East Suffolk Council
East Suffolk Backs Better Building Standards
East Suffolk Council is proud to be the latest Local Authority to join the Good Homes Alliance’s ‘Local Authority and Housing Association Network’.
The Local Authority and Housing Association Network represents a growing number of councils who recognise that building standards at a national level can advance still further, providing healthier, more affordable and environmentally-sound dwellings.
Building Regulations and the planning system provide a framework for ensuring that today’s new homes are increasingly more energy efficient, and that they are designed and built to support our health and wellbeing. However, the network provides a resource for councils to consider the potential of new technologies and approaches that could be taken towards higher standards.
Cllr Stephen Molyneux, Deputy Cabinet Member for Planning and Coastal Management, said:
“This is a really exciting development that I’m very proud to be part of. Here in the UK, our approach to energy efficiency in buildings lags behind our European counterparts and the Local Authority and Housing Association Network is a brilliant vehicle for developing a critical mass of councils to campaign for better national standards and take immediate steps to enable progress at a local level.
“East Suffolk Council is also currently producing a ‘Developer’s Charter’ to encourage further sustainability improvements in new housing development. These actions, alongside recognition for our award-winning Building Control team, position East Suffolk among the trailblazing councils who want to go above and beyond for local residents.”
East Suffolk Council has also made the case for improved standards in its response to the Government’s draft consultation on the National Planning Policy Framework.
Cllr Molyneux added:
“We have ambitions above the national minimum requirement and champion exemplary approaches such as Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) ‘Whole Life Carbon Standard 2nd Edition’. Our response to the consultation also reflects our support for other councils which are developing policies to effectively deliver net zero at a local level.”