Youth care has undergone a significant transformation in 2015. Secure residential youth care is one of the areas that is currently experiencing difficulties as a result. Research has shown that the conditions in secure facilities often negatively affect the residents. Furthermore, young adults often find it difficult to adjust to independence once they leave the facility. Youth care organisations are currently closing these large secure institutions, and creating small, more customized alternatives called small-scale residential youth care. This type of care accommodates minors who are unable to make use of lighter types of care due to their complex problems and behaviour.

Many have studied the design of healthcare environments. Others have concentrated on the design of mental healthcare facilities or healthcare environments for children and young adults. However, the majority of research still appears to be focused on the design of hospitals and other formal healthcare settings, such as psychiatric facilities. Research on the design of residential care for young adults with mental and behavioural disorders is scarce. There is a need for more specific research and knowledge on this topic. Therefore, this research aims to discover: What location conditions and architectural and built environment features can support the design of open and secure small-scale residential facilities for youth care and increase user autonomy and social interaction? During this research, the following themes will be discussed: location conditions, architectural features, level of autonomy and social interaction.

Four small-scale youth care homes were visited. Analysis of the buildings, semi-structured interviews with caretakers and conversations with residents were conducted. The research showed that users preferred a neighbourhood setting close to public transport and general amenities. Architectural features included spaces that are flexible and adaptable to different users, a domestic and normalised setting, the right balance between privacy and security, sufficient facilities for leisure and materials that are low maintenance. The research showed that autonomy could be enhanced by including safety measures to prevent (self-)injury, as few security measures as possible, security measures as invisible as possible, adaptable and customisable security and safety levels and easily personalisable spaces. Social interaction could be improved by providing opportunities to meet with neighbours and to interact with the social network and other users.