The Gateshead Housing Standard for Ageing Well
Glossary
This section provides a glossary of terms used throughout the Gateshead Standard for Ageing Well.
Planning Use Classes
The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 (as amended) puts uses of land and buildings into various categories known as 'Use Classes' the relevant classes are detailed below.
Class C2. Residential institutions
Use for the provision of residential accommodation and care to people in need of care (other than a use within class C3). Residential care homes, hospitals, nursing homes, boarding schools, residential colleges and training centres.
Class C2A. Secure Residential Institution
Use for a provision of secure residential accommodation, including use as a prison, young offenders' institution, detention centre, secure training centre, custody centre, short-term holding centre, secure hospital, secure local authority accommodation or use as a military barracks.
Class C3. Dwellinghouses
Use as a dwellinghouse (whether or not as a sole or main residence)
(a) by a single person or by people living together as a family, or
(b) by not more than 6 residents living together as a single household (including a household where care is provided for residents).
Housing types
Conventional housing: refers to property occupied by the majority of the population such as homes purchased in the open market, property rented from a private landlord or general needs housing rented from a local council or housing association.
Specialist and supported housing: is typically defined as a housing service where housing, support and/or care services are provided to help people to live as independently as possible. This can be for older people or others that might have care/support needs. See page 8 for further definitions.
Care-ready housing: typically means that a home is capable of adaptation over time to meet changing needs as people age, including space for aids and adaptations. Through good design, homes can be built to be better suited to possible future requirements such as the need to have an over-night carer, storage for mobility scooters and space for care givers, in order to retain independence.
Modular home: Modular homes are houses built off-site, usually in an indoor, quality-controlled setting. Modular homes are completed in sections called modules, according to specific plans. These sections are then transported to the site where they are assembled by builders and installed into the foundations. The construction process is referred to as MMC or Modern Methods of Construction.
Volumetric home: Volumetric construction is a type of modular construction, where the main difference is that volumetric modules are completely enclosed, while other modular construction modules may be open on one or more sides.
Standards and guidelines
HAPPI design principles: (opens new window) Over ten years ago, the very first HAPPI report, 'Housing our Ageing Population, Panel for Innovation' (HAPPI), identified ten key design elements that characterise attractive and successful housing for an ageing population. They have now been adapted to incorporate 'dementia-ready' features, as highlighted in the table below.
The ten HAPPI design principles (2008) | 'Dementia-ready' HAPPI features (2021) |
i) Generous internal space standards with potential for three habitable rooms and designed for flexible layouts. | i) Generous internal space standards that are familiar, safe, easy to understand, navigate and move around independently in order to minimise confusion, reduce risk, frustration, agitation and anger or apathy and depression. Consideration of acoustic performance including internal, neighbour and outdoor environment. |
ii) Plenty of natural light in the home and circulation | ii) Plenty of natural light with good visual access, varied views and vistas to create a connection with the outside world and aid orientation. High levels of good quality shadow free daylight, but avoiding glare, and artificial light at night Ideally, east/west orientation for habitable rooms to ensure direct sunlight during the day. |
iii) Balconies and outdoor space, avoiding internal corridors and single-aspect flats | iii) Balconies and ease of access to outdoor space, avoiding long internal dead-end corridors and single aspect flats that might isolate someone with dementia. Consider benefit of balcony winter gardens and covered terraces. |
iv) Adaptability and 'care aware' design which is ready for emerging telecare and telehealthcare technologies | iv) Future adaptability and modifications which are 'dementia-ready' and can also incorporate devices and equipment, including digitally enabled technology or smart sensors. Home/ site broadband connectivity. |
v) Circulation spaces that encourage interaction and avoid an 'institutional feel'. | v) Generous circulation spaces that are recognisable, clear, step free and easy to navigate without reliance on signage, lead to an activity/destination to encourage social interaction. Domestic scale to avoid an 'institutional feel' or over stimulation. Provision of seating alcoves, effective colourways and points of interest (e.g. art/pictures) to aid wayfinding. |
vi) Shared facilities and community 'hubs' where these are lacking in the neighbourhood | vi) Open and welcoming access to outward facing, on-site shared facilities or community 'hubs' within easy reach so as to support and provide opportunities for engagement with other people and/or services in a multi-generational environment. Flexible spaces to provide opportunities for both social interaction and quieter, intimate scale spaces |
vii) Plants, trees, and the natural environment | vii) Providing helpful stimulation and clear orientation with easy access to green space, natural landscape with visual enhancing and fragrant planting that engages the senses, encourages bio-diversity and areas for points of interest exercise or resting and sitting places. Consider outdoor surfaces, covered spaces, textures and contrasts, looped paths and opportunities for purposeful activity e.g. raised planting beds for gardening clubs |
viii) High levels of energy efficiency, with good ventilation to avoid overheating | viii) Energy efficient low carbon design and specification - affordable and comfortable, with the building orientation, use of shading and good ventilation to avoid overheating. Easy to use/ understandable and familiar looking controls |
ix) Extra storage for belongings and bicycles | ix) Extra storage for personal belongings within individual dwellings and ease of access to mobility and other aids |
x) Shared external areas such as 'home zones' that give priority to pedestrians | x) Hazard free external environment, well-lit and appropriate use of signage/cues and level pedestrian access with close proximity to accessible public transport and neighbourhood amenities |
Lifetime Home Standard (2011): The concept of Lifetime Homes was developed in the early 1990s by a group of housing experts, including Habinteg Housing Association and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Lifetime Homes are ordinary homes designed to incorporate 16 Design Criteria (opens new window) that can be universally applied to new homes at minimal cost. These include:
- Parking (width or widening capability)
- Approach to dwelling from parking (distance, gradients and widths)
- Approach to all entrances
- Entrances
- Communal stairs and lifts
- Internal doorways and hallways
- Circulation space
- Entrance level living space
- Potential for entrance level bed space
- Entrance level WC and shower drainage
- WC and bathroom walls
- Stairs and potential through-floor lift in dwellings
- Potential for fitting of hoists and bedroom / bathroom relationship
- Bathrooms
- Glazing and window handle
- Location of service controls
In England, the Lifetime Homes standard was superseded in 2015 by M4(2) Part M of Building Regulations, which is broadly equivalent to the Lifetime Homes standard.
Sustainable Code Level 4: The Code for Sustainable Homes (opens new window) Level 4 is a design stage certification that assesses a project's compliance with building regulations for energy efficiency and other sustainability considerations. Projects that achieve Level 4 must surpass current regulations and have significantly lower CO2 emissions.
Royal National Institute for the Blind (opens new window) (RNIB) 'Visibly Better' Accreditation: Visibly Better is RNIB's accreditation scheme for social landlords, who have older people independent living schemes or care homes within their housing portfolio. Visibly Better provides a unique support structure that advances the quality of living for residents with sight loss and empowers staff to confidently improve residents' independence and mobility through simple adaptations to the environment.