Bringing community health and lived experience into retrofit
Community health impact assessments offer a way to understand how retrofit decisions affect people’s lives, alongside the performance of their homes.
This workbook explores how communities can use the approach to inform retrofit planning and delivery. It puts residents’ experiences at the centre, helping build a richer understanding of local needs.
The National Retrofit Hub developed the workbook with Centric Lab, supported by Impact on Urban Health, as part of our Measuring Outcomes and Impact Evaluation project.
The work explores how broader outcome measurement can support better decisions about retrofit investment. It also draws on Centric Lab’s research into how our surroundings and the systems we live within shape wellbeing.
View or download the workbook below to explore the approach and its practical application.
What is a Community Health Impact Assessment?
A Community Health Impact Assessment, or CHIA, is a structured, community-led process for considering how a decision or project affects health.
Residents help define what health and wellbeing mean in their neighbourhood. The assessment then combines their experiences with other evidence to examine proposed or existing interventions, including retrofit.
What does the workbook include?
The workbook has two parts:
- Understanding the approach. An introduction to health equity and the relationship between retrofit and community health. It explains different health impact assessment approaches.
- Putting it into practice. Guidance on who can participate and how to organise an assessment, with examples and links to further toolkits.
Who is it for?
Community groups can use the workbook to explore local priorities and strengthen their evidence for change. It also supports local and combined authorities, alongside organisations advocating for communities.
You do not need to work in retrofit or health to explore the approach.
How can it inform retrofit decisions?
The workbook offers a way to develop place-based evidence that reflects lived experience. This can help organisations understand issues that standard datasets overlook.
Use it to consider whose experiences inform your programme and how residents can influence decisions earlier.
Explore related NRH work
Visit the Measuring Outcomes and Impact Evaluation project page to explore the wider research behind this workbook.
For a review of programme reporting, read Measuring for success?.
Acknowledgements
This workbook brings together NRH’s work on retrofit outcomes and Centric Lab’s research, with support from Impact on Urban Health.
Photography credits: Angela Grabowska and Paul Stringer.
Frequently asked questions
What does CHIA stand for?
CHIA stands for Community Health Impact Assessment. It helps communities examine how decisions affect their health and wellbeing.
How is a CHIA relevant to retrofit?
It helps residents identify local health priorities and consider how retrofit proposals respond to them. This brings community knowledge into decisions about improving homes and neighbourhoods.
Is this a technical home assessment?
No. A CHIA explores community health and the effects of decisions. It serves a different purpose to a technical assessment of a building’s condition or energy performance.
Where should I start?
Read the workbook’s introduction, then explore the practical guidance in Part 2. The workbook also signposts further toolkits.
