Livable Housing Design Standard
Australian Building Codes Board
This ABCB Standard provides a set of technical provisions that if complied with will enable dwellings to better meet the needs of the community, including older people and people with mobility limitations.
This ABCB Standard has been adapted from the ‘Silver’ level requirements of the Livable Housing Design Guidelines (LHDG), fourth edition, 2017, which were first published by Livable Housing Australia.
It is important to note that this ABCB Standard is not an exact replication of the LHDG. There are instances where adjustments have been made in order to convert the LHDG — which was drafted as a voluntary guideline — into a document suitable for use as a regulatory standard. There are also instances where adjustments have been made in response to stakeholder feedback provided through one or more of the consultation processes that occurred in the development of this document
This ABCB Standard is intended as a set of minimum necessary provisions, rather than as an exemplar of best practice. This is consistent with the role of the National Construction Code (NCC) which calls up this ABCB Standard.
This ABCB Standard is not intended for use in designing specialist accommodation, nor is it intended to achieve equivalence with AS 1428.1. Therefore, its provisions may not accommodate the needs and abilities of all home occupants. Nonetheless, the features described herein are considered to be of most widespread benefit and use in the majority of circumstances.
Contents:
Part 1: Dwelling access
Part 2: Dwelling entrance
Part 3: Internal doors and corridors
Part 4: Sanitary compartment
Part 5: Shower
Part 6: Reinforcement of bathroom and sanitary compartment walls
