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New accessible kitchen installed at Wollongong Hub


Accessible kitchen with white panels and induction oven on counter top
The kitchen features wheelchair-accessible induction stove tops as well as side-opening oven doors.

Over the past few months, our Wollongong Hub has gradually moved locations from Atchison Street to Auburn Street. As we settle in at our new address, participants returning from isolation might notice a few changes when they return. Perhaps the most exciting addition is our brand new kitchen.

The kitchen was designed by Architectural Designer Products (ADP) - Kitchen Division,

with accessibility, space and convenience at the heart of its design. Kitchen CAD Processor, Darran Harris said that the design process had to take many things into consideration, “We needed to ensure wheelchair accessibility, as well as big wide spaces for wheelchairs to manoeuvre. Appliance considerations included lowering bench heights, opting for easy-grab handles and utilising side opening oven doors rather than those that drop down.

Prior to Covid-19 and self-isolation, our Wollongong Hub was hosting Cooking Classes twice per week for up to 12 participants. With the popularity of the classes only continuing to grow, we needed to ensure that our new kitchen space was open, clean and functioned effectively for anyone wishing to participate.

Two sinks, one at lower height and one higher.
Multi-level sinks

Commercially, I don’t know of any other kitchen in the Illawarra designed to be as accessible as this one. I’ve installed kitchens for clients in their own homes, but nothing of this scale that will benefit such a large group of people,“ said Darran.

Community Gateway Lifeskills Manager, Tash Kesby said that the new kitchen layout is a fantastic step forward in ensuring accessibility and inclusion for everyone that walks through Community Gateway’s doors, “No one in the class will be limited to certain jobs or sections of a recipe, because all elements and areas of the kitchen are accessible – it’s fantastic!” She added, “The new design also aligns with our vision, ‘everything we are is relevant to you’. We’ve always strived to ensure that our services are relevant to each individual, but now they truly are.

As we open our doors to the community again over the next few weeks, we welcome anyone interested and eligible to participate in one of our cooking classes. The group cooks one entrée, main and dessert course and everyone enjoys their meal together at the end of the class. Call our friendly team on 1300 657 473 to register your interest.

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