Designing Places, published November 2001, sets out the Scottish Executive's aspirations for design and the role of the planning system in delivering them. This Planning Advice Note (PAN) explains how Designing Places should be applied to new housing.

Some of Scotland's recent new housing has been acclaimed for its high standard of design. Talented architects have complemented the streets and spaces of existing cities, towns and villages with designs that express a contemporary vision. At the same time, though, concerns have been expressed about the low design standards of much of the new (particularly volume) housing that has been built in recent years.

There is no single market for housing. Some buyers of new homes are enthusiasts for modern design and committed to urban living. Others are looking for a suburban lifestyle, in a house that looks reassuringly traditional, and they enjoy the mobility that one or more cars provide. Every type of buyer gives life to a part of the housing market. The challenge is to use the planning system to work with the market in producing results that are more likely to be admired in years to come. Planning cannot prescribe good architecture or guarantee successful places, but it can create conditions that make them more likely.

Scottish Executive Planning Directorate
Susan Stirling (Principal Planner), tel. +44 131 2447551

01/02/2003

policy

Urban Policy > Housing

Housing quality