Strategies for planning and designing healthy places are available internationally.
Before you start a new healthy urbanism project it is worth consulting local or international guidance. The publications shown below include checklists, case studies, policy and design measures, indicators and other resources.
You can search, filter or download this table to find guidance relevant for your needs. Note the abbreviations for buildings (BLDG) and neighbourhoods (NBHD).
If you are aware of guidance that should be added, please post it in the comments at the bottom of this page.
| Title | Country of Origin or Use | Scale | Design/planning checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | Date | Author |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Healthy City is an Active City: A physical activity planning guide | International | CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2008 | World Health Organization |
| Active City: Designing for Health | Canada | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | City of Toronto |
| Active design guidelines: Promoting physical activity and health in design | USA | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2010 | City of New York |
| Active Design: Planning for health and wellbeing through sport and physical activity | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2015 | Sport England |
| Belfast Planning for Healthy Communities Resource Pack | Northern Ireland | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | Belfast Healthy Cities |
| Building Environmentally Sustainable Communities: A Framework for Inclusivity | USA | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2010 | Been et al 2010 |
| Building healthy corridors: transforming urban and suburban arterials into thriving places | USA | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2016 | Urban Land Institute |
| Building healthy places toolkit: strategies for enhancing health in the built environment | USA | BLDG & NBHD | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2015 | Urban Land Institute |
| Building the Foundations: tackling obesity through planning and development | UK | CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2016 | TCPA, LGA, PHE |
| Cities Safer By Design: Guidance and Examples to Promote Traffic Safety through Urban and Street Design | International | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2015 | World Resources Institute |
| Cities, health and well-being | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2018 | Pineo and Rydin and Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors |
| Creating Healthy Places through Active Mobility | USA | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | Centre for Liveable Cities and Urban Land Institute |
| Delivering Sustainable Healthy Homes and Communities in Northern Ireland | Northern Ireland | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2016 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Health + Mobility: A Design Protocol for Mobilising Healthy Living | International | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2016 | Arup, BRE, UCL, AREA Research |
| Healthy Active By Design | Australia | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2018 | Heart Foundation |
| Healthy Active By Design (Western Australia) | Australia | NBHD & CITY | Checklist | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2012 | Heart Foundation, Government of Western Australia |
| Healthy and safe communities (section of Planning Practice Guidance) | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) |
| Healthy Built Environment (HBE) Linkages Toolkit | Canada | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2018 | Population & Public Health team at the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) |
| Healthy by Design, local government implementation tool | Australia | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2012 | National Heart Foundation of Australia (Victorian Division) |
| Healthy Communities Practice Guide | Canada | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | n.d. | Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) |
| Healthy Community Design Checklist | USA | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | None | None | None | n.d. | US CDC National Center for Environmental Health |
| Healthy Community Design Toolkit | USA | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and Massachusetts Department of Public Health |
| Healthy High Streets: Good place-making in an urban setting | UK | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2018 | Public Health England |
| Healthy Places: Code for Council | UK | CITY | None | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2011 | Urban Design Group |
| Healthy Planning and Regeneration: innovations in community engagement, policy and monitoring | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2017 | Helen Pineo and Building Research Establishment (BRE) |
| HUDU Planning for Health: Using the planning system to control for hot food takeaways | UK | CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2013 | NHS London Healthy Urban Development Unit |
| Inclusive Healthy Places: A Guide to Inclusion & Health in Public Space: Learning Globally to Transform Locally | USA | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2018 | Gehl Institute |
| Mariposa Healthy Living Initiative | USA | BLDG & NBHD | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2012 | Mithun Inc., Denver Housing Authority |
| Metropolitan Area Transportation Planning for Healthy Communities | USA | NBHD & CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2012 | U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Planning, Environment and Federal Highway Administration |
| NHS Healthy New Towns Principles and Guidance | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2018 | NHS England |
| NSW Healthy Urban Environment Checklist | Australia | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2009 | NSW Department of Health |
| Planning for health and well-being in Wales: A briefing on integrating planning and public health for practitioners working in local planning authorities and health organisations in Wales | Wales | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2016 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Planning Healthier Places – Report from the Reuniting Health with Planning Project | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2013 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Planning Healthy-weight environments | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2014 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Planning Information Sheet: Integrating Health into Comprehensive Planning | USA | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2007 | Design for Health |
| Practical Guide for Creating Successful New Communities, Guide 8: Creating Health-Promoting Environments | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2017 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Practical how-to guide: How to Deliver Healthy Buildings | UK | BLDG | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | n.d. | UK Green Building Council |
| Public Health in Planning: Good Practice Guide | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2015 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Resource Guide for Healthy Community Planning: Framing Questions and Links to Data | USA | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2016 | Washington American Planning Association |
| Reuniting Health with Planning – Healthier Homes, Healthier Communities | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2012 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Securing constructive collaboration and consensus for planning healthy developments: A report from the Developers and Wellbeing project | UK | BLDG & NBHD | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2018 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Spatial Planning for Health: An evidence resource for planning and designing healthier places | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2017 | Public Health England |
| Steps to Healthy Planning: Proposals for Action | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | Checklist | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2011 | Spatial Planning and Health Group |
| The State of the Union: Reuniting Health with Planning | UK | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2019 | Town and Country Planning Association |
| Healthy Homes and Neighbourhoods Flow Chart | UK | BLDG | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | Indicators | 2016 | UK Green Building Council |
| WHO Housing and health guidelines | International | BLDG | None | None | Policy/design measures | None | 2018 | World Health Organization |
| Policies, regulations and legislation promoting healthy housing: a review | International | BLDG | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2021 | World Health Organization |
| Integrating health in urban and territorial planning: A sourcebook | International | BLDG, NBHD, CITY | None | Case studies | Policy/design measures | None | 2020 | UN Habitat & World Health Organization |