Education from primary through to professional education; engaging with the public and skilling up decision makers

Changing the culture of planning and improving the everyday environment by making the ordinary better

Our built environment past, present and future

Global exchange and the value of good design

Leadership and place-based policies inside and outside of government

4. ECONOMIC BENEFITS

How can the government help to promote our expertise globally?

This is the century of city making on a scale never seen before. Global urbanisation is such that an amount of development equivalent to a city the size of Birmingham will be built approximately every week to accommodate the growing urban population, and we must position ourselves to capitalise on this extraordinary building boom. We are world leaders in sustainable city making and we should do more to promote our built environment professions globally, particularly as most of the dramatic growth and change taking place in the 21st century will be focused on the urban environment. Many things flow from the relationships that are formed as a result of high-profile built environment projects and competitions, including the “soft power” and influence that comes from international engagement at the highest level. Ministers should provide official endorsements for built environment professionals working on high-profile projects overseas and recognise the soft power it brings. Relationships are formed with chief executives and city leaders, and our government and Ministers should support these efforts more.

How does architecture contribute to UK PLC?

Building design should be recognised by government as closely connected to manufacturing in order to acknowledge the export value to UK plc. It is more than just a transactional service like finance or insurance as it leads to engineering, construction and “making things” in the same way as product design. In the same spirit of connectedness as new and old in the heritage debate, design and construction are not “either/or” any more. The government’s UK Trade & Investment department (UKTI) should restructure the way it supports the built environment professions so they are not separated into creative industries and construction. UKTI could organise a “Global Built Environment Forum” with representatives from the PLACE institutions and built environment agencies to jointly identify markets, sectors and themes.

How can we improve the global exchange of knowledge and methods?

PLACE institutions and built environment agencies should greatly intensify the promotion of their successful methods to overseas counterparts who could benefit from their long-established expertise and experience. We also have much to learn from other countries who are leading on sustainable city making. A new era of professional, intellectual and cultural exchange between cities is emerging and our world-renowned institutions and agencies should be at the forefront of this, whilst recognising we have much to learn from others.

How can we cement London’s position as the global capital of architecture?

We should celebrate the very significant success of built environment design in this country and secure London’s role as the global capital of architecture for the long term whilst spreading the benefits to other cities. An International Festival of Architecture, led by the sector and supported by Ministers and the Mayor, would showcase the UK’s built environment professions to an international audience in the same way the Olympics drew attention to our sporting achievements. Leading international architects, academics, policy makers and city leaders could be invited for a two- to three-day forum with a programme of discussions and debates, tours and workshops. This could be set in the wider context of sustainable city making, underpinning quality of life and enabling predicted growth to happen in a more sustainable and people-focused way. Other UK cities could replicate this with their own festivals celebrating urban life and built environment design.

Recommendations:

#41
The Department for International Development (DFID) could focus its support on the effects of urbanisation and the skill sets UK professionals have to solve problems like climate change and to develop water, waste, energy and transport infrastructure. We should be cultural leaders on the effects of global urbanisation, helping local governments and communities to help themselves.

#42
PLACE institutions and built environment agencies should promote their successful methods to overseas counterparts who could benefit from their expertise and experience. Government should take a positive lead in promoting their work through diplomatic institutions, embassies and consulates.

#43
Ministers and government officials should provide official endorsement to built environment professionals working on projects and competitions overseas. Often very high-level relationships are brokered with political and business leaders around the world, and our government must recognise the “soft power” this brings.

#44
The Treasury should recognise building design as closely connected to manufacturing, like product design, and acknowledge its true value for exports. An updated survey of the value of exports by the Construction Industry Council would help reinforce this.

#45
UKTI should represent the built environment professions as one industry to meet the global challenges of sustainable urbanisation rather than separating them into creative industries and construction. It could organise a “Global Built Environment Forum” with representatives from the PLACE institutions and built environment agencies to jointly identify markets, sectors and themes.

