Planners respond to Government’s garden towns announcement

In response to the Government announcement today of a new garden communities programme to increase the number of in garden towns in England, Victoria Hills MRTPI, Chief Executive of the Royal Town Planning Institute, says: “The Government’s garden towns programme is... View Article

NFB: Social housing green paper does not go far enough

The National Federation of Builders (NFB) welcomes the papers approach to solving existing social housing problems but warns that proposed changes do not go far enough. The Government has published its social housing green paper, A new deal for social... View Article

BIM for offsite: what’s stopping you?

While the housebuilding industry is educating itself on the practicalities and application of offsite methods of construction, the real opportunity for housebuilders is in how offsite is utilising the latest software platforms. Robert Clark of Fusion Building Systems explains the... View Article
Why timber is the answer – Jeremy English of Sӧdra

Why timber is the answer

ADF caught up with Jeremy English of Sӧdra to discuss why he feels timber is the solution to the UK’s housing crisis, and how the material can help architects adopt less labour-intensive, offsite building techniques What do you see as... View Article

Engineering services trade bodies respond to Government Sector Deal

The Government’s newly announced Construction Sector Deal has been broadly backed by ECA, the electrotechnical and engineering services trade body, and the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA). Both bodies support the focus on more highly skilled apprenticeships, digital processes, and... View Article

Expert advice at the ExCeL

The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show returns to London in September, with essential advice on hand to help visitors build their dream property. According to the UK Land Registry, most of the publicly owned land available for new homes will... View Article

Elmhurst Energy welcomes Government call for evidence on EPCs

Elmhurst Energy, the energy performance assessment specialist has welcomed the Government’s latest call for evidence on better uses of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and is encouraging its members to respond. As requested in Elmhurst Energy’s 2018 Manifesto for Change the call for... View Article

Fastest rise in construction output since May 2017

UK construction companies achieved a stronger expansion of business activity levels during July, underpinned by the fastest increase in residential work for just over two-and-a-half years. The latest survey also indicated that new business growth gained momentum, which contributed to... View Article
Hogarth Architects Project: Open to ideas

Open to ideas

A project in south west London saw a firm of architects tackle a difficult commission to extend a listed former coach house, resulting in a dramatically open new addition. The owners of a terraced house in leafy Barnes, in the... View Article

Making stairs grand again

Jarrod Matthews of Jarrods Staircases is passionate about the potential to elevate staircases to an art form. He explains why creating the perfect staircase should be a priority, not an afterthought. Ioften refer to the space where the staircase sits... View Article
Weston Williamson + Partners

Practice Profile: Weston Williamson + Partners

Now big players in the transport and master planning sectors, Weston Williamson + Partners have helped shape infrastructure across London and the wider UK, with major clients including Crossrail and HS2. Sébastien Reed speaks to partners Chris Williamson and Philip... View Article
New toolkit for better quality – Nigel Ostime, Hawkins\Brown | Hawkins\Brown Architects – ADF interviews Nigel Ostime

View Point – Nigel Ostime from Hawkins\Brown

Nigel Ostime of Hawkins\Brown Architects and chair of the RIBA Client Liaison Group, says that without measuring feedback, architects can’t improve Manufacturers ask for feedback as a matter of routine and use it to improve their products in the next... View Article

Comment on Lidl push into mixed-use development

Russell Pedley, director and co-founder at Assael Architecture, said: “Blending retail use classes with residential is going to become increasingly vital in urban locations throughout the UK. Lidl’s plan to deliver 3,000 homes is testimony to the shifting approach to... View Article

High end, high tech

Ion Smith of Cyberhomes discusses how smart home tech can be seamlessly incorporated into luxury home designs. It’s not that many years ago that smart home technology was available only to high-end luxury homes; but walk into any high street... View Article
Natural stone

Keep it natural

Lee Dunderdale of Bradstone delves into the plethora of hard landscaping materials for delivering a dream garden, and explains why natural stone is the perfect choice. When it comes to building your own house, garden landscaping often becomes one of... View Article

Whistleblowers

The BBA is a well-known and respected certification body which, through its testing, inspection and approval activity, has been supporting innovation in the construction products industry for more than 50 years. Where anyone has concern about a BBA-certificated product or... View Article