🗫 Healthy Homes Forum

Healthy Homes Forum

We’re the Queens Park Healthy Homes Forum - a group of renters and homeowners who live in the Avenues. We’re working with Westminster City Council to help our community adapt our 150-year old cottages to meet the challenges of today and be healthier for people and the planet. 

We love living in the Avenues and are proud of our neighbourhood, but some features of our homes struggle to meet modern expectations. Many of us experience damp and mould and find it hard or expensive to keep our homes warm in winter.

On top of this, trying to make sense of potential home improvements, deciding what to do, and trusting landlords or tradespeople, can be overwhelming.

What we learned and discussed

With the Council, architects and technical experts, we learned that many of the issues we face today are linked to how our homes were originally built and how they’ve changed over time. 

We explored different options for improving our homes, along with the trade-offs and decisions needed to unlock the benefits that improvements can bring. We also heard that many residents would struggle to make improvements because of things like unclear planning rules, a lack of trust in landlords, and the cost.

Protecting historic character

The Avenues are a special place. Built in Victorian times as healthy homes for London’s workers, they have survived over 150 years in a city where change and development happen at a rapid pace. 

We all agree that is it important to preserve what makes our area and community special and unique. This means improvements to our homes should value and respect the character of the area.

Everyone’s situation is different

While our homes are very similar to each other, our individual needs, priorities and capacity to make improvements can vary widely.

Renters want to have an in formed say about decisions that affect their homes and to trust their landlord will do the right thing. Homeowners often face difficult choices and want the confidence that they’re making cost-effective decisions and choosing trusted, reliable suppliers.

Healthy Homes Guide

Based on our conversations, we co-created a ‘Healthy Homes Guide’ to help you understand the improvements that can make your home healthier, more comfortable and more affordable to run – and how to start making things happen.

The guide is tailored to the architecture of our homes and the rules of the conservation area, making it a helpful first step to getting the improvements you want. 

You can read the Healthy Homes Guide online or at the Queens Park Library.

What's next

The Healthy Homes Guide is just the start. We want to create a Healthy Homes Hub – a community-led space, both online and in-per son, that provides trusted advice and practical support for everyone. 

The Hub could also be an umbrella organisation for collective projects such as joint purchasing of solar panels, and helping renters understand their rights, and influencing landlord processes and decision-making. 

We need you!

When communities come together and work with others including the Council, lasting, positive change becomes possible. If you’re interested in being part of this journey, sign up for updates and opportunities to get involved. 

Click 'next' to read more about the Healthy Homes Forum.

The Healthy Homes Forum Workshop 1

On Saturday 12^th July, 24 Avenues residents came together for the very first Healthy Homes Forum workshop.

The workshop focussed on getting to know each other, understanding what the Forum hopes to achieve, and exploring what residents love about their homes - and what they'd like to see change.

Overview of the day

• As all good things do, we began with lunch - giving participants a chance to meet neighbours they hadn't met before and get to know each other.
• Participants heard from the City Council and Queens Park Community Council about why the Forum has been created and their role helping all Avenues residents get the home improvements they need. 
• We reviewed what participants - the experts on their homes - had shared in advance about their experience of living in the Avenues and hopes for the Forum. 
• We discussed ways of working and agreed to be inclusive, share knowledge and power and remain optimistic.
• We moved into a series of activities where participants shared their experiences of living in the Avenues - including what they like and dislike about their homes, their aspirations for the future, barriers to change and ideas to get the improvements they need.
• Wrap up and close.

What we heard

• People living in the Avenues love their neighbourhood and want to work together to make homes healthier, while preserving the area's special character.
• Residents share many of the same likes, dislikes, and hopes for the future of their homes.
• Some challenges to making improvements are common to everyone, while others are specific to renters or to homeowners.
• There are many opportunities to help residents get the home improvements they need - some that will need the Council to do things differently, and others that the community could lead.
• People enjoyed meeting their neighbours and hearing a range of perspectives.

Feedback on the workshop

“This is a very good idea and good planning – taking everyone’s ideas on board.”

"A great step forward to make our homes more adapted to the 21st century."

"I am glad this conversation is happening finally.

"I felt encouraged by the collaborative approach and excited about the potential long term impact on our neighbourhood."

"Well delivered introductions. Each stakeholder explained their role in the project and how in joint partnership with residents we will work together to develop the scope and objectives of the project."

Next steps

• Likes, dislikes and future aspirations will inform the upgrade options to be explored at Workshop 2 (September), where we’ll look at what improvements can be made, bearing in mind key barriers and context such as the conservation area.
• Barriers and ideas to make change happen will be explored at Workshop 3 (October), where we’ll focus on helping residents get the improvements they want.

Healthy Homes Forum Workshop 2

On Saturday 13^th September, the Healthy Homes Forum came back together for our second workshop.

The workshop explored potential home upgrade options for Avenues homes, resident interest and comfort with different solutions and considered trade-offs such as cost, disruption and impact.

Overview of the day

• We revisited insights from the first workshop and explored how residents’ needs and feedback are guiding the Forum’s ongoing work.

• The results of heat loss and heat risk modelling were presented, along with an overview of planning requirements in the Queens Park Conservation Area.

• Architects presented home upgrade options designed to meet residents’ needs and tailored to the constraints of the Avenues.

