Aiming at raising the design quality of new build residential developments across England, Building for Life 12 is based on the Government’s new National Planning Policy Framework. Reflecting the Government’s commitment to build more and better designed homes and neighbourhoods, the guidelines are written keeping everyday people in mind.
Comprising 12 questions, Building for Life 12 considers three key elements: how well homes integrate into the neighbourhood, how well they create a place and how well the development creates a street and a home.
Based on a simple traffic light system, the questions are given either a red, amber or green response. Developments that secure 12 ‘greens’, and are independently validated as having done, will be awarded Built for Life accreditation which will act as a mark of quality for homebuyers to identify with.
Benefitting both the building industry and communities, Building for Life 12 is expected to be a useful guide for all involved in development.
The primary authors of Building for Life 12 were Stefan Kruczkowski, senior lecturer at Nottingham Trent University’s School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment and David Birkbeck, chief executive of Design for Homes, a not-for-profit group which champions good design.
