Government extends eco-towns consultation deadline

Housing minister Margaret Beckett announced that the deadline for responses was to be extended to 30 April in order to give local residents more time to respond to the consultation.

Beckett said: “I know this is an issue that raises a lot of strong opinion on all sides. I have extended the deadline to ensure that all parties, irrespective of their views, are given the full opportunity to have their say, and I urge everyone to respond to this consultation.”

The extension follows the release of the full High Court written judgment on the Judicial Review on eco-towns, which the government won on all grounds.

The standards for eco-towns proposed in the draft Planning Policy Statement include:

• Achieving zero carbon status across all the town's buildings, including commercial and public buildings as well as homes - a significantly tougher threshold than any existing or agreed targets
• Allocating 40 per cent of the area within the town to be green space, at least half of which should be open to the public as parks or recreation areas
• Requiring individual homes to reach the Building for Life silver standard and also achieve 70% carbon savings above current building regulations in terms of heating, hot water and lighting
• Providing a minimum of 30% affordable housing to provide more homes for social rent and assist those struggling to get on the housing ladder
• Creating more options for travel so that residents are able to make the majority of their journeys without a car, such as by public transport, walking and cycling
• Ensuring a minimum of one job per house can be reached by walking, cycling or public transport to reduce dependence on the car
• Locating homes within 10 minutes’ walk of frequent public transport and everyday neighbourhood services
• Raising the threshold for individual homes so that they must all achieve at least level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, which includes standards for household waste recycling, construction waste, water efficiency measures and reduced pollution

The full Planning Policy Statement can be found at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/ppsecotowns .

To respond to the consultation, visit: http://ecotownsyoursay.direct.gov.uk/, and for a new animated video of what eco-towns might look like is also now available at: http://ecotownsyoursay.direct.gov.uk/what-is-an-eco-town/video//.