CABE news

Cinderella warning for parks and green space (10 March 2010)

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:59:42 GMT

A new national survey shows the impact of the recession and service cuts on parks and green space jobs.

Green space skills, a survey commissioned by CABE and English Heritage, is the first to reveal the full extent of skills shortages in the green space sector, in careers ranging from parks managers to tree surgeons.

Employers in the public, private and third sectors were surveyed, and the results shows that public parks and other green spaces are seen as a Cinderella service for many local authorities and are often the first to be cut.

A quarter of employers in the public sector expect a decrease in recruitment and a fifth say that green space departments are experiencing a greater reduction in budgets than other local authority departments. Funding cuts hit green spaces hard, as they rely on consistent and skilled maintenance.

Annual training budgets for people working in parks and green spaces in the public sector are 20 per cent lower less than their colleagues (an average of £245 vs £305).

Green space skills shows an urgent need to address the skills shortfall to tackle climate change. Planning, design and management are what are needed to help to adapt green spaces to a changing climate, and these were exactly the skills which employers felt their staff most lacked.

More about green space skills

Green space skills 2009: national employer survey

In July 2009 CABE, in partnership with English Heritage, commissioned Pye-Tait Consulting to carry out research to identify the total size, scope and labour market status of the green space sector in England.
Green space skills at CABE

Skills to Grow is a national strategy for improving the green space skills of our workforce.

Entries open for 2010 Prime Ministers Award (10 March 2010)

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:44:21 GMT

Entries are now open for this years Prime Ministers Better Public Building Award which recognises excellence in both design and procurement.

Public sector clients, architects, project managers, built environment professionals and contractors can submit any new project that has helped improve public services. Its size and budget do not matter.

It could be a new school, hospital, library, museum, bridge, station, city centre square or other public space. Last year’s winner was Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College in Birmingham. Or it could be a smaller project. Footbridges, a park café, memorial garden and rooftop nursery have all been shortlisted in the past.

The judges look for high-quality design; efficient procurement; economic and social value; good team work between client, designer and contractor; sound financial management; whole-life value for money; client satisfaction; and sustainability.

Find out how to enter the 2010 Prime Minister's Award.

The closing date for entries is 15 April 2010.

The Prime Minister’s Better Public Building Award is a special category of the British Construction Industry Awards and is sponsored jointly by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the Office of Government Commerce and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Rural councils win funds for masterplanning (25 February 2010)

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:27:31 GMT

A 1m fund for rural communities will be shared among 36 councils with the best ideas, following a competition run by Communities and Local Government, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, CABE and the Homes and Communities Agency.

The rural masterplanning fund will be used to prepare sustainable plans for community extensions, such as one for 1,000 homes, a school, businesses and recreation space in North Northallerton, North Yorkshire.

It was announced by government as a response to the Taylor Review on rural communities in 2008, which recommended new policies for market towns at risk from unsympathetic development and homogenous housing estates. It recommended mixed use neighbourhood extensions including shops and community facilities, workplaces and open spaces.

Successful councils will receive advice from CABE and the Homes and Communities Agency on project management, procurement and training.

See the full list of 36 councils that will receive funding.

CABE backs new life for Battersea Power Station (24 February 2010)

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:39:00 GMT

CABE has praised Rafael Violys designs for the massive redevelopment of the 38-acre Battersea Power Station site in south west London.

The power station was decommissioned in 1982. It was designed in the 1930s in brick-cathedral style, and its four distinctive chimneys dominate the skyline in south west London.

The Grade II* listed building has been made the clear focus of the site in the redevelopment, and after its renovation, it will include shops, offices and apartments.

Converting the listed industrial shell of the power station has been a complex project, and CABE’s design review panel felt that an impressive amount has been achieved within the constraints of the building.

The power station is being given a strong new setting, provided by a simple new riverside park and the oval form of landscape and buildings to the south.

The site also includes a new hotel, more housing, and leisure facilities.

CABE has reviewed the scheme six times - which is unusual - but this iterative process has resulted in improvements at each stage, including the complete removal of a controversial new tower in the original proposal.

Inevitably, for a development of this scale and complexity, there are areas to be resolved. The massing of surrounding blocks needs to allow the power station to dominate in all views. Work is required to ensure acceptable sunlight and daylight penetration into some apartments at lower levels, and avoid overshadowing in the public realm.

CABE is supporting both the outline planning and listed building applications to the London Borough of Wandsworth.

CABE launches guide to primary school design (24 February 2010)

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:38:12 GMT

A new design guide for headteachers and local authorities will help them make the most of capital investment in primary schools.

Creating excellent primary schools has been produced for schools receiving funding through the Primary Capital Programme, a government scheme to refurbish or rebuild half of all primary schools around the country by 2022/23.

The guide shows what can be achieved when clients – working in the local authority or the school itself - know how to get the best from the process of building or refurbishment. There is a clear link between well-designed primary schools and pupil performance and behaviour.

Securing high-quality design and value for money means having expert clients, and the guide goes step by step through the process.

It will be particularly useful as a ‘stress buster’ for primary school headteachers, who have to perform in the unfamiliar role of client at the same time as holding down a demanding day job, and usually have a relatively small leadership team to share the responsibility.