#46
Government, professional and cultural institutions and agencies should join forces to create an International Forum to open the London Festival of Architecture and reinforce its status as the global capital of built environment design. This should be led by the sector and supported by Ministers and the Mayor to help showcase this country’s built environment professions to an international audience. Other UK cities could replicate the festival at the same time and benefit from the global attention this would bring.

How will we be affected by major global changes?

The biggest issue we are facing is climate change. Whilst not everyone agrees on the cause, virtually everyone agrees that demand for precious resources, pollution, urbanisation and population growth on an unprecedented scale require us to skill up and recalibrate our thinking. The future has to be a sustainable one and the built environment professions are central to this. Government and the industry must show leadership on the sustainability agenda and the critical proactive planning that is required as a result of climate change. Sustainable design should be incentivised and the right kind of leadership at city level should be championed. It is not just environmental forces at work that we should be better prepared for. Massively increased interest from countries with more disposable income and freedom of movement will have significant implications for investment, tourism, heritage and education here in the UK.

How can we prepare for turbo-charged tourism?

The value of our cultural heritage for tourism, one of the fastest-growing sectors, cannot be underestimated. Our built environment assets are world renowned. London is one of the most visited cities in the world, and the world’s first industrial revolution took place in the North of England. Government and institutions should maximise the significant economic benefits of our heritage by opening up even more of our heritage assets to the public and preparing for massively increased tourism from the world’s emerging economic powers. Great work is already being done by the heritage sector and Visit Britain, but the future impact of globalisation will create a step change in demand from overseas visitors beyond any current predictions or expectations. We must ensure that our towns and cities are accessible and legible to prepare for huge visitor numbers from many different parts of the world.

Why don’t we consider design quality when valuing buildings?

The value of good design is recognised inconsistently within government and this needs to change, as design and creative planning are increasingly central to our economic wellbeing and to the future sustainability of our towns and cities. Government should demonstrate its commitment to the value of good design by making strong public statements and exploring policy measures which are supportive of long-term value as well as initial capital cost when procuring buildings. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the Construction Industry Council and PLACE institutions should work together to establish industry standards for defining, measuring and valuing the quality of architecture and place, informing a new method of property valuation that is fit for purpose.

How can architects compete in the global marketplace?

Business and finance should be taught as standard within architecture schools so it becomes a more integral part of what architects do, helping them to compete in a global marketplace. At the same time, the value of good design should be taught in business schools to educate future clients and decision makers.

Recommendations:

#47
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and local authorities could review policy incentives for developers to achieve higher standards of sustainability such as additional gross floor area and greater density/plot ratios for developments which achieve the highest environmental or energy ratings. This would follow similar successful models in Singapore and Sydney.

#48
PLACE institutions and built environment agencies could open up more heritage assets to the public, and government should help identify sources of funding. Local authorities, tourism, heritage and conservation sectors should proactively plan for increasing visitor numbers from all over the world, which will affect transport, public realm and communications.

#49
PLACE institutions could carry out research benchmarking UK practices against their international competitors – in particular business methodologies, standards and fee levels – to help UK practices remain competitive in a global marketplace.

#50
The RICS, the Construction Industry Council and PLACE institutions should work together to define a universally adopted set of definitions and criteria for assessing property values to include measurable space standards and design quality. The RICS is already leading some international work in this area and the institutions should join forces to take this forward in the UK.

#51
The Treasury Green Book should be updated to mandate that design quality and sustainability considerations are taken into account when measuring the value of public spending. This could be achieved by amending the Social Value (Public Services) Act to incorporate public works and the disposal of public-sector land.

#52
Government could explore policies to incentivise private-sector contributions to public-realm and infrastructure improvements and address the perceived “market failure” whereby landowners who benefit financially from improvements are not always the ones to pay for them. Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) are a good model to follow.

#53
Architecture schools should include development economics and business planning in course content and the RIBA should help facilitate this.

#54
Business schools could include built environment design in course content to ensure that future clients and decision makers understand the value of good design.