17.1 The Council would like the LDP Review to prioritise attractive places and spaces when making choices around future land allocations and policies. Attractive places and spaces are, by their nature, subjective, but they often reflect local character and what is special or distinctive about a place. The National Design Guide illustrates how well-designed places that are beautiful and successful can be achieved in practice and supports local design guidance that meets the priorities of local communities. The Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission is an independent body set up to advise the government on how to promote and increase the use of high-quality design for new build homes and neighbourhoods. Its report sets out the importance of considering beauty at three scales during the planning process. These are:

 Beautifully placed (sustainable settlement patterns, sitting in the landscape)

 Beautiful places (streets, squares and parks, the "spirit of place")

 Beautiful buildings (windows, materials, proportion, space)

17.2 The Commission defines a beautiful place as 'a place in which people wish to walk, rather than a place that the car helps them to avoid... buildings that reflect the history, character and identity of their community and that belong in their surroundings: somewhere, not anywhere... a walkable settlement, in which the streets are an improvement on what preceded them, even when what preceded them was open countryside'.

17.3 The Council wish to ensure that these are the kinds of places that we want to plan for and the LDP should help to deliver them. Maldon District Council already has an adopted Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document that seeks to achieve better design through developments, but it could go further than that by working to endorse the wider Essex Design Guide.

Issues and Options Consultation Questionnaire