Creating excellent primary schools provides advice for clients – working in the local authority or the school itself - on integrating the school into wider regeneration plans; choosing a procurement method and getting the best design team; involving pupils in the design process; and planning ahead to ‘future proof’ the new design.

Inspiring case studies featured in the guide include Birley Spa Primary School in Sheffield, where the average key stage 2 SATS results rose dramatically after just one academic year in the new building. Burnham Copse Primary School in Hampshire, a RIBA Award winner, has proved how refurbishment can produce an innovative and attractive building.

Green Day and the Zero Carbon Task Force (4 February 2010)

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:33:01 GMT

Taking part in Green Day 2010 is a great way to engage governors, staff, parents and students with issues of carbon reduction, a key recommendation of the recent Zero Carbon Task Force report.

Schools in England are responsible for the same amount of carbon emissions as Manchester and Birmingham combined - 15% of our public sector emissions.

The chair of the Zero Carbon Task Force, Robin Nicholson, stressed the importance of schools in helping to meet wider carbon reduction targets:

‘Schools are crucial in achieving lower energy ambitions, not least because of so many students’ enthusiasm for helping to protect the future of the planet. And it is not just the students; it is their families, their homes and their communities that surround the schools’.

Take part in Green Day 2010

CABE’s climate change project for schools, Green Day, is a great way to get teachers and pupils thinking about carbon reduction while taking part in exciting activities.

Register your school to hold a Green Day and you will get free support from CABE to take the strain out of planning your Green Day event:

a teacher’s activity kit with over 100 curriculum linked lesson ideas
17 half day training workshops at different venues across the country
comprehensive online training information.

Your school can hold a Green Day any time between 4 June and 2 July 2010.

More about this story

Green Day 2010

Green Day is a one-day event for schools about the relationship between climate change and the places where we live and learn.
Zero Carbon Task Force on Teachernet

The DCSF appointed a task force in 2008 to advise on how new school buildings can be zero carbon by 2016.

Boost in interest in green careers (21 January 2010)

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 15:43:23 GMT

More than half of urban local authorities took on green space apprentices last year, offering a boost to the Skills to grow strategy addressing the shortage of skills in the green space sector.

The strategy has identified apprenticeship as an important route into green space careers. According to the latest estimates, green space apprenticeships in urban authorities rose from 31 per cent in 2008 to over 50 per cent in 2009. Thanks to Communities and Local Government grants of £1 million, an initial 60 green space apprenticeships were awarded in March 2009. Grants have now been offered for a further 175 apprentices in urban local authorities.

CABE Space offers online guidance on running good apprenticeship schemes, including inspiring films following the progress of individual apprentices. And sector skills council Lantra has created a new horticultural apprenticeship framework offering a ‘pathway’ tailored to people working in public green spaces.

The Skills to grow strategy was launched in March 2009, supported by 15 national partners. It aims to address the problems that the green space sector faces with staff recruitment and retention, a shortage of management and leadership skills and a lack of co-ordinated working.

The sector has been boosted further by an increase in enrolments in green space college courses and the arrival of a new green diploma for schools.

The numbers enrolling on accredited landscape courses rose by 25 per cent last year, helped by two CABE-supported careers promotions - the GROW horticultural careers initiative and the Landscape Institute’s ‘I want to be a landscape architect’ campaign. And a new 14-19 environmental and land-based diploma started in 52 schools across England in September 2009, encouraging greater interest in green careers among young people.

Skills to grow identified seven priorities to improve green skills and an action plan for 2009/10 has seen 22 of 48 planned actions completed, with a further 24 under way.

In other positive developments:

The Institute for Parks and Green Spaces (IPGS), the new professional body for park and green space managers, with support from CABE Space, is developing a Chartered Management Institute-accredited training course at level 4 aimed at green space managers, from March. It is offering discounts on course costs for IPGS members. Visit the new IPGS website or email Stuart Mansbridge for details.
The English Heritage-supported historic and botanic gardens bursary scheme is offering short courses in leadership and management aimed at park and historic garden managers and further management short courses are being offered by other organisations such as APSE .
The number of schools involved in an RHS-led campaign for school gardening has doubled from 5,000 in 2008 to nearly 10,000 in 2009.
A new ‘diploma employers champions’ network’ encourages long-term employer involvement in the 14-19 environmental and land-based diplomas. Seven green space managers have been employed as diploma champions including Leicester City Council’s head of parks and green spaces, Richard Welburn.
The CABE Space leaders programme runs for the fifth time in February 2010, training 81 green space managers in leadership and management skills.
CABE sponsors the APSE horticultural apprentice of the year award, encouraging excellence and offering good examples of apprenticeship schemes. The number of applicants for the awards has risen steadily over the past two years.
The IPGS is co-ordinating green space organisations whose remits overlap to identify gaps in training provision and opportunities for joint working.

The Improvement & Development Agency (IDeA) has created a virtual community to share information, publicise events and co-ordinate work on green space skills. There are over 40 members. To sign up for this free resource, go to www.communities.idea.gov.uk and type in ‘green space skills’ in the search box, then click on ‘green space skills’.

New fund for rural communities (21 December 2009)

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:22:32 GMT

Rural communities are being encouraged to apply for funds to masterplan their growth in a sustainable way.

