We will not solve the UK housing crisis without millions more homes but this places heritage in conflict with the green belt because both stand in the way of new supply; so, how do we reduce these impacts? In NFB’s ‘Community Density’ campaign, we have a solution.

‘Community Density’ is not soulless high rise structures for the sake of meeting housing need but instead, they are buildings and sites designed with community need at their core. A vision of mini-towns created and enjoyed primarily by local residents but also playing a role in satisfying regional needs or creating iconic landscapes.

In simple planning terms, ‘Community Density’ is guided by local authorities’ development expectations for a site, such as: roof garden, renewable energy, commonhold, duplex and family apartments, underground parking, commercial, and service spaces. If the proposed development includes them all, therefore reflecting community needs, the project will be granted planning permission.

This will ensure that land, especially brownfield, is used to its fullest and placemaking is at the heart of the development process, thus giving local people confidence that projects are delivering for them. 

For large heritage buildings, often used as commercial spaces, it means fewer will be at risk of demolishment or they can be incorporated into a larger regeneration project. And for smaller heritage buildings, such as rows of heritage homes which some view as wasting space, Community Density ensures the pressure to demolish and replace is far less of a temptation.

However, dense new projects can also incorporate heritage imagery and give a nod to British history by designing buildings and spaces which remember and recognise them. For example, London’s global shipping, Birmingham’s automotive sector or Manchester’s textile dominance.

As we build more, and not just housing, there should be a recognition of what came before, and we should not waste an opportunity to use architecture as a tool to educate or celebrate the past. This increases the awareness of our built environments heritage and serves as a reason to keep more of it.

The pressure to build, not just houses but places, is not abating and so we need to find away to change that, We believe Community Density is one of those opportunities.

Rico Wojtulewicz, Head of Policy and Market Insight at NFB.