News
Wales planning news, March 2020
05 Mar 2020
Contents |
|||
|
|
|
|
||||||
|
01
|
||||||||
|
02
|
||||||||
|
03
|
||||||||
|
04
|
||||||||
|
05
|
||||||||
Headline news |
||
Welsh Government hopes to accelerate delivery of affordable homes through MMC
As part of its plans to build more homes for social rent, the Welsh Government (WG) has published a Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Strategy for Social Housing, which it hopes will support the incremental up take of MMC.
The strategy identifies nine key objectives it believes will be essential for the successful adoption of MMC for new social housing.
It aims bring in greater standardisation of assurances, warranties and accreditation to support lender and third party confidence in MMC. Crucially, WG will also set quality standards expected for housing that receives public subsidy, specifically with regards to space, energy efficiency and design.
WG are also considering whether to revise the proposed Beautiful Homes and Spaces standards (currently Development Quality Requirements - DQR), to include an expectation that MMC systems will be considered and used where possible.
It also confirms that the WG are developing an implementation plan to provide further detail on how to deliver its strategic objectives.
Housing Minister Julie James commented:
“Developing the MMC industry in Wales presents us with a great opportunity to not only build beautiful new social housing, but also kick-start a new industry that will become increasingly important for our economy.”
Welsh Government, Social house building strategy
|
|
Quote of the month |
|
|
Gone are the days of MMC’s association with poor quality, temporary, pre-fabricated housing; MMC now produces high quality, desirable and energy efficient affordable homes that tenants can be proud of. We have certainly moved from Pre-Fab to Ab-Fab! Developing the MMC industry in Wales presents us with a great opportunity to not only build beautiful new social housing, but also kick-start a new industry that will become increasingly important for our economy.
Julie James AM, Minister for Housing, and Local Government |
||
Welsh Government consult on TAN 11
The Welsh Government has launched a consultation seeking views on a new Technical Advice Note (TAN 11), which will provide the basis for future planning policy guidance on noise, noise pollution, air quality and soundscape.
According to the consultation document, planning policy in relation to air quality, soundscape and noise emphasises the requirement to secure opportunities rather than just avoiding the worst negative impacts and accordingly an integrated approach is required:
“It is no longer acceptable to merely regard air quality and noise as technical matters to be mitigated at the end of the process, rather, they are integral to the design, functioning, health, amenity and well-being of places.”
Welsh Government, Air quality and soundscape: review of TAN 11
Welsh Government published its 2018-based subnational household projections, which replace the previous 2014-based projections (published in March 2017).
The new projections indicate that there will be c.38,000 additional households living in Wales in 2028 compared to 2018, an increase of 2.8%. While the projections cover a 25-year period from 2018 to 2043, the Welsh Government’s focus in its announcement of the new figures is on the initial 10-year period, given that the results are increasingly uncertain in the longer term
Projected household growth is expected to be heavily focused in South East Wales, accounting for over 70% of all growth in Wales between 2018 and 2028. While a total of 15 of the 22 local authorities (excluding National Parks) are expected to experience growth in the number of households between 2018 and 2028, ranging from +0.3% in Merthyr Tydfil to +6.9% in Newport. Some 7 local authorities are projected to experience decline, ranging from -0.4% in Denbighshire to -4.8% in Ceredigion.
Further details and a discussion of the implications can be found in this Lichfields Blog.
Consultation on the future of regional investment in Wales
The Welsh Government (WG) is seeking views on the future of the countries regional investment following Britain’s exit from the European Union. Its goal is to create an effective place-based framework for investment that would help deliver inclusive growth, while involving communities in the co-production of innovative solutions to local challenges.
The model proposed would be built around a new National Investment Framework that would cover four priority areas for investment:
- productive and competitive businesses;
- reducing the factors that lead to income inequality;
- supporting the transition to a zero-carbon economy; and
- healthier, fairer, more sustainable communities.
WG aims to introduce simplified, proportional and less bureaucratic rules around regional investments, and will place greater emphasis on the delivery of outcomes and integration with wider investment and policy areas.
Welsh Government, Securing Wales’ Future: A Framework for Regional Investment in Wales
Self Build Wales Scheme Launched
A new £210m scheme to assist people to build their own home was launched on 3 March 2020.
Self Build Wales, which is financed by the Welsh Government and managed by the Development Bank of Wales, seeks to provide people with ‘oven ready’ plots and a loan that covers 75% of the cost of a building plot and 100% of the cost to build a home. In order to help self-builders meet everyday living costs, there are no repayments until the new home is completed.
The scheme aims to remove the barriers and uncertainty that prevent people in Wales from building their own homes and also provide new opportunities for Welsh SME builders.
Welsh Government, Self Build Wales
|
|
The Lichfields perspective |
|
|
The latest household projections are based on negative past-trends highlighting a decline in the size of our working population and increased social dependency ratios. Planning on the basis of these past trends would not reflect Welsh Government’s positive policy aspirations for delivering economic growth and addressing social inequality. Whilst we need to acknowledge the challenges that these projections highlight it is essential that we break from these past trends and instead plan for positive growth to secure a more prosperous future for the population of Wales.
Lewis Condé, Associate Director |
||
Disclaimer: This publication has been written in general terms and cannot be relied on to cover specific situations. We recommend that you obtain professional advice before acting or refraining from acting on any of the contents of this publication. Lichfields accepts no duty of care or liability for any loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of any material in this publication. Lichfields is the trading name of Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners Limited. Registered in England, no.2778116