Evaluating a workforce development programme: bringing public health into architecture education in England

Architects can play a key role in the wider public health workforce, in ensuring building and urban design is health promoting. However, there is no requirement to teach health by architectural accreditation bodies across Europe. To evaluate the long-term individual and organisational impacts of the Public Health Practitioner in Residence (PHPiR) programme–an educational initiative in a British university to help realise the architecture profession’s potential to contribute to improved population health. A longitudinal mixed-methods evaluation using the RE-AIM framework. Data were collected using questionnaires, a focus group, interviews, and programme documentation from a Bachelor of Architecture cohort and stakeholders from 2011 to 2019. Participants developed a broad understanding of the determinants of health, which was maintained when qualified architects. The programme became integrated into the university curriculum. Numerous facilitators and barriers affected the participants’ ability to create healthier buildings in practice. The positive results from this evaluation suggest that there is value in exploring how the PHPiR approach could be replicated in architecture courses within other higher education institutions. Findings highlight barriers in practice to be addressed in the future to help enable architects to create healthier buildings and places.