The report, commissioned in June, is the first since Cabe, the government’s former architecture quango, conducted national audits in 2004 and 2007. It suggests the quality of design has improved somewhat, with the number of schemes being classed as poor or very poor since 2007 falling from 29% to 20%. Read more →

A new report from University College London (UCL) says too many highways engineers are still approving roads that do not fully account for pedestrians and cyclists. It follows a government survey suggesting three quarters of people want to drive less to protect our health and the environment.

Its author, Prof Matthew Carmona, told BBC News: “Far too many new developments are still all about the car. “It’s all about making sure cars don’t need to slow down. Pedestrians and cyclists just have to get out of the way. Read more →

Matthew Carmona, a professor at University College London, whose team has surveyed new housing schemes across the country as part of a major forthcoming report, says big developers are producing too many estates with serious design flaws. “At present we are just not meeting the basic requirements for civilised living that we should expect in a country like our own,” he said. Read more →

University College London’s Bartlett School of Planning is to carry out an audit funded by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and the Place Alliance, a non-profit network whose supporters include the Planning Officers Society, Civic Voice, and the Local Government Information Unit. Read more →

Built environment organisations have come together to support the UK’s first national housing design audit, which plans to examine large-scale housing developments. Read more →