• Residents discussed the upgrade options with experts familiar with the technologies and approaches best suited to Avenues homes.  

• In small groups, residents worked together to review upgrade options and identify which improvements they would be most open to adopting in their homes.

• Each group shared their priorities and preferred upgrades, along with reflections on how realistic or challenging some of the upgrades would be in practice.

What we heard

• There is strong interest and openness towards many of the upgrade options (see the workshop summary slides below for more detail).
• There is a real tension between aspiration (wanting healthy, comfortable, energy-efficient, comfortable homes) and having the means to achieve it (affordability, planning requirements, trust and control).

Resident feedback

“Brilliant workshop, I’ve learnt so much on how to improve my home.”

“I look forward to the next workshop and hopefully learning more about healthy homes.”

“Really good to speak to the experts, and get questions answered on ideas I was considering for the house.”

"Thank you for organising this project for our community."

Next steps

• Architects are now refining the home upgrade options to reflect residents’ feedback and address outstanding questions. This will be bought back to the Forum's fourth workshop and form the basis of a ‘Healthy Homes Plan’ for all Avenues residents.
• At workshop 3, we’ll explore practical ways to improve access to home upgrades, including how improvements could be funded, coordinated and delivered. 

Healthy Homes Forum Workshop 3

On Saturday 18^th October, the Healthy Homes Forum came back together for its third workshop.

This session focused on residents' experiences and expectations of the 'home upgrade journey' - exploring the barriers experienced at each stage, and generating ideas for reducing or removing barriers to upgrading homes in Queens Park Avenues.

Overview of the day

• The workshop began with a recap of the Forum's progress and how its work will guide future action and change.

• Participants identified the barriers and motivators faced when upgrading their homes, drawing on past experiences to highlight key challenges.

• We identified 'showstopper' barriers, noting differences between homeowners and renters, as well as shared issues.

• In small groups, residents developed practical solutions to overcome these barriers, and explored how their ideas could help at each stage of the upgrade journey - from initial awareness to installation.

• Participants also reviewed home retrofit guides from other communities, and discussed what they liked and what they wanted to see included in the Avenues-specific Healthy Homes Guide.

• The session ended with a summary of the ideas generated and a look ahead to the next workshop.
  
  

What we heard

• Residents face many challenges when trying to improve their homes. Some issues – like not having clear information or trusted advice – are common to almost everyone. Others are specific to different groups.
• Homeowners often struggle with high upfront costs and uncertainty about planning rules.
• Renters have limited control and often don’t trust their landlords, including the Council, to make the right decisions. This lack of trust comes from past experiences of poor service and short-term fixes instead of lasting improvements.
• Fixing just one problem isn’t enough if another barrier appears at the next stage of the process. Real change means improving the whole system that supports home upgrades, not just one part of it.

Next steps

• A draft Healthy Homes Guide, bespoke to the Avenues, will be presented for the Forum’s review at the next workshop, ahead of being published early in the new year.
• The emerging ideas for change will be developed further in the next workshop, and the Forum will recommend how their ideas should be taken forward.
• At our fourth and final workshop we'll explore next steps, including how the council and the Avenues community can continue collaborating and move into action.

Healthy Homes Forum Workshop 4

On Saturday 8th November, the Healthy Homes Forum came back together for our fourth workshop.

During this session, residents worked together to develop recommendations on what is needed to make healthier homes a reality and how their ideas could be put into action. 

Overview of the day

• We began with a recap of our previous workshops and heard an update from the architects on their design work.

• Residents reviewed ideas from previous workshops, looked at similar projects from other places, and discussed what’s needed to make their ideas work in Queens Park.

• We reviewed a draft of the Healthy Homes Guide with residents suggesting changes to make it more useful for all Avenues residents.

• We discussed how the Forum, the Council and the wider community can work together to turn ideas into action.

• Residents presented their recommendations to councillors from Westminster City Council and Queens Park Community Council.

• Councillors thanked residents for their time and energy and committed to ongoing collaboration.

• We closed with residents’ reflections on the Forum and hopes for bringing ideas to life.

What we heard

• The Healthy Homes Forum has generated strong energy and enthusiasm. Residents are eager to work together with each other, the wider community and the Council, to turn ideas into reality.
• Residents expect the Council to maintain momentum, including resourcing and supporting community-led action and using its powers as a local authority to help deliver real change.
• Residents valued the connections built through the Forum's four workshops as well as the knowledge and sense of empowerment gained.
• The Forum's four workshops represent the start of a partnership between the Avenues community and the Council.

Recommendations

Resident feedback

"I have learned so much and felt really valued. I'm looking forward to continuing the journey with the people I have met." 

"We've got such an amazing energy here. We want to take this forward, otherwise we'll lose a lot of momentum from a very highly motivated, good bunch of people." 

"I’m more committed and engaged with my neighbours and community and am motivated to become a Healthy Homes advocate.”

"I'm motivated to learn more and am now embarking on a Level 2 retrofit course at college, so potentially pivoting my career!"

Next steps

• The Council is working with local stakeholders and Forum members to plan how each recommendation can be taken forward. This will include short workshops to explore specific ideas in more detail.
• In March, the Council will publish a formal response to each of the Forum's recommendations alongside the Healthy Homes Guide.