英國(guó)可持續(xù)新式社區(qū)外文翻譯

1、<p>　　附件1：外文資料翻譯譯文</p><p><b>　　英國(guó)可持續(xù)新式社區(qū)</b></p><p>　　凱蒂威廉姆斯教授，環(huán)境與規(guī)劃中心主任，</p><p>　　西英格蘭大學(xué)，布里斯托</p><p>　　有關(guān)向低收入居民提供住房問(wèn)題的中英國(guó)比較研究</p><p>　　為何

2、選用“可持續(xù)社區(qū)”？</p><p>　　住房與當(dāng)?shù)丨h(huán)境都是非常重要的。但社區(qū)并不僅僅只是住房。人們對(duì)此有很多的要求。只顧著投資住房，而不重視社區(qū)的需要，就會(huì)像過(guò)去的經(jīng)驗(yàn)所顯示的那樣，冒著浪費(fèi)金錢(qián)的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。采用強(qiáng)大和可持續(xù)的社區(qū)是一種更寬廣的視野，它是人們所需要的… … 。 </p><p>　　我們社會(huì)發(fā)展的道路，是一條經(jīng)濟(jì)的、社會(huì)的和環(huán)保的道路，它必須要尊重子孫后代以及當(dāng)代人的需要。這是

3、持久的而非暫時(shí)性解決辦法的關(guān)鍵；是創(chuàng)建可以立足自身并適應(yīng)不斷變化的現(xiàn)代生活需求的社區(qū)的關(guān)鍵。這就是人們?cè)敢饩幼。?huì)繼續(xù)想要居住的地方。</p><p>　　(ODPM, 2003, p.5)</p><p>　　第一部分：導(dǎo)言：報(bào)告的目的和采用的方法</p><p>　　本報(bào)告的目的是描述英國(guó)可持續(xù)的新式社區(qū)的實(shí)質(zhì)與目標(biāo)，并梳理出在這一過(guò)程中有關(guān)成功和失敗的關(guān)鍵信

4、息。首先，針對(duì)英國(guó)新定居點(diǎn)的歷史與自然以及新社區(qū)的發(fā)展，報(bào)告提出了一些相關(guān)資料。為了了解當(dāng)前對(duì)社區(qū)發(fā)展的最好選擇的看法，本報(bào)告探尋以求解釋先前人們渴望社區(qū)、組建新社區(qū)的這一趨勢(shì)。然后，描述了大體規(guī)劃和對(duì)新社區(qū)發(fā)展的論述，這已引起英國(guó)政府對(duì)新社區(qū)實(shí)質(zhì)和交付機(jī)制的思考。此后，提供了有關(guān)理想新住區(qū)與社區(qū)目標(biāo)和特色的細(xì)節(jié)。六個(gè)例證性的方案案例研究闡述了正在被解決的問(wèn)題。最后，展示了一些從英國(guó)努力創(chuàng)造可持續(xù)的新型社區(qū)的經(jīng)驗(yàn)里所汲取的特殊教訓(xùn)?？傮w

5、目標(biāo)是，提出關(guān)于為什么發(fā)展以及如何發(fā)展新社區(qū)的重要概括，并提出對(duì)英國(guó)當(dāng)前實(shí)踐優(yōu)缺點(diǎn)的評(píng)估。</p><p>　　該報(bào)告針對(duì)可持續(xù)的新型社區(qū)這一主題采用了很實(shí)際的方法研究。它大量吸收政府公布的政策和指導(dǎo)性文件，描述了正在指導(dǎo)當(dāng)今實(shí)踐的主導(dǎo)信息。它以目前的“國(guó)家范圍”的實(shí)踐作為牽頭敘事，但吸取了更多的理論文獻(xiàn)，以歸納和批評(píng)“世界上”正在發(fā)生的事情。這種方法意味著目前情況中的某些方面被忽略了。舉例來(lái)說(shuō)，并沒(méi)有主張用激進(jìn)

