T18 Planning Policy Statements Review

Plan-making: a creative process







Urban Design Comments for Planning Decisions Reports

1. Introduction: factual description of design
- Size: height and basic massing
- Use: nature and distribution of programmes
- Context: immediate and wider location

2. External issues
- Ground floor use and relationship to street
- Thresholds and public – semipublic – private relationships
- Key routes near or through the site and wider links
- Landscaping and contribution to public realm (London Plan: policy 4B. 4Enhancing the quality of the public realm)
- Private external space and play space

3. Massing
- Tall building issues (London Plan: policy 4B. 8. Tall buildings – location; policy 4B. 9. Large-scale buildings – design and impact)
- Appropriateness to location
- Public access to upper floors
- Overshadowing and privacy
- Views (London Plan: Policy 4B.15 London View Protection Framework)

4. Architecture
- Design quality (London Plan: Policy 4B.2 Promoting world-class architecture and design)
- Articulation of facades and use of materials
- Internal arrangement issues: size/quality/location of rooms, Lifetime Homes Standards (London Plan: Policy 4B.5 Creating and inclusive environment)
- Entrances and frontages, and their relationship to the surrounding context
- Sustainability (London Plan: Policy 4B.6 Sustainable design and construction), in terms of passive environmental design, low-energy materials and construction techniques

+ Social network and Social mixed or Communities
- Council house and private house