Building solutions


On average, people spend over 90% of their lives in and around buildings and much of the rest travelling between them. As such the built environment is critical to our health and wellbeing as a result of the conditions and facilities that it provides and the behaviours that it encourages.


Creating a healthier buildings strategy


B


REEAM empowers change through assessing and rewarding sustainability throughout the built


environment both in the UK and globally. Physiological factors covering key health and wellbeing impactors such as lighting, temperature, and noise and air quality have always been covered by BREEAM. Over time it has expanded its scope to include a wide-ranging set of issues relating to the design, construction and operation of a building or other asset. These include pollution, transport, community engagement, and many other aspects linked to quality and amenity value. There is increasing interest in the


health and wellbeing impacts associated with buildings and the built environment. This is reflected in the introduction of the WELL Building Standard by the International WELL Building Institute. IWBI and BRE are now pursuing alignments between WELL and BREEAM that will make it easier for projects pursuing both standards. With its holistic consideration of health


and wellbeing issues alongside broader sustainability ones, BREEAM will: • Continue to measure robust internal


and external environmental factors covering light, thermal comfort, overheating, noise and pollution.


• Encourage consideration of the quality of life issues including views, landscape, connections to nature (biophilic design) and accommodating or exploiting biological rhythms through technologies such as circadian lighting.


• Promote the use of ‘healthy’ materials that do not contain or omit toxins and other chemicals that are injurious to health.


• Promote healthy internal and external environments that encourage healthier lifestyles. This will include the provision of spaces and facilities that allow choice to adopt behaviours and activities that have health benefits.


www.breeam.com www.wellcertified.com www.se-forum.co.uk


Diary date


The Sustainable Estates Forum: 28th & 29th June 2017, Heythrop Park Resort, Oxfordshire. Designed for estates teams across


higher education, the forum looks at what we want our facilities to look like in


12 highereducationestates Healthy Research


Building project A PILOT project to measure the real- world health and well-being of building occupants is being undertaken by BRE.


The project will see the refurbishment of one of its facilities (currently home to 60 members of staff) into a Healthy Research Building where occupants will be monitored whilst they go about their day-to-day work. The aim is to study the impact of indoor environments on human health and well-being whilst generating evidence- based information that can be used in practical ways to create healthier indoor spaces.


Data relating to the health and well- being of the staff will be analysed by BRE with the view of providing the industry with a greater understanding of how different products, materials and internal configurations affect occupants.


the next 20 years. Industry experts will share their ideas for longer life buildings, reusing and upgrading existing stock, saving energy, reducing site waste and using recycled materials from the foundation up. Call: Julian Walter – 020 8288 1080 or email julian@stable-events.co.uk.


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