6、思想的做法處理社區(qū)生活的這么一個(gè)團(tuán)體，他們探索著其他形式的“新社區(qū)”。然而，在過(guò)去的十年甚至更久的時(shí)間里，由于各國(guó)政府對(duì)可持續(xù)的新社區(qū)的概念化已經(jīng)相對(duì)恒定（盡管他們已有所演變），這種做法確實(shí)考慮到了對(duì)觀點(diǎn)源頭的詳細(xì)探討和對(duì)它們是如何被付諸實(shí)施進(jìn)行的評(píng)價(jià)。因此，為了實(shí)現(xiàn)本委員會(huì)的目的，這似乎是最有效的途徑。</p><p>　　第二部分：何為英國(guó)對(duì)“新式”和“可持續(xù)”社區(qū)的政策？</p><p&

7、gt;　　在英國(guó)，據(jù)估計(jì)到2010年新增需求房屋數(shù)量將達(dá)到380萬(wàn)。而每年近155000的新增家庭正是導(dǎo)致這一需求的原因。這種家庭數(shù)量的增長(zhǎng)一部分是因?yàn)槿丝谧匀辉鲩L(zhǎng)和外來(lái)移民的不斷涌入，但最主要的原因還是當(dāng)前人口和社會(huì)結(jié)構(gòu)的變化，即單戶的增加、財(cái)富的增加和老年人口的增加。遺憾的是，住房供給并沒(méi)有跟上需求。房屋發(fā)展已經(jīng)從19世紀(jì)60年代晚期高峰期的每年35萬(wàn)跌落到現(xiàn)在的14萬(wàn)。凈數(shù)字（因?yàn)椴鸱颗c置換）大約是12萬(wàn)。這不足以滿足新的需求，也

8、無(wú)法取代英國(guó)的舊房屋的大量使用。在許多地區(qū)，房?jī)r(jià)高昂，以至于許多家庭都買(mǎi)不起房子，這種情況已被定性為“住房危機(jī)”。對(duì)于“關(guān)鍵工人”（公共事業(yè)部門(mén)的員工，如教師，護(hù)士和警察和婦女）以及其他對(duì)當(dāng)?shù)亟?jīng)濟(jì)的成功至關(guān)重要的低收入者來(lái)說(shuō)，這是一個(gè)主要問(wèn)題。事實(shí)上，每一年大部分新成立的家庭都沒(méi)有能力負(fù)擔(dān)房屋的市場(chǎng)價(jià)格，他們需要一些援助從而獲得住房。</p><p>　　政府已對(duì)這些情況（以及如下所述的其他影響因素）做出了回應(yīng)，

9、指出將把工作重點(diǎn)轉(zhuǎn)移到住房政策上來(lái)。自90年代末以來(lái)，工作重心已經(jīng)從專注于“硬”的建屋目標(biāo)轉(zhuǎn)變成了明確的滿足住房需求這一愿望，這要通過(guò)發(fā)展“可持續(xù)社區(qū)”達(dá)到。這個(gè)目標(biāo)是隨著2003年“可持續(xù)發(fā)展社區(qū)方案”(SCP)而充分展開(kāi)的(ODPM, 2003) 。因此，英國(guó)的所有的“新”社區(qū)從定義上看應(yīng)被認(rèn)為是“可持續(xù)”的。</p><p>　　然而，政府面臨著一個(gè)問(wèn)題，對(duì)于新住房的需求在全國(guó)并不是平均分布的。 有的地區(qū)需

10、求很大，主要集中在南部和倫敦周圍（那里的家庭產(chǎn)生的速度正在超越房屋的供應(yīng)速度），有的地區(qū)需求較低，集中在供應(yīng)量平衡于，或者在某種情況下供給量超過(guò)了家庭產(chǎn)生的速率的地方。政府對(duì)這一情況采取的是一個(gè)雙管齊下的戰(zhàn)略，在指定的“增長(zhǎng)區(qū)”（泰晤士門(mén)，米爾頓凱恩斯/中南部，阿什福德和倫敦的斯坦斯-劍橋）發(fā)展大量的住宅，而在減少區(qū)重建來(lái)刺激需求（通過(guò)北方城市的九個(gè)“市場(chǎng)重建區(qū)”）。在“增長(zhǎng)區(qū)”和“市場(chǎng)重建區(qū)”里，新的社區(qū)正在規(guī)劃中。一部分設(shè)在不發(fā)達(dá)地

