Design & Sustainability
Swan aims to be a market leader in developing sustainable housing with design of the highest quality.
To assist us in acheiving this aim, we have set up our Design and Sustainability Panel (DSP), who meet reguarly to inform our strategy. The Panel includes members from Swan's Board; the Housing Corporation; the Town and Country Planning Association; Essex County Council's Built Environment Directorate; Strategic Engineering, a green and intelligent building services consultancy; and Sarah Wigglesworth Architects, a leading London-based architectural practice.
Through the work of the Panel we are:
- Embeding sustainability in our mainstream development programme.
- Developing innovative solutions that both minimise environmental impact and enhance our residents' quality of life.
- Recognising and understanding the impact we have on the environment and responding positively.
- Training our staff so that innovative solutions to sustainability are automatically considered.
- Ensuring that Swan is recognised as amongst the best in the sector in our approach to sustainable development.
- Measuring, reviewing and improving our performance as a sustainable, socially responsible developer.
Delivering Excellent Urban Design
High quality urban design is fundamental to creating thriving, sustainable communities. It impacts on how people live their lives, how neighbourhoods are perceived and how communities function. Swan's aspiration is to drive up design standards on all of our new build and regeneration schemes. To assist us with acheiving this, we have commissioned a strategic partnership with a group of leading architectural practices.
To improve the design skills of our employees we run an urban design course in partnership with the Kent Architecture Centre, which covers the tenets of good urban design. We have also commissioned the Swan Design Guide, which reviews government guidance and articulates our urban design philosophy, to provide us with robust design requirements.
Building Sustainable Homes
The Code for Sustainable Homes is the Government’s new standard for sustainable design and construction of new homes. Under the scheme, the sustainability of new homes is rated on a scale ranging from 1 to 6 stars. Minimum standards are set for energy and water consumption at each level, whilst additional credits are obtained within various categories of sustainability.
All of Swan's schemes assessed under the Code for Sustainable Homes will attain a 3* rating as a minimum.
We are currently drawing up designs for a development of 16 carbon-neutral homes in Essex, which will acheive a 6* rating on the Code for Sustainable Homes. The details of this scheme will be announced in the near future.