Designing Corridors That Guide: Wayfinding in Care Home Hallways
Corridors are the most challenging spaces for residents with dementia to navigate. This guide covers how to transform uniform hallways into intuitive wayfinding routes using signage, colour differentiation, landmarks, lighting, and environmental design.
Corridors are the connective tissue of every care home, linking bedrooms to bathrooms, lounges to dining rooms, and private spaces to communal areas. Yet they are also the spaces where residents living with dementia most frequently become lost and disoriented. The fundamental problem is sameness: long, straight corridors with identical doors, uniform wall colours, and repetitive lighting create an environment devoid of the distinctive cues that spatial navigation requires. Research from the Dementia Services Development Centre (DSDC) identifies corridor design as one of the highest-impact areas for wayfinding improvement in care settings.
Breaking the Monotony#
The single most important principle in corridor wayfinding design is differentiation. Every stretch of corridor should feel distinct from every other stretch. This does not require major renovation; it can be achieved through a combination of wall colour changes, artwork placement, distinctive furniture or shelving, and varied signage. The goal is to create a series of micro-environments along the corridor, each with its own visual identity, so that residents can orient themselves by recognising where they are rather than remembering which way to turn. Studies published in the Journal of Housing for the Elderly demonstrate that corridors with at least three distinct visual zones show a 45 percent reduction in disorientation incidents.
Practical strategies for corridor differentiation:
- Use different wall colours or accent walls in each corridor section, maintaining contrast with door and sign colours
- Place distinctive artwork, memory boxes, or display shelves at regular intervals to create visual landmarks
- Install projecting signs at corridor junctions so destinations are visible before residents reach the decision point
- Use directional floor markings or contrasting carpet borders to indicate routes to key destinations
- Ensure bedroom door signs are personalised and distinctive so each door looks different from its neighbours
- Avoid dead-end corridors where possible; where they exist, use clear signage to redirect residents
Signage Placement in Corridors#
Corridor signage must be visible at the point where a navigation decision is made, not after the resident has already passed the turning. Projecting signs mounted perpendicular to the wall are essential at junctions because they can be read from a distance as the resident approaches. Door signs should be mounted consistently on the same side of every door frame at 1200mm from floor to centre. Directional signs pointing towards key destinations such as toilets, dining rooms, and lounges should be placed at every junction and at intervals of no more than 15 metres along straight corridors.
Recommended Products
Our projecting corridor signs are designed to be visible from a distance, mounting perpendicular to the wall so residents can read them as they approach a junction. Available in oak and walnut finishes with DSDC 1A-accredited design, they complement our door signs and directional signs to create a complete corridor wayfinding system.
Pro Tip
Walk each corridor in both directions and at different times of day. Wayfinding challenges change depending on lighting conditions, the direction of travel, and whether doors are open or closed. A sign that is perfectly visible walking north may be obscured by an open door when walking south.
Lighting and Flooring in Corridors#
Lighting plays a crucial role in corridor wayfinding. Uniformly lit corridors create a flat, featureless visual environment. Strategic lighting that highlights signs, landmarks, and destination doors helps residents distinguish important features from the background. The DSDC recommends maintaining a minimum of 300 lux in corridors during daytime, with focused lighting on signs and door frames. Night-time lighting should maintain at least 100 lux along the floor to support safe navigation without causing glare. Flooring transitions between corridor and destination rooms also provide important wayfinding cues, signalling to residents that they are moving from one type of space to another.
Avoid using dark or heavily patterned carpet in corridors. Research from the University of Stirling shows that residents with dementia may perceive dark patches as holes and patterned flooring as obstacles, causing hesitation, anxiety, and increased fall risk. Plain, light-coloured flooring with gentle colour transitions at doorways is the evidence-based recommendation.
Transforming corridors from anonymous passageways into guided routes is one of the most effective wayfinding interventions available to care homes. The investment in signage, colour, and environmental cues along corridors pays dividends in reduced staff time spent redirecting lost residents, fewer falls caused by disorientation, and a measurable improvement in resident independence and confidence.
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