Publications
by Design
TCPA latest ‘by Design’ Guide: Climate Change AdaptationClimate Change Adaptation ‘by Design Guide’ for sustainable communities, the third in the TCPA series of ‘by Design’ guides, shows how adapting towns and cities to climate change offers enormous potential for creating high value, quality places where people and businesses will want to spend time.
Research for the guide was undertaken by the TCPA and Acclimatise, a market leading advisory firm, specialising in climate risk management. Acclimatise is unique in its focus on adaptation, helping manage the physical impacts of a changing climate to ensure businesses maintain a competitive advantage now and in the future.
For further information on Acclimatise please see www.acclimatise.uk.com
 The guide was sponsored by CABE, English Partnerships, RICS and the Environment Agency, with expert input from a range of stakeholders. | |||
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In 2001 the TCPA led the way when it published A Programme for Sustainable Communities, calling for the positive planning and delivery of a greater number of homes to higher standards in sustainable social cities – or ‘sustainable communities’. We demanded, among other standards, enhanced levels of ‘biodiversity, renewable energy and energy efficiency’. The programme set out a vision which ‘Above all, sees our communities as integrated with the natural environment rather than set against it.’
The following year the Labour Government launched its own Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future action programme, commonly known as the ‘Communities Plan’, with many similarities to the TCPA’s programme [hyperlink to the ‘A programme for sustainable development’ document you have put on the Policy page]. The TCPA has been involved in the Communities Plan from the start and has been keen to stress to Government the importance of ensuring that development is genuinely sustainable. One of the main criticisms of the Plan is that it does not address all aspects of sustainable development equally. While it recognises the importance of building houses together with transport and community infrastructure and jobs, it falls short on environmental sustainability.
The aim of this series of ‘by Design’ guides is to maximise the opportunities for sustainable development in the planning and design of sustainable communities. The guides take the user through the design processes, presenting examples of best practice that can be tailored according to the scale of development opportunity. The principal target audiences are local authorities, developers, architects and landscape architects, and investors and managers in the public and private sectors.
The guides focus on promoting sustainable implementation of the Communities Plan in the first instance, but will be of relevance to those involved in creating new communities across the country. They are of particular relevance to developments in urban, urban-rural fringe, and rural areas.
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To download full guides:
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Biodiversity by Design (Adobe Acrobat format, 1.9Mb)
Sustainable Energy by Design (Adobe Acrobat Format, 2.6Mb)
Climate Change Adaptation by Design (Adobe Acrobat Format, 4.5Mb)
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Further ‘by Design’ guides will be available in the future.
Please contact Robert Shaw for more information.