Fingers crossed this is a good one. Might put it on the birthday list!

I’m so sick of councils signing deals with these crappy quality, unsustainable noddy box makers but yelling MMC and claiming it’s therefore sustainable. And though I’ve purposefully avoided posting pics of the outside, it goes without saying they’re placeless lumps of non design.

A desire line is a desire line. Unless you somehow change / remove the linked destination points, this will always be a path. Forget the grass seed. Go for gravel or wood chip.

An example of ‘build on top’ in Sweden. A 1920s textile factory now has an additional 5 storeys constructed with timber. Big climate benefits incl. no demolition. More info en.tengbom.se/project/trikaf… & documented in waterstones.com/book/timber/pa… ⁦Agenda Publishing⁩ ⁦CEI-Bois⁩ ⁦

From time to time I’m reminded that I went through the entirety of architecture school without a single lecture on how to design a facade. Window placement, composition, typical materials etc. Always felt like a very odd thing to leave students to pick up on the job.

This appears to be the basis of the next government’s policy on heating, insulation and retrofit. Looking forward to seeing the detail, but hopefully this will reward clients trying to decarbonise their homes.

Problems with the planning system: a personal anecdote (thread). I’m trying to get an air to air heat pump (air con) installed at home, but I’m not sure whether I need planning permission or not. But as far as I can tell, there’s no way for me to find out…

I've written an article for Building Design setting out how a new The Labour Party government might go some way to achieving its promise of 1.5m homes by making it easier up intensify the suburbs of our cities. bdonline.co.uk/opinion/how-su…

architectsjournal.co.uk/news/opinion/w… “Will a new Labour government build more car-dependent urban sprawl?” Not all housing - or neighbourhoods - are the same. Labour could do huge damage by simply building more low density, low quality, inefficient sprawling suburbs.

What you’re looking at here is 105 homes, offices, shops and wild gardens. All the buildings are timber frame By A+Architecture + Hellin Sebbag Pirany Architectes, Montpellier

As ever, a depressing list if you don’t live in London/Cambridge. 1 project in the NE and NI, 2 in Scotland. Nothing for the NW/Wales. This isn’t about judging bias, it’s about regional inequality. “Revealed: All 26 RIBA National Award winners 2024” architectsjournal.co.uk/news/revealed-…

If it means that planning depts aren’t so under resourced that we wait weeks and months for a returned call or email, I think most clients would accept a larger planning fee. We shall see. “Householder planning application fees could be doubled” lgcplus.com/services/regen…

At a stroke this makes the job of so many architects vastly easier in terms of getting housing built. The weeks / months wrangling with planners who just want a facsimile of the house next door, gone. Not to mention that a truly low carbon house is unlikely to be clad in brick.

In 1945, Labour promised in its manifesto to nationalise not just key industries like coal and steel but land itself. The comprise in which land remains privately owned but the right to build was nationalised instead is a shadow of what could have been. theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

I suspect I’ll be on here less and less. I’ll probably spend a little more time here instead: Nick Simpson.bsky.social

*Most* of the English and Welsh Building Regulations are sensible and well thought out. Part O however - as well meaning as it is - needs to be updated ASAP.

If you’re interested in Passivhaus or construction in Scotland this is worth attending (online) if you can. The Scottish government is consulting on their ‘Passivhaus Equivalent’, with huge pressure to water it down. Please help keep the standard high! eventbrite.co.uk/e/last-chance-…

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