What is Happy Homes?

The Happy Homes Project is a groundbreaking two-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership redefining residential design for lasting quality of life.

Pollard Thomas Edwards, in collaboration with the University of Reading and Cambridge University, is building an unprecedented database to uncover how thoughtful design inspires positive responses in residents.

Through in-depth interviews and home visits, Happy Homes zeroes in on the home and its immediate surroundings, equipping designers with firsthand evidence and empowering clients to recognise the genuine social value embedded in the homes they deliver. 

Over time, this ‘toolkit’ will serve as a powerful resource, identifying patterns of social value and guiding innovative strategies that create long-term value through design.

​Why should I use Happy Homes?

Design Teams
Happy Homes helps teams refine, innovate and challenge design proposals, improving decisions on the spaces, elements and details that enhance social value.


Developers
Happy Homes supports developers in making earlier, better decisions on design, delivery, and operations, enhancing product appeal and residents’ wellbeing.

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Residents
Happy Homes enables residents to share valued social experiences, ensuring their feedback will shape the design of their future homes.

​How we measure Happy Homes

Happy Homes assesses the Social Value of homes across seven key themes, gathering insights directly from residents on how social value is practically realized in their living spaces. 
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The toolkit will create a powerful database of: resident demographics, numerical and categorical values about spaces, elements and details, Likert scale and multiple choice responses, resident texts and photographs.

​Social Value in housing

Embodied Social Value 
Embodied social value in housing design refers to positive experiences promoted by architectural design as residents interact with the different spaces and elements in their home. 

Social Value Potential
Social value potential describes which spaces, elements and details of a design are likely to foster positive responses, as they are being designed. 

Experienced Social Value
The experienced social value is the measured real experience of residents interacting with their homes.
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Social value at King Square

​The journey so far...

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Social Value Design Research Associate Dr Gloria Vargas Palma is developing PTE’s Social Value Toolkit.

An experienced researcher, Gloria has worked on many design schemes incorporating findings from different avenues of research to inform social value delivery. Her architectural design experience spans large scale commercial new builds, including hotels, office buildings, residential and mixed-use, as well as the refurbishment of Grade II listed buildings.

Combining her skills in social sciences research, data analysis and architectural design, Gloria uses a methodical and creative approach to achieve carefully considered solutions that improve people’s daily lives.
Happy Homes pulls together insight from architects and multidisciplinary advisors and most importantly, residents’ experience of social value in housing."
Taxonomy workshop at Pollard Thomas Edwards 

Project timeline

​How the Happy Homes Toolkit will work

​Next steps

  1. Design the user interface for ease of use and clear, informative graphic feedback 
  2. Free-to-use online project testing and feedback, to develop and validate the toolkit, supported by project partners 
  3. Development of a BIM plug-in for design teams

How to get involved - Join the mailing list

Happy Homes is set to launch as an online platform, free-to-use during its testing and validation phase. Early participants will help to shape the development of Happy Homes and gain exclusive insights into the social value strengths of their homes and developments.
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Join our mailing list to receive the latest Happy Homes updates, guidance on how to select your own projects for testing, and an inside track on the development timeline.
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King Square resident

Advisory Group

Questions

If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Gloria Vargas, Research Associate (School of the Built Environment, University of Reading) [email protected]
​020 7336 7777
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Please refer to our frequently_asked_questions document for further details. 
​Data Protection

This project has been subject to ethical review, according to the procedures specified by the University of Reading - Research Ethics Committee. Ethical review is required in research projects to protect the dignity, rights and welfare of research participants.

PTE values your privacy and will protect your personal data. We will not share your data with any other organisation outside PTE and (the case study partner).
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You can find more information about PTE’s privacy policy at www.pollardthomasedwards.co.uk
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