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Choosing The Right Chair
There are chairs and then there are chairs. Once you begin to explore the choice of chairs available, choosing the right one for your care home can be rather overwhelming. High back? Low back? Tub chair? Wing chair? Straight leg? Queen Anne Leg? The list goes on!
At Spearhead our Care Interior Specialists are here to assist you with choosing the right style and design of chair for your care home. Many chair designs look good, stylish and are great for hospitality and hotel environments, but often they are not suitable for elderly residents in a care home.
We always recommend you engage with one of our team when looking at new chairs, but here is a list of some things to look out for and consider when selecting chairs for your care home:
The height of the chair
For lounges especially, high back chairs that a user can lean their head against when having a nap is beneficial. If it is a lower back, the user will find their head falls back with no support which becomes uncomfortable.
Wings or no wings?
Wings on a chair are sometimes considered to be old fashioned, but it is a fact they act as a great support where the person seated chooses to have a sleep. If you choose not to have a wing chair, it is recommended to ensure you have higher, supportive sides to the chair at least.
Seat height
Different chairs have differing seat heights and you need to be careful that you don’t specify anything too low, otherwise it will be difficult for elderly users to get up out of the chair and it will be a long distance for them when sitting down. 460mm/18” is the standard seat height, but we can adjust this either way on specific models, if required.
Postural support
It is important that a chair provides the necessary support and comfort for older people. For example, a chair with a sprung back will be more supportive than a chair with a basic foam back – always ask what the specification of the chair is if you are about to purchase, before going ahead.
Wooden or upholstered arms?
Upholstered arms are softer and nicer to rest your arm on, but depending on the upholstery, it can become dirty/grubby over time. A wooden arm or knuckle may not become dirty, but it is harder to rest the arm on and can scratch easily with hand jewellery or mugs/glasses.
