Age-friendly Built Environment Quick Guides

These Quick Guides, developed by the Centre for Ageing Better in partnership with Arup and Housing LIN, provide practical guidance to support the design and delivery of more inclusive, age-friendly places. Co-produced with local authorities and community members, they reflect shared priorities and lived experience.

The guides outline key considerations for creating age-friendly built environments and are aimed at professionals, local authority teams, and communities seeking to drive change.

Covering a range of everyday settings, they show how both new and existing environments can be adapted to better support ageing populations through achievable interventions.

The collection includes:

• Seven topic-based guides:
  • Bus Stops
  • Parks and Green Spaces
  • Public and Community Buildings
  • Seating and Rest Areas
  • Streets and Pavements
  • Toilets
  • Wayfinding and Signage
• Implementation considerations
• Resources for further reading
• Checklists to support high-level access audits
• Case studies from across the UK

Downloads available below:

• The full set of guides, including introduction and implementation guidance
• Individual topic guides, allowing users to access specific areas of interest

Together, the guides highlight the importance of an accessible and welcoming public realm in supporting independence, participation, and wellbeing, while serving as a starting point for further local action and learning.