The Council has approved the new ‘Quality Housing in Hounslow: A Vision’ document to improve the quality of new homes built in the borough.
Published: Monday, 24th July 2023
Hounslow Council’s Cabinet has approved London’s first borough-specific housing design document to be delivered as part of the Mayor of London’s Delivering Quality Homes initiative.
There is an increasing demand for council housing as the cost of living increases, but a shortage of quality homes, at genuinely affordable rents. The ‘Quality Housing in Hounslow: A Vision’ document will support and guide the Councils ambitious housebuilding and estate regeneration programme to tackle the housing crisis.
Developed through extensive engagement with key stakeholders - including residents - the document is rooted in the needs of our communities and will improve the quality of new homes built by the Council or its partners.
The document will act as a practical tool, guiding those designing and developing homes in the Borough with clear prompts towards high-quality housebuilding outcomes. The document can be utilised at any stage of a housing project’s lifecycle to evaluate whether the scheme is meeting Hounslow’s definition of quality homes.
The Hounslow-specific housing design quality guidance will focus on five key themes to ensure exemplary housebuilding that will enrich the lives of residents for generations to come. The themes are:
- Fulfilling Homes.
- Thriving Neighbourhoods.
- Empowered Communities.
- Inclusive Shared Spaces.
- Future-proof Buildings.
Councillor Tom Bruce, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Development at Hounslow Council said:
“Hounslow, like the rest of London, is experiencing an acute shortage of decent affordable housing.
“This vision embodies our commitment to provide safe, healthy homes for residents. It also sets a clear benchmark for what we expect from developers and housing associations when they are presenting their plans to us.
“Quality housing plays a vital role in boosting residents' wellbeing and helping them live fulfilling lives in thriving communities, and we will continue to strive to deliver this for them.”
The Deputy Mayor of London for Housing and Residential Development, Tom Copley, added:
“Good quality housing is key to building a better, fairer London for everyone. That is why the Mayor and I are proud that London is delivering record numbers of genuinely affordable homes, including getting work started on more new council homes than at any time since the 1970s.
“We know that Londoners will judge the response to our city’s housing crisis not just on how many new homes we build, but on the quality of those homes too, so I’m delighted to see Hounslow setting out this vision for high-quality housing in their borough.”
The document goes beyond existing local and national policy and urges any stakeholder involved in the delivery of housing to assess their projects against a broad set of criteria covering everything from local identity to passive environmental design.
Read the Quality Housing in Hounslow: A Vison document in full here.