11、區(qū)，其余的在現(xiàn)有城市地區(qū)的內(nèi)部或邊緣。因此，有些將包括許多新來(lái)的住戶，而其他地區(qū)將主要居住著正在被重新安置或被安置在短距離的居民。</p><p>　　也許這里應(yīng)該指出，這項(xiàng)計(jì)劃得到了一些批評(píng)。許多規(guī)劃和住房學(xué)者、政治家和有影響力的組織（如可持續(xù)發(fā)展委員會(huì)）已對(duì)所采取的措施的明智與否提出了質(zhì)疑。主要的批評(píng)是，在增長(zhǎng)區(qū)該方案遵循了“預(yù)測(cè)并提供”的原則 ，而不是試圖補(bǔ)救區(qū)域差異，促進(jìn)北方真正的經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展。也有人批評(píng)，這

12、分散了對(duì)指定區(qū)域以外的住房建筑的注意，現(xiàn)在它并沒(méi)有得到足夠的研究。也有一些人持懷疑態(tài)度，他們談?wù)撛诤畏N程度上，社區(qū)才能被成功地“創(chuàng)造”，同時(shí)還有很多人質(zhì)疑證據(jù)基礎(chǔ)和這一新政策重點(diǎn)所需要的資源。</p><p>　　盡管存在著這些關(guān)注，政府正致力通過(guò)SCP提供房屋并且已經(jīng)開(kāi)發(fā)出一套政策和指導(dǎo)性文件，用以支持這一方法，涵蓋的問(wèn)題如城市設(shè)計(jì)，社區(qū)發(fā)展和住房，(ODPM，2005　a，b和c；政策委員會(huì)，2006；DEF

13、RA，2006)。政府還計(jì)劃用380多億英鎊的開(kāi)銷推出這個(gè)方案，并投入了強(qiáng)大的動(dòng)力來(lái)改變規(guī)劃系統(tǒng)和交付機(jī)構(gòu)，以確保它的成功。</p><p>　　第三部分?。菏裁词恰翱沙掷m(xù)社區(qū)”？</p><p>　　“可持續(xù)社區(qū)就是指人們現(xiàn)在及以后都愿意居住在里面的地方。他們?cè)诋?dāng)?shù)氐臈l件下體現(xiàn)可持續(xù)發(fā)展的原則。這意味著他們改善所有人的生活質(zhì)量，同時(shí)為子孫后代保護(hù)環(huán)境。”（DEFRA，2006，P4）&l

14、t;/p><p>　　這段話在這里有助于精確的解釋到底什么是“可持續(xù)社區(qū)”，從而分別“解壓”“可持續(xù)”和“社區(qū)”這兩個(gè)術(shù)語(yǔ)。不為過(guò)的說(shuō)，可持續(xù)社區(qū)的議程是圍繞著可持續(xù)這個(gè)定義所占展開(kāi)的，涉及到了最廣泛的意義，涵蓋了經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展、環(huán)境保護(hù)和社會(huì)公平等問(wèn)題。這并不是一個(gè)以環(huán)境問(wèn)題為中心的方案。該方法是關(guān)于發(fā)展社會(huì)“欣欣向榮”的社區(qū)，采用對(duì)當(dāng)?shù)睾透鼜V的環(huán)境狀況敏感的方式和鼓勵(lì)當(dāng)?shù)兀ㄔS多人可能會(huì)認(rèn)為是國(guó)家）經(jīng)濟(jì)繁榮的方式。該方案

