HDB UPGRADING PROGRAMMES FOR AGEING-IN-PLACE

Abstract

As Singapore is experiencing a rapid increase in its ageing population, the need for ageing-in-place becomes crucial in ensuring successful ageing and a good quality of life. To achieve ageing-in-place, our built environment has to complement and aid our seniors in their daily lives. With a majority of seniors in Singapore living in Housing Development Board (HDB) flats, improvements to the flats and housing estates have to be made to meet their seniors. The Singapore Government has come up with several HDB Upgrading Programmes to improve the built environment in the housing estates to aid ageing-in-place. However, the programmes lack in addressing the specific needs of different groups of seniors. The study aims to understand and identify the needs of different senior groups identified to age-in-place and evaluate the effective of the existing HDB Upgrading Programmes in ensuring ageing-in-place for the senior groups. A survey questionnaire was conducted to gain a better understanding of the needs of the seniors, as well as to obtain the views of the respondents, with respect to the existing HDB Upgrading Programmes in helping to achieve ageing-in-place. Upon evaluating the programmes according to the survey questionnaire, improvements to the programmes are proposed to better aid seniors to ageing-in-place in housing estates.