Happy by Design: A Guide to Architecture and Mental Wellbeing

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Particularly in cities like London, stories around the health dangers of particulate matter and other air pollutants are increasingly common. Ben’s second book ‘ The Happy Design Toolkit’ - which offers more practical advice on how to create buildings for our mental wellbeing - was published in March 2022. To avoid a climate catastrophe and achieve a regenerative built environment, the use of new materials and any excess waste in resources need to be cut out from the very beginning of the design process. Because when we engage with the facilities in our local communities, we don’t just feel fitter and healthier. Easy-to-understand tips include bringing nature into your developments with roof gardens and living facades and countering social isolation with communal areas that encourage chance interaction.

Given that we spend over 80% of our time in buildings, shouldn't we have a better understanding of how they make us feel? Where possible, try to provide high-level windows that don’t permit views in from neighbouring properties. But by providing comfortable, well-designed spaces where people feel happy and safe, we can improve the day to day happiness of people who use them, which – in my opinion – is a powerful way of keeping people in a better mental place. By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions.Invite health and happiness into the heart of your home with practical ideas for decor, organization, and mindfulness that will transform your living space—and create an uplifting atmosphere that looks after you from morning to night! They can also be used to great effect to pick out key parts of a space or to create a powerful sense of drama, as shown in Vector Architects’ Seashore Chapel, opposite. He also speaks to students and professionals about how to balance architecture with good mental health. This guide is designed to help students understand what a 'site analysis' is and why it is valuable to their design proposals, this book provides 100 easy-to-follow rules of thumb with simple line drawings and illustrations to help.

We all have the right to homes and workplaces that keep us healthy, support our mental health and help us to thrive – both now and for many generations to come. Although a lot of this is common sensical and a repetition of what I know from my training, it is really good to have them noted all togs3thsr in a concise and clear manner. It poses – and answers – all of the key questions: If you were to design a building that puts occupants’ happiness first, what would it look like?Happy by Design teaches us how we can actively improve our health and wellbeing through the way we design and regard every room in the house. As Mental Health Ambassador and senior architect at London architectural practice Assael, Channon’s relationship with mental wellbeing in design is both personal and professional.