By Ian Babelon A new-old concept for proximity “Are we there yet?” Parents may patiently nod to their children’s insistent nudges on a 20-minute journey to… somewhere. Quite rightly, researchers have asked: twenty minutes to what? The answer may well […]
Following the adoption of National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) at the end of February, the Scottish planning system and planning services are dealing with transitioning to a development plan system without statutory supplementary guidance and where the relationship to current […]
By Ian Babelon In the first part of two blog posts, published on 22 May, Ian Babelon provided examples of good practice in retrofitting social housing. The second part of this blog post looks at estate-wide and area-wide social housing […]
Today sees the start of Community Garden Week 2023. Across the UK, communities will be celebrating the many and varied types of community gardens, from children’s and neighbourhood gardens to therapy gardens and allotments. The benefits of community gardens are […]
In the first of two blog posts, published on Monday, Ian Babelon, Applications Consultant at Idox, reflected on what he has learned about public engagement within planning and digital participation platforms over the course of his career and ten years of […]
The Scottish planning system and planning services are in the midst of a period of significant change at the moment, both as a result of strategic reforms and the transition away from the temporary changes to planning operations which were […]
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has estimated that over 1 billion people are living with some form of disability worldwide – that’s about 15% of the world’s total population. And, with trends in life expectancy and the prevalence of chronic […]
In May 2020, Google-affiliated Sidewalk Labs abruptly cancelled its smart city vision for Toronto’s waterfront, citing that “unprecedented economic uncertainty” created by the pandemic had made the project unachievable. Named ‘Quayside’, the venture proposed a 12-acre development of sleek apartments […]
A recent survey by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) in July 2021 aimed to gauge UK public awareness of the planning profession. The results suggested a significant disconnect between the public perception of planning, the scope of professions in […]
The Knowledge Exchange publishes a bi-monthly journal covering all aspects of planning and environmental law in Scotland. SPEL Journal (Scottish Planning & Environmental Law) launched over 30 years ago and is one of the leading information sources on land use […]