15、關(guān)注人們對(duì)新社區(qū)的渴望，希望其能長(zhǎng)期的上升，而不是把它作為一種快速緊急的解決方案。</p><p>　　針對(duì)“社區(qū)”，政府持有一個(gè)特殊的看法，他們認(rèn)為對(duì)于當(dāng)?shù)刈》吭鲩L(zhǎng)和重建方案這兩者的成功，社區(qū)是關(guān)鍵。“社區(qū)”有待開(kāi)發(fā)，在某些情況下需要管理，以確保當(dāng)?shù)乜沙掷m(xù)社區(qū)能適應(yīng)建筑環(huán)境的變化。這一針對(duì)社區(qū)的觀點(diǎn)和對(duì)社區(qū)的依賴是比較新的，與英國(guó)首相布萊爾對(duì)城市問(wèn)題和地方公共服務(wù)供給問(wèn)題的哲學(xué)觀緊密相關(guān)。（對(duì)社區(qū)當(dāng)代定義的充分

16、討論，參考 Imrie和Raco，2003）。然而，這是一個(gè)復(fù)雜的，還有些人辯稱是冒險(xiǎn)的依賴，對(duì)此下文將有更詳細(xì)的闡述。</p><p>　　政府把“可持續(xù)社區(qū)”形容成了“人們希望生活，并會(huì)繼續(xù)想住”的地方。 （ODPM, 2003, p.5），它為SCP中的可持續(xù)社區(qū)要素提出了一個(gè)有用的定義，羅列在下面的表1中。</p><p>　　表１. 如何產(chǎn)生一個(gè)可持續(xù)社區(qū)？</p>

17、<p>　　可持續(xù)社區(qū)的某些關(guān)鍵要求是：</p><p>　　一個(gè)繁榮的地方經(jīng)濟(jì)，能提供就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì)和財(cái)富；</p><p>　　強(qiáng)而有力的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)，能積極地應(yīng)對(duì)變化；</p><p>　　當(dāng)?shù)氐娜?、團(tuán)體和企業(yè)有效的支持與參與，特別是在對(duì)社區(qū)的規(guī)劃、設(shè)計(jì)和長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)指導(dǎo)方面，有積極的自愿的社區(qū)部門(mén)；</p><p>　　一個(gè)安全健康的當(dāng)?shù)丨h(huán)境，

18、擁有經(jīng)過(guò)精心設(shè)計(jì)的公共和綠化空間；</p><p>　　有足夠的面積、規(guī)模和密度，并有權(quán)總體規(guī)劃，以支持社區(qū)內(nèi)基本的舒適生活，并盡量減少對(duì)資源的利用（包括土地）；</p><p>　　在社區(qū)內(nèi)有良好的公共交通和其他交通基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施，并能把它與城市，農(nóng)村和區(qū)域中心相連接；</p><p>　　有單獨(dú)的和集體的建筑物，能適應(yīng)隨著時(shí)間的推移而產(chǎn)生的不同的需要，并盡量減少資源的

19、使用；</p><p>　　一個(gè)較好的綜合性組合，包括適當(dāng)?shù)淖》亢妥》克袡?quán)，以支持一系列有不同人數(shù)、年齡和收入的家庭；</p><p>　　優(yōu)質(zhì)的地方公共服務(wù)，包括教育和培訓(xùn)機(jī)會(huì)，醫(yī)療保健和社區(qū)設(shè)施，尤其是休閑方面；</p><p>　　一個(gè)多元化、充滿活力和創(chuàng)造性的本土文化，能鼓勵(lì)社區(qū)的自豪感，產(chǎn)生社區(qū)內(nèi)部的凝聚力；</p><p>&l

20、t;b>　　有場(chǎng)所感；</b></p><p>　　與更廣泛的地區(qū)、國(guó)家和國(guó)際社會(huì)有正確的聯(lián)系。</p><p>　?。ㄕ設(shè)DPM, 2003, p.5）</p><p>　　這些要求可與陳列在表2 中的“非可持續(xù)]社區(qū)”的概念進(jìn)行比較。（轉(zhuǎn)載自Raco，2007，改編自O(shè)DPM，2003和2005）</p><p>　　