The new £1m competition is being run by Communities and Local Government and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The rural masterplanning fund is a competition aimed at assisting local planning authorities to prepare sustainable masterplans for community extensions to rural market towns and villages.

Successful councils will receive advice from CABE and the Homes and Communities Agency to help their communities develop in an intelligent way, supporting a sustainable economy and transport system that enables more people to work locally and use local services.

Local planning authorities can bid for a range of support including project management, procurement and training on design and masterplanning. The fund will also help identify best practice that will provide a model for rural authorities across the country and inform national policy.

Find out more about the application process - the closing date for bids is 15 January 2010.

Kickstart under scrutiny (18 December 2009)

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:48:51 GMT

CABE has been working with the Homes and Communities Agency on a 1 billion government initiative called Kickstart to unlock housing schemes stalled by the recession.

So far, 136 projects have been allocated £359m to build over 10,000 homes and create thousands of construction jobs. The aim is to deliver up to 22,000 homes by 2012. CABE’s role is to advise the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) on the quality of the proposed schemes.

To do this assessment, CABE and the HCA jointly agreed at the start of the process to use Building for Life. This is the industry standard for assessing design quality and the basis by which Communities and Local Government (CLG) and local government measures performance on housing quality.

For Round 1 of the programme, CABE assessed all 257 schemes that were considered, including the 136 schemes that are being funded. We agreed to present our findings in the form of a risk assessment based on: the Building for Life score, which is made against 20 Building for Life criteria; compliance with the Code for Sustainable Homes; and whether schemes were capable of improvement within the context of the planning permission granted.

CABE’s assessment of Round 1

From a design perspective, our assessments have shown a significant proportion of the 136 schemes being funded by Kickstart should be classified as “very high risk’. They do not meet, for example, the standards for National Affordable Housing Programme grant funding.

‘Very high risk’ represents a score of 9.5 or less out of 20. Seventy four of the 136 schemes (equivalent to 54% of the total) fell into this category.

In terms of their design, the schemes most commonly struggled with poor space standards and over reliance on single aspect dwellings; inflexible house types; poor sustainability standards; dominant and excessive car parking provision; bad highway layouts; and poor relationships with neighbouring homes.

These results are obviously bleak. CABE recognises that Round 1 took place last year at a time of crisis for the housebuilding industry. But the housing market is now slowly improving. Most of the big housebuilders have repaired their balance sheets. Prices and volumes have stabilised and they are buying land again. So as decisions are now made on Round 2 of Kickstart, CABE believes the HCA should only commit public funding to schemes offering much higher standards of design.

Calls for release of the data

There have been calls in the media for the data on Round 1 to be published immediately. There is clearly a valid public interest in disclosing all the information on Kickstart: it will allow public scrutiny of the way in which public money is allocated, and influence the quality of future housing. For CABE, the question is when and how to do this.

We have always planned to publish a full analysis of Kickstart at the end of the programme. We think it makes sense to have the most complete analysis possible of the Building for Life scores from Round 1 and Round 2 before publishing detailed information. Otherwise the information itself and the insights it offers will be partial, and that in turn obviously negates the value of public scrutiny.

Our assessments have also all been based on the information supplied to us by the HCA, which they in turn received from house builders and agencies seeking funding. The HCA says that it augmented our analysis with additional information from their regional teams on 65 of the schemes. At this stage, we have not seen this information. They have agreed that they will share it with us. But until we get it, we clearly cannot publish a comprehensive report.

A pivotal year for housing

Kickstart will not be the only big debate of 2010. This is set to be a pivotal year for housing standards. The consultation has just closed on the Mayor’s Housing Design Guide for London, and the London Plan – which includes new space standards for London housing - will have an Examination in Public (EiP) over the summer of 2010. Many developers are lobbying hard against the proposals for improved space standards.

In the next month the HCA plans to go out for public consultation on a national design and quality standards framework. This will set benchmarks for the majority of housing in receipt of public funds nationwide. CABE thinks the HCA should set out a minimum design standard for all the schemes it will fund. This would be in line with the recent commitments by Government in its World Class Places action plan (PDF).

CABE thinks the HCA should adopt a minimum design standard of 14 out of 20 for all publicly funded housing programmes, and promote this through its partnership with every local authority. Perhaps more than any other single measure, that could have a profound impact on the quality of all housing development across the country.

More about Kickstart

Kickstart housing delivery at the HCA

A programme targeted at currently stalled sites, to support construction of high quality mixed tenure housing developments.
The 20 Building for Life criteria

Building for Life is the national standard for well-designed homes and neighbourhoods.
Housing: the big questions

A letter from Paul Finch, published in the Architects' Journal on Friday 5 March 2010.

Regional architecture centres get 900,000 (16 December 2009)

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:04:45 GMT

CABE has awarded 900,000 to support and strengthen 21 architecture and built environment centres in the next financial year.

Applicants had to demonstrate that their proposal would increase public understanding and involvement in architecture and the built environment, and help create better designed buildings, spaces and places.

MADE has been awarded £53,000 for work in the West Midlands that involves students in the Building Schools for the Future process.

In London, £40,000 was awarded to Fundamental Architectural Inclusion to work with young people in the five host Olympic boroughs, to build their knowledge of architecture and public space in advance of 2012.

