Higher National Certificate in Housing

Year 2 - Planning and Devloping Housing

PDH101: Development Strategies

This first block in the Unit on Development Strategies will set the strategic context in which housing development is undertaken.

The first section looks at National Planning Policy strategies and explains what the planning system is and how it controls the location of housing. It also briefly
considers the historical development and the ‘plan led’ system.

The second section reviews the development plan system, including the role of development plans, and the different types of plans and what they cover. The section
also looks at the relatively recent addition of a regional planning dimension to complement the existing local and county level development plan structures.

Having obtained an overview of the development planning system, the third section examines the various development motives and perspectives of local authorities, RSLs and private developers. This leads into a discussion about the concepts of neighbourhood and community and what these mean for housing design
and development. We then turn to examine the many different regeneration programmes and partnerships and their effectiveness.

The fourth and fifth sections round off the block by considering housing needs surveys and the use of housing needs data, respectively. The fourth section
concentrates on defining and classifying housing needs, and approaches to identifying needs through surveys and waiting lists. The fifth and final section highlights the way in which public and private sector developers use
housing need data in making their development decisions. The motives and perspectives of developers with regard to markets, profits, affordability and needs are all covered.

View PDH101: Development Strategies as a pdf document

PDH102: Housing Development: Overview and Constraints

This second block in the unit on housing development is intended to give you an overview of development opportunities and the constraints which govern housing
developments.

The first section covers housing design types, placing housing design and construction in their historical and social contexts. It also looks at some of the key economic and political factors which have affected housing development in Britain from the pre-1919 period through to the present day.

The second section focuses on new build development and sets out the pros and cons of undertaking new build as opposed to other forms of development, as well as what sways developers towards new build schemes. There is a discussion of the relative costs, timescales and value for money of new build schemes as a way of understanding what is entailed. The section finishes off with a discussion of the opportunities for involving future residents in the design and development of new
build schemes.

The third section turns to the redevelopment of housing through rehabilitation, conversion and subdivison schemes. Following a similar format to the previous
section, we look at the relative costs, timescales and value for money of new build schemes as a way of understanding what is entailed in these schemes. There
is a brief section on tenant involvement, building on the discussion in the previous section on new build.

The fourth section covers developing for groups with specific needs and begins with a general discussion of equal opportunities and development. The role of the
community architecture movement in helping people to influence the design and development of housing to better meet their needs is then explored through case
study examples. The housing design needs of people who receive care in the community are considered next, as are those for older people, people with disabilities and people with multiple needs.

The fifth and final section concentrates on what designs are realistically possible, and describes the controls, constraints, standards and the received wisdom of social sciences and psychology which all contribute to the eventual outcome of housing design within the current political, social and economic climate.

View PDH102: Housing Development: Overview and Constraints as a pdf document

PDH103: The Development Process

In the previous two Blocks of this unit you have examined development policies and strategies, including the development planning system, and the main constraints
and influences on the design and development of dwellings.

In this Block, we move on to look at the process of constructing properties. You will discover the main parties involved in the development process, their roles, and the key stages in the process of getting dwellings built.

This is not a simple process, and by the end of this Block, you will understand why it takes such a long time to provide new houses for customers. You will also understand why there are so many different people involved in the process, and what their roles are.

This will enable you to understand what occurs at each stage in the development process, and to be able to monitor the progress of a construction scheme, from
inception to completion.

As you work through the Block, you will be following the progress of a new build scheme, which was constructed for Phoenix Housing Association. This is referred to throughout as “the case study”.

View PDH103: The Development Process as a pdf document