21、表２. 非可持續(xù)社區(qū)</p><p>　　經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)　　　　　　　被依賴型發(fā)展所主導(dǎo)；缺少就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì);脆弱;不安全;短期、分化　</p><p>　　公民職責(zé)　　　　　　　被動(dòng)依賴的公民和社區(qū)；缺少社會(huì)參與和所有權(quán)；低層次的志愿活動(dòng)</p><p><b>　　及/或社會(huì)資本</b></p><p>　　社區(qū)特色　　　　　　

22、　缺乏技能的勞動(dòng)力；失衡的社區(qū)場(chǎng)所；群體間高水平的（物質(zhì)）分離；</p><p>　　缺乏多樣性；正規(guī)和非正規(guī)的隔離；缺少人口</p><p>　　城市設(shè)計(jì)　　　　　　　統(tǒng)一、束縛的建筑，封閉不可進(jìn)入的公共空間；缺少社區(qū)設(shè)施；城市</p><p>　　范圍蔓延；場(chǎng)所不固定的郊區(qū)發(fā)展</p><p>　　環(huán)境層面　　　　　　　建設(shè)擴(kuò)展到了綠化用

23、地；爭(zhēng)取最高的運(yùn)輸安排行程;依賴轎車，缺乏</p><p><b>　　公共交通</b></p><p>　　生活質(zhì)量　　　　　　　低生活質(zhì)量；對(duì)一系列社會(huì)群體有強(qiáng)大的“推力”（即他們想要離</p><p><b>　　開(kāi)）</b></p><p>　　最近，政府在可持續(xù)發(fā)展戰(zhàn)略中又提出了一個(gè)較短的

24、對(duì)可持續(xù)社區(qū)的定義（爭(zhēng)取未來(lái)，TSO，2005），其中列出了如下的構(gòu)想：</p><p>　　表３：概念化的可持續(xù)社區(qū)（摘自爭(zhēng)取未來(lái)，TSO, 2005,　附件A）</p><p>　　“可持續(xù)社區(qū)體現(xiàn)了可持續(xù)發(fā)展的原則，它們：</p><p>　　平衡并整合了其社區(qū)的社會(huì)、經(jīng)濟(jì)、環(huán)境要素</p><p>　　滿足了當(dāng)代和后代人的需求<

25、/p><p>　　在更廣泛的區(qū)域和國(guó)際范圍里尊重其他社區(qū)的需要，使他們的社區(qū)變得可持續(xù)”</p><p>　　這種可持續(xù)社區(qū)的模式現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)在很多政府指導(dǎo)和政策文件里得到了重申（ODPM 2005 A和B ，DEFRA, 2006, CLG, 2006）, 其中的許多材料都已經(jīng)通過(guò)一些主要學(xué)術(shù)性的以及實(shí)踐者制作的研究和指導(dǎo)被傳達(dá)了，這些研究和指導(dǎo)有關(guān)可持續(xù)居住區(qū)的設(shè)計(jì)和規(guī)劃。相關(guān)規(guī)定現(xiàn)在已很精確

26、了，包括新社區(qū)有形的形式以及它發(fā)揮作用的方式這兩方面。</p><p>　　在物質(zhì)方面，無(wú)論是全新的還是再生的地區(qū)，這些新社區(qū)都將根據(jù)一個(gè)特定的城市設(shè)計(jì)和規(guī)劃理念發(fā)展。這就需要高密度(40+)的DPH，緊湊的發(fā)展，選擇單位式的平房而非獨(dú)立式的房屋。如有可能，與綠色區(qū)域相比，首選污染區(qū)域。布局必須有良好的聯(lián)系網(wǎng)絡(luò)，通常是網(wǎng)格或變形網(wǎng)格，而不是culs-de-sac配置。一系列的支持低碳運(yùn)輸方式的基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施也有相關(guān)規(guī)定

