This report concludes a one-year study undertaken by the Higher Education Design Quality Forum (HEDQF) to develop and pilot a system of post-occupancy evaluation of higher education buildings.
 
It recommends that every substantial project funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) should publish a project outline on the web within three months of completion and conduct a post-occupancy forum about one year after occupation.
 
The forums should be strategic and non-recriminatory following broadly the forum guidelines developed. After approval by the host institution, forum reports should be sent to HEDQF and published on the web.
 
HEDQF will develop training and registration of facilitators and reporters, design and manage a website, analyse reports, publish project analyses and good practice guides, monitor the system continuously and review its impact with HEFCE every three years.
 
Recommendations

• Subject to consultation by HEFCE with architects, estate directors, and other professionals, a project outline of every substantial HEFCE-funded building project should be published on the web within three months of completion.
  
• Cost analyses of projects should be published on the web through the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.
  
• RIBA HEDQF, or the Association of University Directors of Estates, should analyse project outlines, extract guidelines, and publish project analyses.
  
• The evaluation system should be based on strategic non-recriminatory group discussions constituting a post-occupancy forum.
  
• HEFCE should require all HE institutions receiving substantial HEFCE funding to specify in consultants' and contractors' contracts the submission of data and a half-day's participation in a post-occupancy forum.
  
• HEFCE should require all HE institutions receiving substantial HEFCE funding to organise, conduct, and document a one or two-day post-occupancy forum about 12 months after building occupation.
  
• Forum guidelines should be offered, but HE institutions should be free to adopt their own approach provided they cover the broad issues introduced in the guidelines.
  
• HEDQF should consult with local student unions and the National Union of Students about representation at HEDQF and explore ways to encourage students to engage more effectively in forums and in building briefings.
  
• HE institutions should appoint a forum facilitator, from within or outside the institution, who is conversant with the building industry, familiar with higher education, and sympathetic to the concern for quality.
  
• HE institutions should appoint a forum reporter from within or outside the institution to collect data, record the forum, and prepare a report in consultation with facilitators.
  
• HEDQF should train facilitators and reporters, maintain a register of recommended people, and monitor their performance.
  
• HEDQF should analyse forum reports and publish good practice guides.
  
• HE institutions should retain editorial rights, responsibility, and copyright of their reports. Reports may, exceptionally, exclude detail identifying institutions or buildings. When satisfied, institutions should send forum reports to HEDQF for publication.
  
• Continuing support of insurance companies should be maintained by HEDQF.
  
• Project outlines, project analyses, forum reports and good practice guidelines should be published on the web.
  
• Information should be disseminated by various other methods and the effectiveness of the methods should be monitored.
  
• HEDQF should appoint a small working group to prepare a business plan and implement these proposals.
  
• HEDQF and HEFCE should monitor the forum system continuously and review it formally on a three-year cycle.

 
AUDE Guide to Post Occupancy Evaluation
 
The origin of this guidance and toolkit began in 2000 when the RIBA Higher Education Design Quality Forum offered a proposal to the HEFCE to develop a Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE) review process, the purpose being to encourage good building design by allowing others to learn from the experience of constructing each building. HEFCE accepted the proposal and the outcome was the successful 'De Monfort' approach to Post Occupancy Evaluation. The De Montfort approach required the training of assessors within the sector which began in 2003.
 
Continuing with promoting POE, the forum in 2004 agreed a brief with AUDE and HEFCE to carry out further research. This critically reviewed all the different POE approaches used, including the DeMontfort approach, in order to develop simple guidance and a toolkit for the HEFCE Estate's Good Management Practice Guides.