A house is a building to satisfy the needs of protection from elements of nature. To this is added the new feature of environments both within and without the building. Thus the meaning of housing environment has also changed.
‘The housing environment is a transformation of the natural environment into a new form for healthy human living’ and is called a home.
A home environment for special needs should be free from barriers and obstacles which restrict accessibility both within and without the house and should meet the standards for safety, convenience and usability.
A built / interior environment for special needs should be a barrier free environment supporting independent functioning of individuals without assistance from others in their day to day activities . This aspect should specifically be kept in mind while designing the new buildings, in old buildings with some modifications access could be improved to meet the standards that allow people with special needs to enjoy a minimum level of access to the living environments without much difficulty.
Thus the interior or housing environment can be described as that environment incorporated through design, which would enable it to satisfy the functions for which a building or part of it are used.
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