27、，如自行車道，巴士專線等。同時(shí)，公共領(lǐng)域應(yīng)適合行走并能使人感到安全。不同大小和類型的房子都將在整個(gè)發(fā)展過(guò)程中穿插，從而提供多樣性，“掩蓋”所有權(quán)的不同。從一開(kāi)始發(fā)展，市容就將進(jìn)行規(guī)劃，而不是以后再分階段進(jìn)行。因此規(guī)定了建筑不同用途的混合。在新社區(qū)，對(duì)能源效率措施的需求量正在上升，這些措施如熱電聯(lián)產(chǎn)計(jì)劃，可持續(xù)的城市排水系統(tǒng)，高度獨(dú)立住宅。這樣可以確保這些珍貴資源的謹(jǐn)慎利用（包括水，電，煤氣等）。有人還關(guān)注到新發(fā)展應(yīng)該給經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展提供機(jī)會(huì)，

28、因此較大的計(jì)劃應(yīng)該有專門(mén)的就業(yè)空間。此外，建筑物應(yīng)設(shè)計(jì)得具有靈活性，隨著需求的變化，商業(yè)可以展開(kāi)，家庭都能夠適應(yīng)。</p><p>　　那么在本質(zhì)上，一個(gè)可持續(xù)發(fā)展的社區(qū)應(yīng)具有這樣一個(gè)特點(diǎn)，包含不同家庭類型的混合（在年齡、大小和收入這些方面）和不同所有權(quán)的混合（私人擁有，共同所有以及私人和社會(huì)出租）。從社會(huì)層面講，這些社區(qū)是混合并很好的融合的。這些地方被認(rèn)為是社會(huì)資本能發(fā)展且具有社會(huì)包容性的地方。社區(qū)具有或位置接

29、近足夠的設(shè)施和有公共綠地、衛(wèi)生、教育等的舒適場(chǎng)所。從經(jīng)濟(jì)層面講，這些社區(qū)應(yīng)能吸引私人投資，包括商店，休閑設(shè)施等。他們也應(yīng)該有強(qiáng)有力的地方領(lǐng)導(dǎo)，使當(dāng)?shù)厝罕娪袡C(jī)會(huì)參與決策。</p><p>　　那么，這種看法從何而來(lái)？為什么現(xiàn)在英國(guó)有如此強(qiáng)烈的新社區(qū)“模型”？它是一種對(duì)過(guò)去經(jīng)驗(yàn)的反映嗎？抑或是某一特定意識(shí)形態(tài)或多種意識(shí)形態(tài)的產(chǎn)物？我們是否參考了其他地方的想法，或者這只是一個(gè)純粹的英國(guó)想法？這些問(wèn)題的答案是復(fù)雜的：受青

30、睞的新社區(qū)解決方案，一部份是對(duì)往事的反應(yīng)，一部分是新的意識(shí)形態(tài)的產(chǎn)物。在一定程度上，它們是從其他地方學(xué)到的，在某些方面，新的解決辦法是實(shí)驗(yàn)性的。</p><p>　　為幫助了解可持續(xù)社區(qū)方式的起源，審視一些關(guān)鍵驅(qū)動(dòng)因素是有用的，它們結(jié)合在一起締造了了英國(guó)當(dāng)前的視野。</p><p><b>　　附件2：外文原文</b></p><p>　　Ne

31、w and Sustainable Communities in the UK</p><p>　　Professor Katie Williams, Director of the Centre for Environment and Planning,</p><p>　　University of the West of England, Bristol</p><

32、;p>　　UK China comparative study on housing provision to low income residents</p><p>　　Why ‘sustainable communities'?</p><p>　　Housing and the local environment are vitally important. But

33、communities are more than just housing. They have many requirements. Investing in housing alone, paying no attention to the needs of communities, risks wasting money as past experience has shown. A wider vision of strong

34、 and sustainable communities is needed….</p><p>　　The way our communities develop, economically, socially and environmentally, must respect the needs of future generations as well as succeeding now. This is

