Housing: Standards

(asked on 23rd July 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the finding of the Royal Institute of British Architects report Space Standards for Homes that the level of administration and red tape involved when local authorities seek to adopt the Nationally Described Space Standard (NDSS) means that in many cases it takes several years to adopt, whether he plans to adopt RIBA’s recommendation that the NDSS should be universally applied through building regulations.


Answered by
Esther McVey Portrait
Esther McVey
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
This question was answered on 3rd September 2019

Our National Planning Policy Framework https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-planning-policy-framework--2 asks local authorities to make use of the Nationally Described Space Standard, where the need for an internal space standard can be justified. Local authorities can apply the Nationally Described Space Standard. Local authorities can decide whether or not to apply this standard by taking local circumstances into account and ensuring the impact on viability and housing supply have been considered. The Department is considering how recommended sizes should best be applied.

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