Also funded are workshops in Hull where local communities learn about sustainable architecture; a programme in Wakefield which shows teachers how to use their school building as a teaching tool; and an initiative in London where school pupils respond to an architect’s brief.

Caroline Fraser, Head of regions at CABE, praised this year’s submissions: ‘What all these projects share is an ambition to inspire local demand for good design. We particularly like the way in which so many architecture centres have developed inspiring education programmes.’

Other projects will focus on regional design review, following the affiliation earlier this year between eight regional panels and CABE, and include activity to showcase success stories to local planning authorities that currently do not use the service.

The full list of awards is below:

Organisation	Region	Amount awarded
Northern Architecture	NE	£49,119
Beam	Y+H	£50,000
Arc	Y+H	£40,000
Places Matter	North West	£40,925
UVNS	West Mids	£47,500
MADE	West Mids	£53,425
Opun	East Mids	£31,500
AC Bristol	South West	£48,712
AC Devon + Cornwell	South West	£42,713
Shape East	East	£60,000
Solent Centre	South East	£40,000
Kent Architecture Centre	South East	£27,325
Transform MKSM	South East (E + EM)	£39,250
RIBA Trust	London	£40,000
Urban Design London	London	£15,675
New London Architecture	London	£35,175
Fundamental	London	£40,000
Open House	London	£40,000
Building Exploratory	London	£40,000
Architecture Foundation	London	£28,000
Architecture Centre Network	National	£70,000 (subject to further negotiation)

More about architecture centres

Architecture centres

Architecture centres inspire young people and communities to get involved in architecture and inspire decision makers and professionals to prioritise high quality sustainable design.

Who should build our homes? (15 December 2009)

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:43:35 GMT

As the housing market begins to stabilise after a traumatic period of decline, a new report called Who should build our homes? challenges any presumption that housebuilding should just continue from where it left off.

Earlier this year, Richard Simmons, CABE chief executive argued in No more toxic assets that more of the same is simply not good enough.

CABE is launching a debate about who should build our homes. Six housing experts have contributed their own strong views through a collection of essays. They put the case for new models – for much less reliance on build-to-sell; and for renting to become the norm once again. They also argue for self-build and community commissioned housing to enter the mainstream instead of being marginalised at the periphery.

Christine Whitehead, professor of housing economics at the London School of Economics (LSE), points out that housing supply never came near to meeting demand. She argues for a planning framework which incentivises the right sort of development at the local level.

Peter Studdert, planning director for Cambridge’s growth areas, calls for local authorities to be set free from central government restraints so they can play a more active role in funding and delivering new homes.

Liz Peace, chief executive of the British Property Federation, wants to see a move away from the build-to-sell model and a positive attitude to renting from investors and consumers.

Stephen Hill, director of C20 futureplanners, champions the self-build movement and its potential to create high quality places.

Pooran Desai, co-founder of the BioRegional Development Group, argues that climate change should be tackled at the neighbourhood scale.

Dickon Robinson argues for a more diverse tenure mix, and that developers need to be incentivised to build larger homes.

This is the start of a debate on who should build our homes, so tell us what you think about the ideas in the six essays.

More about delivering better housing

Who should build our homes?

CABE has commissioned six experts with strong views to tell us what they would change to deliver more and better housing.
No more toxic assets: fresh thinking on housing quality

Setting out the changes that are needed to avoid more poor-quality housing design when the market eventually recovers.

Young people can shape spaces too (11 December 2009)

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 16:05:44 GMT

Spaceshaper, which captures local views about parks and public spaces, has had an imaginative and colourful makeover for young people.

The new version of the activity-based toolkit has been developed for young people aged 9-14, because they are often left out of decisions that affect their lives. It explores what young people think about how local places are used and how they can be improved.

It was launched by Rt Hon Ed Balls MP, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in Wakefield, because he wants to encourage local authorities to involve young people in the development of public spaces.

Richard Simmons, CABE’s chief executive, said that young people have opinions about their local parks, squares and streets, but too often they go unheard. ‘Their views matter. Spaceshaper is an imaginative new way of getting young people involved and giving them a chance to have their say.’

Fourteen pilot workshops have seen local councils using it to get young people involved in shaping their areas. Spaceshaper is based around eight themes that vary from design to use and maintenance. Workshops are led by a trained facilitator and are adapted to each individual site visited. They include map and photo work and role play.

In Southampton, nine and ten year olds decided their local park in the Thornhill estate should feel wilder and have more plants and flowers, and their views have now been incorporated in a funding bid.

Spaceshaper is developed by CABE and Beam, with The Architecture Centre, Bristol and Kent Architecture Centre.

More about the new version of Spaceshaper

Spaceshaper 9-14

Young people are often overlooked in community engagement, but Spaceshaper 9-14 aims to get them involved in improving their local parks, streets, playgrounds and other spaces.

Some of the best housing this century (3 December 2009)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 08:00:00 GMT

Two winners of the Building for Life awards have earned the highest scores given to new housing developments since the initiative began in 2002.

Seven outstanding schemes have been selected for an award, out of a record 36 schemes that achieved a Building for Life standard this year. Particularly high scores were awarded to Lime Tree Square in Street in Somerset and to Cross Street South in Wolverhampton. Both of these schemes set a benchmark for the standard of housing which CABE and the HBF want to see emerge from the recession.