35、the key to lasting, rather than temporary, solutions; to creating communities that can stand on their own feet and adapt to the changing demands of modern life. Places where people want to live and will continue to want

36、to live.</p><p>　　(ODPM, 2003, p.5)</p><p>　　Part 1: Introduction: The purpose of the report and the approach adopted</p><p>　　The purpose of this report is to describe the nature o

37、f, and objectives for, sustainable and new communities in the UK, and to tease out some key messages about the successes and failures in tying to develop them. First, the report presents some contextual information about

38、 the history and nature of new settlements and new community development in the UK. The report seeks to explain previous trends in aspirations for, and the realization of, new communities in the hope of understanding cur

39、rent t</p><p>　　The report takes a very practical approach to the subject of sustainable and new communities. It draws heavily on policy and guidance documents published by the Government to describe the dom

40、inant messages that are guiding practice today. It takes current 'national' practice as the lead narrative, but draws on more theoretical literature to contextualize and criticize what is happening 'on the gr

41、ound'. This approach means that certain aspects of the current situation are not covered. For example</p><p>　　Part 2: What is the UK's policy on 'new' and 'sustainable' communities?&

42、lt;/p><p>　　In the UK it is estimated that 3.8 million new homes will be needed by 2021. This demand is driven by the fact that around 155,000 new households are formed annually. This household growth is driven

43、 partly by natural population increases and net in-migration, but a major contribution comes from demographic and social changes within the existing population, namely an increase in single households, increased wealth a

44、nd an older population. Unfortunately housing supply has not kept pace with demand</p><p>　　The Government has responded to these conditions (and to other influencing factors that are set out below) with a s

45、hift in emphasis in housing policy. Since the late 1990s, it has moved away from a preoccupation with ‘hard’ housing targets to a clearly stated desire to meet housing demand though the development of ‘sustainable commun

46、ities’. This objective is set out in full in the ‘Sustainable Communities Programme’ (SCP), launched in 2003 (ODPM, 2003). Hence, all 'new' communities in England ar</p><p>　　However, a problem that

47、the Government faces is that demand for new housing is not spread evenly across the country. There are areas of very high demand, largely in the South and around London (where household formation is outstripping housing

48、supply) and areas of low demand where provision is matching, or in some cases exceeding, rates of household formation. The Government’s approach to this problem is a two-pronged strategy of developing large numbers of dw

49、ellings in targeted ‘Growth Areas’ (</p><p>　　Perhaps it should be noted here that the SCP has its critics. Many planning and housing scholars, politicians and influential organizations (such as The Sustaina

50、ble Development Commission) have questioned the wisdom of the approach taken. The key criticism is that in the growth areas the Programme follows the principle of ‘predict and provide’ rather than trying to redress regio

51、nal differences and promote genuine economic development in the North. It has also been criticized for distracting atte</p><p>　　Part 3. What is a 'Sustainable Community'?</p><p>　　‘Sus

52、tainable Communities are places in which people want to live, now and in the future. They embody the principles of sustainable development at the local level. This means they improve quality of life for all whilst safegu

53、arding the environment for future generations’ (DEFRA, 2006, p. 4)</p><p>　　It is useful here to address what exactly is meant by a 'sustainable community', and hence to 'unpack' separately b

54、oth the terms 'sustainable' and 'community'. It is fair to say that the sustainable communities’ agenda is framed around a definition of sustainability in its broadest sense, covering issues of economic d

55、evelopment, environmental protection and social equity: it is not centrally an environmental programme. The approach is about developing socially 'thriving' communities in ways that</p><p>　　In terms

56、 of 'community' the government has a very specific view that communities are keys to the localized success of both their housing growth and regeneration programmes. 'Communities' are to be developed, and

57、in some cases managed, to ensure that sustainable local neighborhoods grow out of changes in the built environment. This view of, and reliance on, communities is relatively new, and is associated closely with Tony Blair&

58、#39;s philosophy on urban issues and on the delivery of local public ser</p><p>　　The Government describes sustainable communities as 'Places where people want to live and will continue to want to live&#

