RIAI welcomes the publication of the Government’s new Sustainable Residential Guidelines

The Royal Institute of Architects in Ireland (RIAI) welcomes the publication of the Government’s new Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities. The guidelines will help to increase the supply of liveable, well-designed, high-quality urban places and meet the needs of more diverse and smaller households.

Claire McManus, RIAI Spokesperson on Housing said: “These new guidelines, when implemented by Councils, will enable architects, urban designers and their clients in the public and private sector to produce a new generation of high-quality sustainable residential communities for the twenty-first century. It will also significantly increase output, raise standards and improve the choice of housing and quality of the public realm in residential neighbourhoods.

The RIAI has campaigned for these guidelines for some time. They will enable the building of a new type of housing development and bridge the gap between unsustainable suburban sprawl and unaffordable apartments.

Claire McManus continued “The introduction of a new typology of housing will strengthen communities and increase viability, which should in turn help improve affordability and contribute to resolving the current chronic housing shortage. This low-rise housing, often with separate own door access, will sit comfortably into the Irish context and be familiar to people. This new model allows for the delivery of housing that will resemble popular residential areas like Phibsborough, Portobello and Ranelagh in Dublin, and Turners Cross in Cork.”

The RIAI is delighted to see the National Policy on Architecture – Places for People – referenced in the guidelines. The National Policy on Architecture asserts the need to support architects and built environment professionals to work together to achieve a high-quality living environment for everyone, bringing economic, social and environmental benefits to cities, towns, and rural communities across Ireland through the delivery of sustainable, high-quality buildings and public spaces.

View the Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities.