10110875Design approaches to achieving PassivHaus standards in homes for older adultsClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKThe UK's existing housing stock has well documented limitations in both its adaptability to resident needs (particularly regarding appropriate accommodation for people with specific access needs) and in terms of energy efficiency. There is therefore significant demand for new build housing to meet future needs and an expectation that the standards applied to new build housing will become more stringent over time. In the meantime, there are a large number of buildings across the country which are not being utilised to their full potential, such as vacant housing, retail and industrial units. We have been working on the reuse of blocks of domestic garages, which were built in significant numbers in the 1950s/60s/70s as part of council house developments. These garages are no longer well used and have limited other applications. They do though have foundations and walls that have a value, are generally in reasonable condition and have significant embedded carbon. Our approach is to retain as much of these structures as possible, adding in the front walls and internal structures to create new homes suitable for older people. The approach has now been proven and commissioned by local authorities and registered housing providers for garage sites across the UK. The issue we have is that using the existing fabric creates limitations in terms of energy efficiency; whilst we can meet existing standards, it is very difficult to achieve expected future standards within the cost envelope available. This project has two key elements: 1. Using design to rethink the ways homes can be created within existing garage wall structures whilst achieving PassivHaus energy efficiency standards and providing appropriate space for older people and those with access needs; this will include using human-centred design to consider how people use the spaces and the impact of this on energy efficiency; 2. Using design to explore options for additional new build units alongside repurposed garage sites, creating economies of scale in development work and supporting residents through providing a sustainable community (such as through use of shared spaces). In tackling the above two points, we envisage being able to make better use of under-utilised, carbon-rich assets for the creation of energy efficient and appropriate housing for older people.