Houses and our housing needs have never been more apparent in the media. Weekly, the newspaper headlines reflect the current housing boom and quote increases in property value of as much as 30% a year. Endless television programmes show how you too can make money from your home and how to find that idyllic little retreat in the countryside, with that room with a view.

In rural areas and in National Parks especially, the impact of extortionate house prices is compounded by low wages and the pressures from in-migration, as a result, local people, especially young people, are unable to buy or even rent a house within their local communities. The problems are all too familiar and the key question remains the same, how can our local rural housing needs be resolved?

Concerned about the future provision of affordable housing in National Parks and rural areas, CPRW, in partnership with the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority, commissioned a study by the Design Research Unit of the Welsh School of Architecture, to investigate the feasibility of developing sustainable housing in protected areas.

The Feasibility study of Sustainable Housing in Protected Areas defined the requirements of sustainable housing as:

‘Sustainable housing should ensure a better quality of life, not just for now, but also for future generations. It should combine the protection of the environment, sensible use of natural resources, economic growth and social progress, whilst conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage.’

A definition of sustainable housing, although a useful starting point, does not assist policy decision-makers, housing designers and developers to translate the concept of sustainable housing into practice. The feasibility study developed a ‘rough and ready reckoner’ measuring tool to provide an indication of the sustainability of housing developments. The technique scores a development in relation to its use of resources, pollution impact, biodiversity, living conditions and affordability, with the total score giving a rough indication of the level of sustainability. It is impossible to combine all measures relative to sustainable housing in one measuring tool. However, the rough and ready reckoner provides an easy method that will give a quick indication for practitioners, which would be especially useful for making an assessment at the early stage of developments.

Design quality is one example of a measure, which is nearly impossible to quantify and incorporate into a sustainability measuring tool, and yet it is an essential consideration in assessing the sustainability of a development. Housing must be designed and sensitively located within the context of the local landscape to contribute towards creating a sense of a place, which is central to maintaining the essence of our National Parks and rural areas. As the report states ‘Why should protected and rural areas continue to be treaded as an extension of the suburbs?’ The type of housing developed is also important, with the typical monoculture ‘executive style’ homes developed being completely at odds with the housing needs of the local community. One of the misconceptions of sustainable housing developments it that they cost substantially higher than the minimum standards required by current Building Regulations. In the short term this may be the case, but when the environmental benefit is added to the building lifecycle cost, then sustainable housing is by far the most cost effective. In fact many sustainable housing measures can be provided at little or no extra cost if incorporated at the design stage. These include the correct orientation to maximise solar gain and minimise heat loss and the reuse and recycling of materials and resources. Other measures, for example photo-voltaic arrays can add 10 to 15% on the build costs.

In the development of sustainable communities the need for housing to be linked to local services and employment opportunities is essential. The feasibility report highlighted the need to consider work-live units as a means of reducing the transport needs, together with other shared facilities, such as pool cars.

The planning system is often held responsible for allowing a limited supply of housing to be built in rural areas and in our National Parks. In reality, the planning system possesses many of the tools for providing affordable housing, but those tools are not, at present extensively used. This was the major conclusion of A Source of Contention – Affordable Housing in Rural Wales, a report produced by the Institute of Welsh Affairs. The study looked at housing policies and issues in the three Welsh National Parks and in Ceredigion also highlighted the need for up-to-date housing needs assessment as the background to policy decisions. Amongst others of the report recommendations were the need for closer links between housing and planning authorities, clearer policies on planning for the Welsh language and further research into low home cost ownership schemes.

Affordability is another key consideration in the provision of sustainable housing. The Countryside Agency has developed an index for affordability which sets affordable housing as being housing costs of up to 33% of an individual’s earned income. Well- qualified graduates with an income of £30,000 would fall outside of the affordability index in many parts of rural Wales, and especially those living within certain areas of our National Parks. The National Assembly Government has established initiatives such as the Assembly Homebuy and Shared Ownership schemes that have made a positive contribution in offering low cost home ownership. However, the schemes, although more funding has been made available, are not adequately funded and cannot resolve the lack in the provision of local affordable housing in isolation.

What is needed is an integrated approach to the assessment and provision of housing in rural communities. The Rural Housing Enabler Scheme has been striving to develop partnerships between communities, local authorities and housing associations to form an individual strategic approach to meet the housing needs of individual communities in areas of England for some time. Funding has now been secured to establish the first Rural Housing Enabler Pilot project in Wales across South Powys and North Monmouthshire. The aim of the Rural Housing Enabler is to help identify rural housing needs, undertake mapping exercises, assist partnership working and act as an independent broker to help overcome obstacles to increasing the provision of affordable housing provision, where it is needed. Dependant on the success of the pilot project, the Rural Housing Enablers Scheme could show an integrated way ahead for the provision of housing in the future across rural Wales.

Another innovative approach to providing low cost home ownership, Community Land Trusts, was debated at a recent conference ‘Land for People’ organised by a group of interested organisations, including CPRW. A Community Land Trust owns land in perpetuity for the benefit of a community and the people living or working there. Co-operative housing and affordable housing can be built under the Community Trust system that would be held in trust infinitely by the community, creating a tailored grass root approach to meeting the housing needs of individual communities. The ‘Land for People’ conference explored the possibilities of engaging in community land ownership and development, and shared knowledge and experiences of the potential of Community Trusts from existing schemes. Following the conference a working group has been established to take the concept of Community Land Trusts forward in Wales. The common thread that runs through the results of The Feasibility Study of Sustainable Housing in Protected Areas, the IWA report, A Source of Contention, Affordable Housing in Rural Wales and the ‘Land for People’ Conference is the need for integration and partnership between policies, practitioners and communities in determining the future provision of affordable housing. The National Assembly Environment, Planning and Countryside Committee has established an inquiry to consider the effectiveness of current planning policies in supporting the provision of affordable housing and sustainable communities and to make recommendations for the development of policy in this area. One thing that’s for certain, is that the planning system cannot provide a solution in isolation. Let us hope that the inquiry will be the beginning for the development of a joined up approach, so that progress can start to be made, where individual policies have not been effective in the past.	Sustainable housing in Protected Areas : A feasibility study Executive Summary
	Design Research Unit Welsh School of Architecture Cardiff University For Brecon Beacons National Park Authority Campaign for Protection of Rural Wales

Helen Mrowiec

The Feasibility Study of Sustainable Housing in Protected Areas can be downloaded from this website

A Source of Contention, Affordable Housing in Rural Wales is available from the Institute of Welsh Affairs 029 2057 5511 cost £10.00, £1.50 p&p.