accordingly. Facilities should provide communal areas that offer a pleasant environment where activities are organised and the residents are able to engage socially with each other or with visitors. displayed for the residents and their family members on topics concerning everyday life, such as activities or church services, were difficult to read and at times unclear. Facilities should ensure that up-to-date and easy-to-read information is provided in full to the relevant target group. 2.2.3 – Accessibility In several facilities, thresholds had been fitted in the doorways to the balconies and outside areas with the result that residents in wheelchairs could not go outdoors without assistance. This also entails the risk that residents might trip on a threshold. In one facility, the doorway to the balcony was covered with construction sheeting and a prohibition sign was displayed due to a faulty locking mechanism. However, this had been the case for a long period of time. Indeed, the residents had been unable to use the balcony for approximately half a year. The staff of the facility, however, regularly used the balcony to smoke, and temporarily removed the construction sheeting to do so. 2.2.4 – Accessing advice and making complaints Numerous facilities failed to display contact details for the responsible supervisory authority and external complaints bodies. Furthermore, in certain facilities there did not appear to be any effective form of complaint management in place. In order to effectively protect residents from violations of their rights, it should be possible for them, their family members, and their legal representatives to access information about their rights as well as aspects of the running of the facility that concern them. They should also have the opportunity to make complaints if necessary. To this end, they should be made aware of complaints channels in an appropriate manner. This could be done, for example, in the form of an easy-to-read notice with contact details in every living area. Residents should be supported in making complaints, both orally and in writing, as well as anonymously. In some facilities, patient lifts, nursing trolleys and wheelchairs had been placed in the corridors, resulting in restricted passageways. This posed a significant impediment in particular to any persons who are reliant on a mobility aid. In a different facility, toilets that had been designated as handicapped-accessible had been designed in such a way that it was not possible for persons in a wheelchair to use them independently. As well as this, the mirrors in the sanitary areas seen during the visit had in some cases been mounted so high up on the wall that persons in a wheelchair would be hardly able to see them. 2.2.5 – Activities and social participation In several facilities, the number and range of activities on offer were insufficient. Planned activities were repeatedly cancelled and there were often no activities offered at weekends. Some facilities stated that there were not always enough staff members available to allow residents to take part in activities outside of the facility. The reason for this was that many of the residents needed a wheelchair to leave the facility, which would require one staff member per person. However, facilities should enable every resident to participate in social life, and should also support them in doing so. Residents should be able to live as independently as possible, without the obstruction of physical barriers. Barrier-free access should be guaranteed to all areas intended to be used by the residents, including the outdoor areas. Yet the issue of accessibility is not limited to building aspects alone. Access to sources of information and the availability of communication devices are further factors in ensuring accessibility. In individual facilities, it was noted that information that had been Residential care and nursing homes should offer daily activities to suit different target groups. These should be spread throughout the day. It should be borne in mind that persons with dementia in particular have limited to 39