Other award winning schemes include canalside flats in Islington; energy efficient homes in Sheffield; a characterful small development in St Ives; dramatically clad homes in Brent; and a distinctive 500 home development in Portsmouth.

The schemes with record scores performed particularly well on sustainability and street design. For the 138 homes in Lime Tree Square, clever use of detail has created a rural feel with a modern twist, and pedestrians have been given priority. At Cross Street South, which is a 100% affordable 30-home development, a park provides a delightful reason for residents to get together.

Congratulating the winners, the Rt Hon John Healey MP, Minister for Housing and Planning, said that good design and planning of new homes and communities can make them great places to live and work. “Wherever there is new development – whether it’s one home, a new street or a whole town – our aim is not only to meet housing need, but to make homes and neighbourhoods greener, safer and more attractive environments for people to live in. Building for Life helps to achieve this by setting very clear quality standards for schemes to meet.”

Wayne Hemingway, chair of Building for Life, said that residents of the winning schemes must feel as if they’ve won the lottery: ‘These schemes are shining examples of how you deliver great places to live, regardless of the economy. But the problem remains: they represent only a fraction of the housing built today. We urgently need to deliver this quality of housing as standard.’

Stewart Baseley, Executive chairman at HBF, said that the schemes highlight the advances which developers around the country are making in getting to grips with design: ‘Surveys consistently show that builders are building what their customers want to live in.’

The seven 2009 Building for Life award winners are:

Raising the standard of housing design (2 December 2009)

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:43:24 GMT

A record 36 housing schemes achieved a Building for Life Standard in 2009.

They include two with the highest scores ever: Lime Tree Square in Street, Somerset, and Cross Street South in Wolverhampton. This kind of housing sets a benchmark for the future.

The standard is awarded to schemes that score 14/20 or more with the Building for Life criteria – the national standard for well designed homes and neighbourhoods.

Silver standards

Ashton-under-Lyne, Tameside

Sheltered accommodation which brightens up an area still hungry for regeneration. The colourful chimneys are actually sun tunnels, piping in extra daylight.

Bateman Mews, Stockwell, south London

Just five homes but an impressive ambition to avoid building a bog standard cul-de-sac.

Canklow Woods Housing Development, Canklow, Rotherham

Seventy one homes which provide much more space than those they replace, and a better mix of housing to meet local needs.

Church Street, Newham, east London

Despite a very constrained site, these are good sized homes and their design enlivens the street.

City Quarter, Whitechapel, east London

A sweet oasis tucked inside a substantial scheme which provides a good mix of 300 affordable and private homes.

Curwen Apartments, Stratford, east London

By retaining the existing trees, this development already feels mature.

East End Community Village, Cattedown, Plymouth

A real sense of place has been achieved by this scheme. It signals the kind of transformation which can be achieved in any run-down neighbourhood.

Geoff Marsh Court, Camden, north London

This is a compact scheme, with 22 homes fitted into a small infill site, made distinctive through excellent detailing

Grand Union Place, Stepney, east London

Another east London development: this one is substantial and provides great public space, and gives locals a welcome new link through to a canal towpath.

Grange Road, Petersfield, Hampshire

Grange Road is in the middle of a redevelopment area, so it was a challenge to create distinctive character - but this scheme has succeeded.

Granville Homes, Brent, north London

Fantastic cladding. It had to be especially good to get through in a conservation area. This scheme is a great start to regeneration in Kilburn.

Grover Close, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

Fifty six homes in a high density development which use thermo wood cladding. All the homes have excellent space standards.

Hanbury Quarter, Chelmsford, Essex

A really nice link has been made through to the local park, and the scheme has a 100% cycle provision.

Hirst Gardens, Burnley Woods, Burnley, Lancashire

Locals really like the distinctive look of this sheltered accommodation.

Imperial Wharf, Chelsea, London

A handsome brownfield development providing 1,800 homes. Half of the scheme is affordable housing.

Ledbury Cottage Hospital, Ledbury, Herefordshire

A lovely renovation of the old cottage hospital, one of the landmarks on the High Street in Ledbury.

Norfolk Park Green Homes, Sheffield

The design of this scheme is particularly important because it is setting the bar for a much larger area of regeneration. The homes have been designed to guarantee lower than average fuel bills.

Pepys, Deptford, south east London

The latest phase in the welcome replacement of a very grim 1960’s estate by the River Thames. The building line was governed by historic building, and the residents wanted to retain all the existing green space.

River’s Gate, Newcastle

A design which has created a place with distinct character, with views from each house down to Newcastle football stadium.

St Pauls Place, St Albans

A small and very carefully thought through scheme of just eight homes for single elderly people.

Stone Rise, Dulcie Close, Dartford

Contaminated land made this a challenging site, but the £60K house type has resulted in very high performance standards.

Tarling Regeneration, Shadwell, east London

Two hundred new homes in east London - a successful example of a high-density, inner-city regeneration scheme.

Trinity Watch, St Ives, Cornwall

The quality of the materials used and the quality of its construction have made Trinity Watch a showcase for how a small development can add to the character of an area.

Yew Tree Lodge, Hillingdon, north London

A development for 12 residents with special needs, with lovely detailing. It could set a new standard for this kind of scheme: it makes a refreshing and positive change.

