EVOLVE Tool - Evaluation of Older People's Living Environments

Developed by the University of Sheffield, with PSSRU, University of Kent and supported by the Housing LIN, EVOLVE is a tool for evaluating the design of housing for older people. It is used to assess how well a building contributes to both physical support of older people and their personal well-being.

The EVOLVE tool consists of a set of checklists ordered in the sequence of the rooms or spaces encountered in a walk through a building. EVOLVE was developed from research in extra care housing, including schemes funded through the Department of Health's Extra Care Housing Fund, but it can be applied to other forms of housing, such as sheltered housing or normal private houses.

Who is EVOLVE aimed at?

The tool can be used by architects, housing providers, commissioners, individuals and researchers. EVOLVE can be used to underpin the design and commissioning process with a firm evidence base. It can provide a rational basis for the evaluation and selection of alternative proposals in competitive procurement processes. It is also of use to housing managers in the long term evaluation and upgrading of existing estates.