified to quality class C for wet barefoot areas (DIN EN 16165), making it particularly suitable for barrier-free bathroom planning. It’s a solution that speaks to both the practical and emotional needs of users – ensuring that safety doesn’t feel clinical, and that design remains aspirational.
According to Kaldewei, when designing with both safety and style in mind, Kaldewei’s Invisible Grip is a quiet revolution. It proves that accessible living can be beautiful, and that the future of bathroom design lies in seamless integration—not compromise.
Space & Time
Accessible design is no longer simply a box-ticking exercise in hospitality and healthcare; considered choices – such as barrier-free flooring and wheelchair-friendly sanitaryware – help deliver a seamless spatial experience. Incorporating ample room for manoeuvre at the planning stage ensures users benefit from generous clearance around sinks, WCs, and the shower room. When architects and designers prioritise space as a core design element, the result is a bathroom that supports independence, as well as the needs of caregivers.
Ideal Standard’s Yiota Toumba, Senior Designer at Villeroy & Boch, agrees, “Accessible and inclusive bathrooms no longer mean compromising on style. Thoughtful layouts, wall-mounted basins, walk-in showers, and lever taps ensure safety, comfort, and ease of use for everyone.”
Ideal Standard’s Concept Freedom range, in collaboration with the renowned Studio Levien, features clever design elements that make it easier for those with mobility impairments to use. Wall-hung, back-to-wall, and close-coupled WCs include a design that is 25 per cent higher than average. This reduces pressure on users’ knees and helps to improve the user experience for those with mobility issues. The collection also features shower seats and chrome grab rails, giving a contemporary finish which enhances the overall design.
Love Language
Specifying products that are both beautifully designed and functional ensures the bathroom space fosters trust and emotional well-being, as well as a sense of comfort. High aesthetics, coupled with a welcoming design that celebrates diversity, help attract a broader customer base and increase profitability for hoteliers.
James Sketch – KEUCO UK Country Manager, comments, “Accessibility in the bathroom is not a trend—it’s a design imperative. When creating the bathroom, every element and fixture must be created to anticipate diversity. Although essential for practical purposes the products should be crafted with elegance and precision. True inclusivity means intuitive use without compromise: adaptive heights, tactile clarity.”
Developed in collaboration with the legendary Studio F. A. Porsche, the AXESS collection brings a new aesthetic language to inclusive bathroom design. From the folding support rail and modular shower system to discreet grab rails and a freestanding stool, every element is pared back to its essentials—streamlined, sculptural, and purposefully unobtrusive. The result is a suite of products that integrate seamlessly into high-end hospitality, healthcare, and residential environments, without ever compromising on style.
Showered with Love
Shower toilets are the icing on the cake when it comes to inclusive planning. The latest ranges combine cleansing and drying functions, adjustable nozzles, and night lights, elevating hygeine standards whilst promoting greater user independence and a sense of wellbeing.
Lewis Neathey, leader, marketing & product management UK at GROHE UK, LIXIL Europe agrees, “In both healthcare and hotel settings, shower toilets deliver exceptional benefits by combining hygiene, comfort, sustainability, and a luxurious experience. Cleansing with water is an age-old tradition that is still favourited in many parts of the world; however, shower toilets bring this natural form of cleaning into the 21st century with features promoting improved personal hygiene, accessibility, app connectivity and personalisation.”
GROHE has expanded its shower toilet offering with the new entry-level product, GROHE Sensia Pro. Designed to meet consumers’ hygiene needs in one streamlined solution, shower toilets combine the benefits of a regular toilet with those of a bidet.
END
Visit the Bathroom Review features page for more like this. Alternatively, if Kitchens are your thing, please visit our sister site, Kitchens Review