Gold standards

Admiralty Quarter, Portsmouth

Once a car park, this site now provides over 500 homes which enjoy some really lovely places to sit or play.

Angel Waterside, Islington, London

An attractive scheme which has created desirable public space leading right through onto the canalside.

Banks Yard, Hounslow, west London

A small development which has thought hard about its open space. This has been designed for children to enjoy.

Chimney Pot Park, Langworthy, Salford

Chimney Pot Park turned the traditional terraced street upside down and gave it a new lease of life. This bright linear garden is at first floor level, accessed from the main living rooms.

Cross Street South, Wolverhampton

A small scheme of 30 homes which has been designed with such huge ambition, it has succeeded in transforming the quality of its location in Wolverhampton.

East Central Rochdale HMR, Rochdale, Greater Manchester

These 25 modern courtyard houses have filled a real gap, in providing flexible accommodation for extended families.

Highbury Square, Islington, London

A large development of over 700 homes, showing a really impressive re-use of existing buildings and beautifully designed public space.

Hornsey Road Baths, Islington, London

The pool closed in 1991, leaving a large derelict site. Now the original 24m high chimney rises through a glazed atrium that links two of the new housing blocks. The development includes new squares and a Sure Start Centre.

Lime Tree Square, Street, Somerset

A hugely impressive 138 home scheme in the market town of Street. Fantastic use of detail to create a rural feel with a modern twist.

Printworks, Forest Hill, south London

A sensitive infill scheme which packs a punch through its street frontage. Interesting how one clever intervention can improve the feel of an entire neighbourhood.

Queensbridge Quarter, Hackney, north east London

Attractive high density scheme with a layout which maximises use of solar panels. Sun-spaces on the south facades provide extensions to living rooms.

Stadthaus, Hackney, north east London

Finally, an extraordinary pioneer. This nine storey building is entirely made of wood, which reputedly makes it the tallest timber residential building in the world.

Planning for places (20 November 2009)

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:01:25 GMT

New guidance to help planners place good design at the heart of their core strategies has been published by CABE.

All local authorities must produce a core strategy, the document which describes their vision for their place over the coming 15 to 20 years.

CABE has been working with local authorities to see how design quality can best be embedded in emerging strategies. The new guidance draws on findings from 50 workshops held with local planning authorities.

Planning for places: delivering good design through core strategies spells out the need to: first, tell the story of the place; second, set the agenda – say what is wanted for the area and what is expected in terms of design quality; and third, say it clearly: make the core strategy relevant and clear for a wide audience, with easy to read graphics, maps and photographs.

Planning for places references some approaches currently being taken.

The London Borough of Camden, for example, tells its story clearly. It references the key locations that people readily identity with the borough, like Camden Town and St Pancras; recognising its relationship to the wider area; and setting out critical issues clearly, such as the supply and cost of housing, and crime and safety.

Brighton and Hove sets its agenda well, identifying seven key areas of change within the city and clearly stating what is wanted in each of these areas.

York City Council succeeds in clearly and concisely setting out the local and regional context, the issues that York is facing, and the vision for the future of the city. The section on York’s special historic and built environment clearly identifies design quality as a priority.

Download Planning for places: delivering good design through core strategies.

Sorrell challenges architects to give us more delight (17 November 2009)

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:21:31 GMT

Sir John Sorrell has called for a new generation of architects with the attitude and talent to make Britain more delightful.

Sorrell challenged the architecture profession, in a talk at Tate Modern on 16 November 2009, to stop being the servant of poor quality development. ‘We need architects who offer more than just artistic direction. People with the confidence to challenge the client and influence the brief. Architects who will resign a job if it is destined to create a bad building’, says Sorrell.

The speech made the case for new and different values underpinning the architecture which should emerge from this recession. He argued that many architects have exactly the optimism and inventiveness which Britain needs to progress from an age of anxiety to an era of delight.

Sorrell also called on the Government to sustain investment in public buildings, particularly schools. He argued that Government should not squander the investment already made, and it should use the emerging quality of public buildings as a springboard for the future.

‘I would go so far as to say that the art of public building has been refound.
Sir John Sorrell, chair of CABE

‘I would go so far as to say that the art of public building has been refound,’ claims Sorrell, citing a raft of recent projects including the Marlowe Academy, the Kentish Town Health Centre, Manchester Civil Justice Centre, Castleford Bridge and Northala Fields.

His talk reflected on lessons to be learnt from previous financial crises, including the crash of 1825. This saw public investment refocused on improvements to the streets of London and public services, and Hampstead Heath saved from speculative housebuilders. ‘It suggests to me that one of our primary concerns should be to avoid a return to business as usual and the development norms that prevailed two years ago’, said Sorrell.

‘We need a shift in attitude and values. And a public sector epitomised by strength of character and sticking to what you believe in. Localism for me means support for people working in public sector organisations and in local government. Not blaming them for the financial mess we are in. And certainly not demonising the very public servants who will need to deliver cuts, and who we need to do that job with great skill and shrewdness.’

Read Sir John Sorrell's speech

Delight

Now that there is no longer the means for an architecture of wealth, do we have the imagination to create new kinds of places which lift our spirits? CABE Chair Sir John Sorrell explored this topic at an event at Tate Modern on 16 November 2009.

