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Application form
Please make sure you have read all the notes carefully before you start to fill in the application form. This application form can either be completed by hand or electronically - it is available on the Planning homepage at www.scotland.gov.uk/planning. Please complete all five sections. The deadline for submitting applications is 29 August 2007. An acknowledgement letter will be sent to the person who has completed this form.
1 Please provide a name and contact details of the lead organisation responsible for this work.
Name | John Rosser |
Job title | Planning Officer |
Organisation | Edinburgh City Council |
Address | Planning and Strategy, City Development Department, Waverley
Court, 4 East Market Street, Edinburgh, EH8 8BG |
Telephone | 0131 469 3762 / 0131 469 3664 |
Fax | 0131 529 6205 |
Email | john.rosser@edinburgh.gov.uk |
2 If this is a joint application, please list the other partners who had a key role. You should also inform your partners that you are nominating the project for an award.
3 Tick one nomination category
Title of entry | The Edinburgh Standards for Sustainable Building |
Please complete the form on the following pages by providing a brief summary of the piece of work you have entered. You must also conclude with a key reason as to why you think this work merits an Award. Only the two A4 pages supplied here can be used and your text must fit within the boxes. The font size should be no less than 12pt.
The judging criteria are set out below. Please tick only the key criteria relevant to your entry:
You must describe, in your written submission, how the criteria which you have ticked relate to your project.
Description of project
As part of the Edinburgh Standards suite (innovation) the Planning Committee required the preparation of the Edinburgh Standards for Sustainable Building ( ESSB) as supplementary planning guidance. The Guidance is a major initiative in Edinburgh's response to National Policy which identifies Planning as an increasingly important gateway to achieving sustainable development objectives. Preparation included wide consultation (community interest and satisfaction). The Guidance requires all 'major' planning applications to include a Sustainability Statement Form demonstrating how the proposal addresses six principles of sustainable design best practice (professional knowledge). Each principle includes a range of standards which, if met, gain points which count towards approval. Two standards relating to energy efficiency and on site renewable energy generation are mandatory. The Standards are implemented by a Sustainable Development Team (management) and impact on significant development taking place in Edinburgh (regeneration). |
Describe the background to the project
There is increasing urgency in tackling climate change internationally. The Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006 confirms achieving sustainable development as one of the key roles of the Planning system. An emphasis on renewable energy generation is supported by SPP6 and PAN 45. The Building Standards (Scotland) Act, amended 2006 includes new methodologies for the assessment of C02 emissions and the role renewables can play in their reduction. The new Council HQ Office tested 135 aspects of sustainable design, including passive design, recycled content of materials, sustainable sourcing, solar water heating, rain water attenuation, water saving and reuse and site waste management plans. The new HQ helped to inform the choice of standards and give experience in their implementation. |
What are the aims and objectives of the project?
It is the Council's City Vision to lead the most successful and sustainable city region in Northern Europe by 2015. The aim of the ESSB is to introduce a step change on the ground in the way buildings, which contribute 50% of C02 emissions, are designed, built and operated to improve their sustainability. It will have a real and significant impact for on site generation and renewable energy technologies to the development sector, one of the biggest energy users in the country. The ESSB also contribute towards well designed, healthy and inclusive environments and the development of a low carbon economy, so continuing national policy themes. The policy is reinforced by highlighting the benefits of the approach, by recognising contributions already being made and by rewarding implementation of emerging best practice. |
Over what timescale has the project been developed?
Following an inception workshop to explore approaches the Working Group (see next) included in the ESSB preparation the trial experience gained in the HQ design. The first draft was submitted to the Planning Committee in January 2006 seeking approval for consultation with some 700 organisations and individuals. The responses were largely very supportive. A final report was submitted in October 2006 seeking approval with a formal launch of the illustrated publication in February 2007. This was followed by workshops and training sessions for the industry and Council staff. A delayed implementation date of May 2007 had been set to coincide with the introduction of new C02 calculation methodologies contained in amended Building Standards and to give the industry time to prepare. |
Explain the process and action taken
A wide range of representatives were invited to a first workshop to identify the issues. Progress was then steered by a short life Working Group chaired by Planning including colleagues from Building Standards and the Sustainable Development Unit. Input was also received from the Edinburgh Sustainable Development Partnership, Changeworks and the workshop members. The draft Standards were subject to public consultation and two special workshops were held between Members on the Planning Committee and staff. A new Sustainable Development Team was set up to advise developers on the new requirements in some 200 'major' applications per year and assess the accompanying Sustainability Statement Forms. It produced the ESSB as a 'customer friendly' publication and set up training seminars before the system went 'live'. |
Explain the role of the key partners
The policy approach to sustainable development is a field that has been changing rapidly. This brings with it new forms of contacts and relationships. It involves calling on specialist advice as well as developing corporate perspectives, coupling political priorities with technical good practice and influencing short term imperatives to adjust to long term perspectives. This can be seen in the processes identified in the last section and special acknowledgement is made in the report to those who helped. It can be seen, for example, in developing closer relationships between Planning and Building Standards. This led to the introduction of the ESSB on the same day as the new Building Standards and continues through the supportive roles the two services play in providing a co-ordinated response to applicants. |
What results were achieved?
The policy has been completed, approved, published and widely disseminated and is now being implemented by the new Sustainable Development Team within Planning and Strategy. It was informed by the Council's own new office development which has now been separately recognised in sustainable design awards. The ESSB are embodied in the Development Plan formulation and in a close working relationship with Building Standards and the Sustainable Development Unit. It is anticipated that up to 200 planning applications per year will require Sustainability Statements. A Sustainable Buildings Award will be set up to encourage more sustainable development. The ESSB make a significant contribution to the Council's City Vision and the Scottish Climate Change Charter. |
In summary, why does this piece of work merit an Award?
Edinburgh is one of the first Scottish Planning Authorities to introduce Sustainability Standards and implement them through Development Plans and Development Management. The Standards have been developed in a corporate context and 'tested' in the Council's own new office development. They are clear, measurable and practical and set out in a standard Statement Form offering consistency to developers whilst also giving transparency of assessment by Planning. The contribution of the ESSB to increasing sustainable development has been recognised by a range of environmental and building professionals and is attracting wide spread public interest. Over time they will make a major impact in producing developments which are more sustainable, make C02 reduction a guiding principle and help to deliver national targets in the effort to combat climate change. The ESSB provide a true example of Patrick Geddes' maxim "think global and act local". |
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