Built environment comment & blogs

Expert comment on town planning, urban regeneration, economic development, urban design, sustainable development & community building.

Page Title RSS feed

Latest Comment

Opinion: Is planning becoming more top-down or bottom up?

Mark Edgerley looks at plans to strengthen aspects of strategic planning, from neighbourhood planning to mayoral authorities.

Opinion: Adapt places and buildings for the climate damage that's now inevitable

Our combined response to the climate emergency is too little, too late to prevent serious negative impacts, so we need to be working on adaptation, writes Chris Brown.

Opinion: We need better data about the performance of cities to drive climate action

Cities have a key part to play in combatting climate change and data can help highlight their individual challenges and provide the catalyst for tackling them, writes Alexis Haass.

Opinion: The conundrum of developer contributions

Australia and the UK have their own planning law and requirements around developer contributions, but serious conflicts can arise in both countries, writes Tim Williams.

Opinion: Successful communities are about more than bricks and mortar

New neighbourhoods can thrive on the wide-ranging benefits that effective stewardship can bring, writes Roger File.

Opinion: Planned changes to the CPO system hold promise for regeneration

Proposals in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill aimed at facilitating compulsory purchase are encouraging, writes Adam Rhead, although barriers remain.

Opinion: Get creative with ground floor activation to help new urban neighbourhoods thrive

The build to rent sector's focus on community and the long term is driving creative approaches to activating ground floor spaces in urban residential development, writes Pete Ladhams.

Opinion: Adapting city plans after the pandemic

Swansea's projects are responding to the challenges brought by the pandemic and suggest potential routes to post-pandemic regeneration, writes Caroline Searle.

Opinion: Learning what works in new neighbourhoods

There are numerous barriers to incorporating the popular characteristics of the vernacular into new places, but a fresh approach could provide valuable lessons, writes Chris Brown.

Opinion: Where's the money for levelling up?

The levelling up and regeneration bill introduced to parliament is lacking in the resources, will and planning needed to deliver change, writes Tim Williams.

Opinion: Looking for the value in biodiversity net gain

Biodiversity net gain may present challenges in its potential to reduce developer contributions or limit land values but it can also add value, writes Francis Truss.

Opinion: What a new development tax could mean for delivery of infrastructure and affordable homes

Lawrence Turner looks at the potential implications of replacing CIL and S106 developer contributions with a single flat-rate levy.

Planner | Birmingham | Real Estate Consultancy Penguin Recruitment Homeworking
Planner (Graduate to Associate) Beach Baker Property Recruitment Bristol
Town Planner or Senior Town Planner CCO Group London (Greater)
Senior, Principal or Associate Director of Town Planning – London CCO Group London (Greater)
Senior Policy Officer Matchtech London (Greater)
Planning Officer - Householder Apps Osborne Richardson East Sussex, England
Planner or Senior Planner (Birmingham) Beach Baker Property Recruitment Birmingham, West Midlands
Senior Planner – Projects Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council Welwyn Garden City, AL8 6AE
Principal Planning Officer - Development Management Mid Devon District Council Tiverton, Devon
Planner / Senior Planner Parker Planning Services Suffolk - Bury St Edmunds / Cambridge - Milton