Sea change ahead for seven resorts (16 November 2009)

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:30:43 GMT

Britains oldest surviving rollercoaster, a fine Victorian railway station and fishermens cellars from the 1800s are just some of the projects set to benefit from the latest round of Sea Change funding.

Seven coastal resorts across the country have received grants: Margate; St Ives; Tynemouth; Plymouth; Barrow-in-Furness; Fleetwood; and Roker.

The Sea Change programme, led by CABE and funded by DCMS, is designed to regenerate England’s seaside towns by investing in culture and heritage.

Margate has been awarded £3.7 million to help fund an ambitious project to rejuvenate the Dreamland Amusement Park. Plans include restoration of a collection of historic rides including the oldest surviving rollercoaster in the UK. The scenic railway and Dreamland Cinema – both listed – will also be restored, along with an old theatre organ.

In North Tyneside, a grant of £2 million will help transform the Grade II* listed Tynemouth station, one of Britain’s best examples of a Victorian railway station. The historic canopies will be restored, and more space created for activities.

A £1 million grant for Roker, in Sunderland, will be spent on a marine walk which will include new seating, illuminated caves and granite steps linking the beach to the promenade. Artist-designed portable ‘pods’ and new public space are also part of the project.

It is ambitious projects like Dreamland in Margate that can rekindle the English love affair with the seaside.
Richard Simmons, chief executive of CABE

CABE chief executive Richard Simmons, commenting on behalf of the Sea Change partnership, said that these seven projects demonstrate how culture can help recapture the flair that these places enjoyed in their heyday. “I especially like the plan to regenerate Dreamland in Margate, and showcase the country’s oldest rollercoaster and a listed scenic railway. It is ambitious projects like this that can rekindle the English love affair with the seaside.”

In St Ives, Porthmeor Studios will be redeveloped to provide facilities for artists and local fishermen with a grant of £900,000. This includes two refurbished fishermen’s cellars, and a gallery and artist studios facing the beach.

Fleetwood, in the North West, will receive funding of £835,000 to create a performance and recreational space on the seafront. The scheme will reflect the Viking, Roman and Neolithic history of the resort. A mythic trail along the coast will be developed and an observation centre for local bird and wildlife. Local artists will compete to design and manufacture artworks that will be displayed in three locations along the coast.

A new visitor centre – in an outbuilding of the refurbished Grade II listed Ship Inn - on Piel Island in Barrow-in-Furness will be created with a grant of £280,000. It will provide information about local heritage and maps for walkers.

A development grant of £100,000 has been awarded to Plymouth to explore proposals for relocating the Plymouth Arts Centre to the Hoe on the seafront. This would bring a highly prominent and historic site back into use. Two cinemas, education spaces and a café are planned for the centre.

Margaret Hodge, Culture and Tourism Minister, praised the huge variety and diversity of the projects. “What’s exciting is that many of these grants will enable our seaside towns to celebrate their fantastic heritage and history while at the same time making the services and cultural facilities they offer completely relevant for the future.”

More about Sea Change

Sea Change

A funding programme which places culture at the heart of regenerating England’s seaside resorts by investing in arts, public space, cultural assets and heritage projects.
Example Sea Change projects

Read about coastal regeneration projects funded by Sea Change in Bexhill-on-Sea, Blackpool, Boscombe, Jaywick and Margate.

Making the switch from Grey to Green (11 November 2009)

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:44:43 GMT

Green infrastructure does not receive anything like the investment or management that goes into grey infrastructure.

CABE’s Grey to Green campaign, launched today in the run up to the UN conference in Copenhagen, will fuel the debate about whether this is smart, given the dangers of climate change and the opportunities to improve public health.

CABE argues that a shift is needed in public spending from grey projects, like road building and heavy engineering projects, to green schemes, like street trees, parks, green roofs and waterways.

At present, for instance, flood protection requires supersized stormwater pipes. But a combination of living roofs, large trees and soft landscaping can absorb heavy rainfall, store and recycle it for summer irrigation; save energy through roof insulation; provide shade for offices to cut the need for air conditioning; and make cities more beautiful, so encouraging exercise and improving public health.

Figures produced by PricewaterhouseCoopers show how a shift in spending from grey to green of just 0.5 per cent could increase investment in urban green space by 141 per cent.

The elements of green infrastructure are all around us but they don’t yet work together as a functioning system. The campaign report, Grey to Green: how we shift funding and skills to green our cities, argues for more people, with the right skills, to manage the living landscape of our towns and cities.

There is no official system for mapping green infrastructure, so to mark the launch of the campaign CABE has mapped Gloucester, Liverpool and the London boroughs of Hackney and Islington, picking out the green from aerial photographs. They challenge normal perceptions: normal maps show places as made of concrete and tarmac with some green punctuation.

A powerful argument for investment in green infrastructure at a time of austerity is that unlike most grey infrastructure, green infrastructure is multi-functional.

The £1.28 billion budget for widening a 63 mile section of the M25 could pay for 3.2 million trees to store three million tonnes of carbon, or 5,000 miles of greenways for cyclists and pedestrians

CABE argues that local government needs better skills to design and manage green infrastructure. Each local authority needs a cabinet member with responsibility for leading on green infrastructure in their area, and a landscape architect to coordinate the policy across departments.

