Policy information sourced from the Biggleswade Neighbourhood Plan

BPD1: Sustainable Design

  1. Development must create sustainable and locally distinctive places, meeting the following requirements of this policy, proportionate to the scale and nature of the development.
  2. Development must complement the townscape character of the local context in terms of:
    • scale, massing and degree of set-back of building frontages from the road.
    • the predominant height of buildings.
    • in residential areas, the established pattern of front and rear gardens.
  3. Higher buildings may be supported in appropriate locations around the Town Centre, outside of the Biggleswade Conservation Area, providing they comprise exceptional design quality.
  4. Development involving new roads or paths must create a clear hierarchy of streets of varied widths and surface treatments, attractive safe and convenient for pedestrians and suitable for people with limited mobility, and clearly defined public spaces capable of supporting social interaction.
  5. The layout of development must create good pedestrian permeability and safe routes for cyclists within the site, and convenient connections to surrounding paths, facilities, public transport services and routes to the Town Centre.
  6. Development must be designed to create safe environments, including provision of active frontages (with windows) to overlook streets and public spaces and provide natural surveillance.
  7. Building materials must be durable and have a high standard of finish and use of local, reclaimed, recycled or green materials will be supported.
  8. Development must include positive design and landscape features to reduce carbon impact and achieve biodiversity net gain, as required by policy BGS1.
  9. Creative and innovative design that adds to the architectural quality and diversity of the area will be supported, especially where it incorporates superior environmental performance and design and landscape features to reduce carbon impacts and create biodiversity net gain.
  10. New housing should be sufficiently spaced to allow for essential maintenance to be undertaken.
  11. Hard surfaces should be designed and landscaped to provide good visual quality and should be permeable to allow surface water to soak into the ground.

For more information, please visit the Biggleswade Neighbourhood Plan