ROOF Blog

New publicly funded homes built in the London will have to comply with minimum internal space standard major Boris Johnson said. The London housing design guide established six key areas of design that new development will have to incorporate from 2011, including minimum space standards around 10 per cent higher than the Parker Morris benchmark, better integration of developments with the space around them and to reduce crime; and a greater mix of dwelling types to care for London’s diverse living needs.

An independent report has found that a government programme providing housing support to vulnerable and homeless people has resulted in ‘significant’ savings in the cost of other services. The report said the £1.6 billion invested through Supporting People has saved other services more than £3.4 billion through reduced costs in homelessness, tenancy failure, crime, health and residential care. It has also lead to other benefits including reducing the risk of social exclusion, increasing educational chances for children and improving the quality of life for vulnerable people.

The National Landlords’ Association is warning landlords on the dangers of cannabis factories in their rental properties, adding they have a responsibility to make sure they are aware of what is going on inside their property. The NLA says the damage caused to a property used as a cannabis farm can be ‘catastrophic’ with internal walls removed, and repairs running into tens of thousands of pounds.

A study into the effects of CCTV indicate that it has little significant impact on crime levels on housing estates, and in fact may increase offences by giving victims a ‘false sense of security’. The review found that the cameras had the best impact in cutting break-ins in car parks which are well lit and have attendants on duty. It also reported on the ‘huge’ cost of installing the cameras, finding CCTV spending accounted for 75 per cent of the Home Office crime prevention budget in the last decade.

A House of Commons’ select committee has warned that the state is failing in its duty to act as a parent to children in care by not protecting them from sexual exploitation, homelessness and crime. In its report the children, schools and family committee calls for a radical overhaul of the system to ensure that the most vulnerable children get the services they require. It says that concerns for the happiness and welfare of the 60,000 children in care should be at the heart of the system and that government is ‘too timid’ in demanding that health services and the criminal justice and asylum systems give special consideration to looked-after children.

A parliamentary joint select committee on human rights has warned that an increasing number of vulnerable people could become homeless under the new Policing and Crime Bill. The Bill will introduce powers to close brothels and curb antisocial behaviour by giving police the power to direct a child as young as 10 to leave an area without talking into account their safety or where they will go. The committee says the proposals risk criminalising rather than protecting some of the most vulnerable members of society.

Meanwhile, the Bank of England today will start pumping in to the economy newly created money, as it buys £2 billion in gilts in an effort to boost the economy. The bank said it would initially pump £75 billion into the economy via twice-weekly auctions, but has permission to create another £75 billion if it needs to. Governor of the bank, Mervyn King, said the bank will do this until the lending markets become ‘unglued’ again. It is the first time the UK’s central bank has used the policy. A somewhat tongue in cheek petition has also started to rename the term ‘quantitative easing’ with ‘queasing’.