News release

England´s city centres may soon be treated to a designer makeover as developers and planners begin to apply the principles outlined in the Urban Design Compendium launched at the Tate Modern on London´s Bankside today. Developed by English Partnerships and the Housing Corporation, the Compendium stresses the importance of good urban design in creating places where people want to live, work and socialise.

The Compendium highlights the need for an overview of the regeneration and development process, reviewing the key elements to produce an integrated picture. The practical examples in the Compendium make design principles available to the widest possible audience - from large-scale developers to small community projects - giving accessible guidance from the earliest stages of a project through to completion. Its publication is an important milestone in taking forward the recommendations of Lord Rogers´ Urban Task Force.

With case studies drawn from around the world, the Compendium shows that urban design is not just about buildings, but also about the spaces in between. Clearing our public spaces of street clutter is recognised not only as a visual issue, but also as a social one. Community consultation is also shown to be a vital element in the evolution of the urban landscape, and the Compendium itself is part of a continuing process. Readers are urged to put the best practice guidance in the Compendium to use and to respond with their experiences.

At today´s launch, English Partnerships´ Chief Executive, Paula Hay-Plumb, commented: "Good urban design demands both vision and attention to detail, which add character and identity. The Urban Design Compendium shows that well-designed and attractive urban spaces attract new activity and investment, becoming thriving and prosperous centres for growth. Small amounts of money spent on improving the quality of the environment can produce significant social and economic returns."

In his launch address, Lord Rogers of Riverside - Chairman of the Urban Task Force and chief advocate of an urban renaissance for our cities and towns - said:
"Urban design is the process to solve social, economic and political demands in three dimensions. It is both a science and an art.

"The science of building is translated into form by structure and materials. Architecture is about giving order to space. The art of architecture is about the play of light and shadow on form, where proportion is related to the measure of man. Beauty stimulates the senses and moves the spirit. A world without beauty is not worth contemplating.

"If urban renaissance is to be successful, the quality of life in cities must be improved so that people once more can enjoy city life. Unfortunately there are still many people who think that architecture is an add-on, like adding lipstick to a gorilla or bricks and mortar tied together with a pink ribbon. To those doubters, let me assure you that there is no such thing as urban regeneration without good public space and architecture. Good architects add value. If you need convincing, look at a simple Georgian terrace overlooking a beautiful square."

Addressing the particular urban design concerns for housing, Simon Dow, Acting Chief Executive of The Housing Corporation, stated: "The Urban Design Compendium examines the factors that make neighbourhoods stimulating and active places in which tenants and residents feel comfortable and safe. It offers important advice to those organisations working for change in our cities and towns, including housing associations. They, with the Corporation´s backing, are increasingly involved in the regeneration of deprived areas and in providing new affordable homes for economic growth. Thoughtful and high quality design are essential to this work, to ensure the homes we build are sufficiently flexible to meet changing needs and lifestyles.

"We hope the Compendium will inform and assist all those involved in new development and regeneration and that its use will contribute to the improvement of the quality of housing-led regeneration projects and the promotion of sustainable new development."

The Compendium was warmly endorsed by the Minister for Local Government and the Regions, Hilary Armstrong MP, who said: "The Government is committed to promoting good urban design and I would like to give my full support to the Urban Design Compendium. The Compendium complements By Design - the good practice guide on urban design in the planning system that we produced with the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. Together these two documents offer a comprehensive guide to achieving better urban design.

"The Compendium will help set new standards in regeneration. The guide makes it clear that urban design is an integral part of successful and sustainable regeneration and place making."

The Urban Design Compendium is available free of charge to developers, funders, community groups and all interested parties in regeneration and development.

1. The Urban Design Compendium was developed in tandem with the Department of the Environment, Transport & The Regions (DETR) publication By Design: Urban Design in the Planning System. English Partnerships and The Housing Corporation commissioned the document from consultants Llewelyn-Davies.

2. English Partnerships works with central and local government, the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs), the private sector, new town local authorities and other partners to bring about sustainable economic regeneration and development. It is an influential and proactive national organisation, utilising innovative ideas and approaches to help create new jobs, new homes and new investment. One of our main roles is to help deliver regeneration projects and programmes in the English regions.

3. The Housing Corporation is the government agency whose purpose is to improve people´s quality of life through social housing. Set up in 1964, its primary role is to fund the building and renovating of homes with the use of the annual Approved Development Programme, and regulate over 2,100 Registered Social Landlords throughout England.

4. Llewelyn-Davies is a multi-disciplinary company offering planning, architecture, health services planning and graphic design. It is one of the UK´s foremost planning practices at the cutting edge of emerging transport and urban planning policy, for example Best Practice in Housing Design, Transport Corridors Best Practice, Methods for Determining Parking Standards, Millennium Villages and Sustainable Communities and Delivering Mixed Use in Town Centres for the DETR and the Sustainable Residential Quality work for LPAC, advocated in the White Paper "Planning for the Communities of the Future" and PPG3 Housing. Major urban design and regeneration projects include the Edinburgh Waterfront - Granton, Cardiff Bay, Greenwich Peninsula and The Royal Arsenal Woolwich. The firm continues to undertake a series of exemplary Urban Village projects including Gateshead (St James´), Wolverhampton (St Johns´) and Plymouth Devonport.