59、39;. (ODPM, 2003, p.5) It sets out a useful description of the elements of a sustainable community in the SCP, as reproduced in Table 1 below.</p><p>　　Table 1. What makes a sustainable community?</p>

60、<p>　　Some of the key requirements of sustainable communities are:</p><p>　　? a flourishing local economy to provide jobs and wealth;</p><p>　　? strong leadership to respond positively to

61、change;</p><p>　　? effective engagement and participation by local people, groups and businesses, especially in the planning, design and long-term stewardship of their community, and an active voluntary and

62、community sector;</p><p>　　? a safe and healthy local environment with well-designed public and green space;</p><p>　　? sufficient size, scale and density and the right layout to support basic a

63、menities in the neighborhood and minimize use of resources (including land);</p><p>　　? good public transport and other transport infrastructure both within the community and linking it to urban, rural and r

64、egional centers;</p><p>　　? buildings, both individually and collectively, that can meet different needs over time and that minimize the use of resources;</p><p>　　? a well integrated mix of dec

65、ent homes of different types and tenures to support a range of household sizes, ages and incomes;</p><p>　　? Good quality local public services, including education and training opportunities, health care an

66、d community facilities, especially for leisure;</p><p>　　? a diverse, vibrant and creative local culture, encouraging pride in the community and cohesion within it;</p><p>　　? a sense of place;&

67、lt;/p><p>　　? The right links with the wider regional, national and international community.</p><p>　　(Quote taken from ODPM, 2003, p.5)</p><p>　　These requirements can be contrasted w

68、ith the conceptualization of an 'unsustainable community' as presented in Table 2. (Reproduced from Raco, 2007, which was adapted from ODPM, 2003 and 2005)</p><p>　　Table 2. An unsustainable communit

69、y</p><p>　　The Government has more recently provided a shorter definition of sustainable communities in its Sustainable Development Strategy (Securing the Future, TSO, 2005), in which it sets out the followi

70、ng conceptualization:</p><p>　　Table 3: A conceptualisation of sustainable communities (from Securing the Future, TSO, 2005, Annex A)</p><p>　　'Sustainable communities embody the principles

71、of sustainable development: They:</p><p>　　? balance and integrate the social, economic and environmental components of their community</p><p>　　? Meet the needs of existing and future generatio

72、ns</p><p>　　? Respect the needs of other communities in the wider region and internationally also to make their communities sustainable'</p><p>　　The model for sustainable communities has no

73、w been reiterated in a number of government guidance and policy documents (ODPM 2005a and b, DEFRA, 2006, CLG, 2006), much material in these has been drawn from some key academic and practitioner-produced research and gu

74、idance on sustainable settlement design and planning. The prescription is now quite precise in terms of both the physical form of the new community and how it is supposed to function.</p><p>　　In physical te

75、rms, new communities, whether completely new or in regeneration areas, are to be developed to a particular urban design and planning philosophy. This calls for high density (40+) dph, compact development, with flats and

76、terraced housing types favored over detached houses. Where possible, brownfield sites are preferred over greenfield. The layouts are to be well connected; usually grid or deformed grids rather than the culs-de-sac type c

77、onfigurations. A range of infrastructure to su</p><p>　　In essence then, a sustainable community is characterized as one comprising a mix of household types (in terms of ages, sizes and incomes) and of diffe

78、rent tenures (privately owned, shared ownership and private and social rented). Socially, the communities are mixed and well integrated. The idea is that they are places where social capital can develop and social inclus

79、ion is supported. The communities contain, or are located close to, sufficient facilities and amenities in terms of open space, h</p><p>　　So where has this view come from? And why is there such a strong 

80、9;model' for new communities in the UK now? Is it a reaction to past experiences? Or is it the product of a particular ideology or ideologies? Have we imported ideas form elsewhere, or is this a purely British ideal?

81、 The answers to these questions are complex: the favored solutions for new communities are partly a reaction to past events, and partly the result of new ideologies. Partly, they are 'learned' from others and in