CABE is proposing that each local authority appoint a City Gardener, in a nod to the original City Architects. Councillors should be encouraged to organise regular ‘green surgeries’, an alternative to gardeners’ question times for their wards.

At a national level, CABE would welcome the establishment of a green infrastructure taskforce. Just as the urban taskforce championed an urban renaissance for our towns and cities, a panel of national experts should be convened to shape environmental policy and delivery and to champion GI.

At the moment GI is hard to use because it isn’t mapped. There is no record of urban and suburban green spaces in England - where they are, who owns them or what condition they are in. CABE, with support from fifteen organisations across the sector, wants central government to coordinate a single, shared national information resource or ‘atlas’ so that green infrastructure can be planned and managed strategically.

More about Grey to Green

Grey to Green: how we shift funding and skills to green our cities

Green infrastructure does not receive anything like the investment or management that goes into grey infrastructure. Grey to Green will fuel a debate about whether this is smart, given the dangers of climate change and the opportunities to improve public health.
Gloucester green infrastructure network

Managing flood water has become a major concern for Gloucester following 2007’s Severn floods. The Environment Agency is working on alleviation schemes and flood storage areas could provide wildlife parks with public access.
Liverpool green infrastructure network

Liverpool’s green map shows civic parks running north to south, with large open spaces to the east. Vegetation spreads along railways and roads in the west, with green belt in the south.
Hackney and Islington green infrastructure network

Hackney has generous green spaces in its north and east, including part of the London 2012 site. Islington, by contrast, has the least green space per head in London, with Highbury Fields one of its few green spaces.
The green information gap: mapping the nation's green spaces

There is a major gap in the national information about England’s urban green spaces: nobody knows how many there are, where they are, who owns them or what they are like.
Why we must map green infrastructure

A single page letter of endorsement for Grey to Green from 15 organisations including CABE, English Heritage, Natural England, Landscape Institute, Keep Britain Tidy and many others.

CABE to design review proposed eco-towns (10 November 2009)

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:00:00 GMT

CABE has set up a dedicated design review panel to provide expert advice on the quality of designs for the governments proposed eco-towns.

The panel will review the proposals for: Whitehill-Bordon in Hampshire; Rackheath in Norfolk; North-West Bicester in Oxfordshire; and St Austell in Cornwall.

The specialist panel brings together a vast wealth of experience to comment on the specific issues involved in eco-town designs. It will be chaired by Sunand Prasad, former RIBA president, with CABE commissioner and landscape architect Richard Cass as vice chair.

Sunand Prasad, chair of the panel, comments: “The eco-town programme is all about learning - trying out sustainable, low carbon planning and design solutions that are more difficult and time consuming to try out in heavily constrained existing settlements. The point of this learning is to find solutions that can be applied widely. A successful eco-town will be a place where people want to live, not just one that ticks the boxes.”

Other members include: Chris Twinn, director at Arup and co-founder of the company’s sustainability group in building engineering; Bill Gething of Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios; Peter Studdert, director of joint planning at South Cambridgeshire District Council; masterplanner and urban designer Jon Rowland; and architect Gerard Maccreanor of Maccreanor Lavington.

If they can convince this array of experts, they should stand every chance of achieving their aims when finally developed.
Diane Haigh, director of architecture and design review at CABE

Diane Haigh, director of design review at CABE, thinks it is in the public interest that these schemes should be reviewed by CABE’s independent panel. “If they can convince this array of experts, they should stand every chance of achieving their aims when finally developed.”

Working with Communities and Local Government (CLG) and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), the reviews will be part of CABE’s national design review programme.

CABE and BioRegional produced joint guidance in September last year. What makes an eco-town? was inspired by the Challenge Panel and sets out the principles for the agencies involved in developing proposals.

More about eco-towns

Eco-towns design review panel

A specialist eco-towns panel which provides expert design advice on the quality of the government’s proposed eco-towns.
What makes an eco-town?

A report from BioRegional and CABE inspired by the eco towns challenge panel with advice for the agencies involved in developing proposals for England’s eco-towns.

Boom in design review prompts new guidance (4 November 2009)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:47:37 GMT

The number of design review panels has more than doubled in the last five years, so that now almost every local authority has access to high quality independent design advice. Over 80 panels are up and running across England.

New guidance has been launched, Design review: principles and practice, to promote consistently high standards for all panels.

The guidance has been developed by CABE, the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Landscape Institute.

Speaking at the launch, Margaret Hodge, Minister for Culture said that design review is a tried and tested and timely way of promoting good design. “It is a cost effective way to improve the quality of buildings and places. We want to see every local authority able to use design review to help create world class places.”

The guidance looks at the role of design review, and how to get the best out of it. It uses nine case studies of design review in practice.

Martin Stockley is the chair of Places Matter!, one of the panels featured in the publication. He thinks it is a mark of the achievement of design review that it has become hard to imagine a time without it. “We are no longer asked ‘why’ when it comes to design review – it is always ‘so - how?’. This new guidance answers that question in a clear and concise way."

The publication will be of interest to anyone running a panel or wanting to establish one. This includes local authorities, architects, developers, planners, clients and other design professionals using the planning system who need to understand the network of panels and how to access them.