§ Sir Sydney ChapmanTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the(a) adequacy of and (b) consistency with the policy objectives set out in the Sustainable Communities Plan standard of architectural design in new housing developments in the Thames Gateway. [185821]
§ Keith HillNew housing development in the Thames Gateway will be expected to comply with existing planning policies, as is the case for development elsewhere in the country. Planning Policy Guidance Note 1 (PPG1) on 'General Policy and Principles' requires that "good design should be the aim of all those involved in the development process and should be encouraged everywhere". This policy is supported by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's good practice guidance 'By Design' and 'Better Places to Live'. Planning Policy Guidance Note 3 (PPG3) on 'Housing' places a considerable emphasis on securing well-designed residential developments of the highest standard.
High quality design is crucial to the delivery of sustainable communities. Projects that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) is funding in the Thames Gateway have been selected against thematic objectives, one of which is "to implement a consistent policy of quality design". We have also increased funding for the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), who launched the Growth Areas Housing Quality Forum in March 2004 to 569W disseminate best practice on housing design. Major developments in the Thames Gateway, such as the Greenwich Millennium village, have already used urban design codes to provide certainty to developers and the community as to what constitutes acceptable design quality. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is in the process of identifying other potential sites in the Gateway to pilot further urban coding schemes.