Make room outside

David Coleman of Oak Timber Structures explains why the inclusion of an oak gazebo in the garden can add huge value to a property for the long term, and discusses the considerations to bear in mind With fewer people moving... View Article

Taking an alternative route to drainage

When building or renovating a home with no connection to mains drainage for the disposal of sewage, alternative options have to be considered. Burnham Environmental Services’ Mark Newbery explains further The UK currently has four different environmental regulators for surface... View Article

Debunking underfloor heating myths

According to Nigel Sanger of JG Speedfit, many self-builders and property developers are still cautious about installing underfloor heating (UFH) due to rumour and hearsay. Here he dispels the four most common myths Demand for underfloor heating (UFH) is rising,... View Article

A home for life

Mike Lord of Stiltz explains why more and more self-builders are choosing to future-proof their homes by including a ‘homelift’ Building your dream home can be a fantastically rewarding process. This is why, according to studies by the National Custom... View Article

The importance of being energy efficient

Chris Stanley of The Concrete Block Association (CBA) on improving thermal efficiency in modern housing. According to a recent survey by Energy Saving Trust, nearly 90 per cent of those who completed a home improvement of some kind also made... View Article

View Point – David de Sousa of AHR Architects

Britain is in the midst of a housing crisis; it’s an obvious fact, without an obvious solution. In the 2017 budget, the Government set a target of delivering 300,000 new homes per year by 2020. While there has been an... View Article

A quiet place

Steve Smith of Knauf Insulation explains why a happier, healthier home starts with a quiet building. With people living in closer proximity to industry, infrastructure and each other than ever before, it’s no surprise that complaints about noise are rising.... View Article

Brexit and beyond

John Whalley, Managing Director of Nationwide Windows & Doors, leading fenestration partner to social housing landlords, looks at how RSLs and property managers can try to mitigate at least some of the uncertainties surrounding Brexit At the time of writing,... View Article

Blue sky thinking on resilience

Mark Harris of Radmat Building Products explains why the UK needs to increase the uptake of blue roofs and make a major contribution to flood risk alleviation There is no quick fix for flood risks. Sustainable drainage strategies contribute to... View Article

Holistic design takes centre stage

Following on from a raft of recent research that makes a clear connection between the built environment and health and wellbeing, David Cook of Vent-Axia discusses the new Government White Paper on the crucial effect of building design Health and... View Article

Peer-to-peer: Do your research

Jason Tebb of Go Develop explains how recent issues with peer-to-peer lending have highlighted the need to do research when funding a new project. Peer-to-peer lending (P2P) continues to be an extremely popular solution for companies that are looking for... View Article

Versatility meets sustainability

Clean, classic, green, award-winning – what’s not to like about insulated render? Aliva UK’s Justin Price explains why it ticks all the boxes when it comes to modern facade design Given that more than a third of the heat in... View Article

Mainstreaming modular

Richard Hyams of astudio describes how architects can use modular offsite construction to deliver good quality housing schemes with rich community benefits The adoption of modular construction techniques is rapidly accelerating in the UK. Policymakers have realised the benefits of... View Article

Compliance can no longer be ignored

Yvonne Orgill of the Bathroom Manufacturers Association (BMA) says attitudes to compliance are changing, and housebuilders and developers cannot ignore their responsibilities to protect consumers when specifying bathroom products. Last year, the tragedy of Grenfell Tower highlighted the potential worst-case... View Article

Using data to boost building safety post-Grenfell

By Nicola Brown, Director of housing technology solutions provider ROCC In our lives, it seems we are inundated with a deluge of data. In housing, we have been conscious for some time now of Big Data sets, with software providers... View Article

Door closers create safer homes

With fire safety high on the agenda, Dr Lloyd Blewett of Samuel Heath investigates the potential of door closers for social housing The tragic events of last year have, understandably, brought the fire safety spotlight on to the social housing... View Article

How to add smart value to homes

Paul Hilditch of Systemline explains how smart technology can add value to new build homes, revealing the key elements housebuilders and developers should consider when choosing products, and the challenges to address. Technology is rapidly advancing to meet consumer demand... View Article

The efficiency checklist

When specifying heating systems, housebuilders need to take a variety of considerations into account to ensure that they can produce maximum efficiency returns from developments. Bill Jones of Potterton advises on best practice. The integration of an appropriate heating system... View Article