Report comment

A worthy attempt, but one that skims the surface. It has to determine how to resolve the conflicts with Local Authorities own policies, a big conflict being that privacy distance between buildings is down to 13-14m in the code, whereas many authorities require 20m. The award winning Goldsmiths St hit the 20m sillyness.
The American guidance by the Congress for New Urbanism is graphically simpler but clearer, and has a better description of what they call "transept", ie, the gradation from urban core to undeveloped countryside.
In the final count, prescription produces the lowest common denominator. Good design is produced by intelligent dialogue. The planning profession regarding Development control is in most locations intellectually bankrupt and everything fails there. CABE and Design Review Panels, and skilled Design Officers in the employ of LA's do a better job. David Rock steered the development of Ware in Hertfordshire for many years as a participant in the planning process. My experience of Camden's Design Officers has been exemplary. So its my opinion that process is failing us, and over prescription actually enables poor designs to be wangled through either by the threat of or actual appeal