Dr Halima Sacranie, Director of Housing Research, Centre for the New Midlands and Nicola Bacon, Founding Director, Social Life

England has had a Decent Homes Standard for 25 years which has served as clear, enforceable minimum for the quality of the home. While there are many aspirational design guides and frameworks, there’s no equivalent quality standard for the neighbourhood: the shared unit of place that connects homes and communities and where everyday life happens. There’s no clear standard setting out what level of safety, social infrastructure or opportunity a neighbourhood should offer; and accountability for neighbourhood quality is fragmented between agencies, with no single agency responsible for taking action when services and infrastructure fall short and place-based inequalities exacerbate disadvantage and stifle opportunity.

Read the full article from HQM here.