CABE slams new homes. Again.
CABE has produced yet another report slamming the quality of housing in this country. The document makes the specific claim that 82 per cent of new housing built over the last five years fails to measure up on design quality.
The new Housing Audit is, CABE claims, the first complete analysis of the design quality of new homes nationwide.
It examines samples from the largest-volume housebuilders in the Midlands and South West, and integrates this analysis with data from the six other regions of England.
The result of this study is savage. Less than one in five developments were assessed as ‘good’ or ‘very good’, and 29 per cent were defined as so poor they should not have got planning permission in their current form.
Commenting on the results, CABE boss Richard Simmons said: ‘The government has put design quality at the heart of planning policy and the housing minister has called for a revolution in housing design.
‘But everyone in the industry has to take responsibility – planners, developers and designers alike. As it stands, consumers are getting a raw deal when it comes to the design of new housing.’
by Ed Dorrell AJPLUS 08022007
Maybe housebuyers should also take responsibility and say NO to poorly designed developments.