Recommendations at

a local and sector level

Data and evidence

Home improvement services, local authorities and ICBs should:

• Improve data collection on the characteristics of home

improvement service users and benchmark this data against

local population statistics to ensure they are reaching those

in need and equity of access.

• Work together to improve the quantitative evidence base

for service impacts considering how this support can help

to make the case for further funding. Specific projects must

collect better data on service user outcomes including

validated health outcome measures, and ideally linking

this to health service use. Ways of improving data include

routinely building evaluation into pilot projects, meeting with

ICB evaluation teams to discuss methodological approaches

and strategies for data collection and analysis, utilising

available models such as BRE’s cost of poor housing

to calculate preventative savings, and commissioning

formal evaluations of interventions.

• Look to procure efficient case management systems to

support customer journeys and invest in good administrative

support ensuring core staff understand the available

assistance and can refer to every part of the service.