The Institute of Public Health in Ireland (IPH) was commissioned by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS) to evaluate Healthy Living Centres (HLCs) in Northern Ireland, to assist them in assessing the value of the work done by the HLCs and to make decisions about the support which might be offered to them in future in the light of competing priorities. 

The evaluation was carried out during 2006 by Siobhan Livingstone, Jorun Rugkåsa and Leslie Boydell. The Bridge Consortium, led by the Tavistock Institute, carried out an evaluation of HLCs across the UK between 2002 and 2006. As a member of this consortium, the IPH undertook case studies of selected HLCs in Northern Ireland and the evaluation commissioned by the DHSSPS builds on this work.