Design principles
Introduction
The following pages describe the Department of Communities (Housing and Homelessness Services) general approach to housing design. Design and building professionals involved in the delivery of housing projects for the department should refer to their project brief or project manager for detailed requirements.
Departmental experience over recent decades has informed a number of general design approaches for better housing.
The broad design principles listed here are ordered in a way that reflects the design process. They begin with a general residential diagram (intended to influence the design approach). The guidelines then move towards the design principles that are likely to affect the disposition of built form on the site and finally address more detailed matters.
The order is not itself significant and does not necessarily imply relative priorities. As in many areas of design, there are many points of overlap and interconnection, from the broad to the detail, and back again. In the end, all design issues are important.
The broad design principles defined in here should be applied to all departmental housing projects.
Only in special circumstances will they not apply, and such circumstances must be agreed, each time, with the department.
However, there will be times when the pursuit of one principle may compromise the pursuit of another. In such cases, a shared consideration with the department is required to determine the desired priorities in that particular case.
This is consistent with the general housing marketplace where people routinely accept 'trade offs' between different qualities, such as:
- inner urban conveniences and outer urban space
- privacy and 'neighbourhood watch', or
- initial capital cost and long-term maintenance or running costs.
This is also the reality for many departmental projects. There are times when one design principle must be thoughtfully traded off against another, and the department must be involved in that determining of priorities. There are judgements to be made about the right point of balance.
In the end, the department seeks to develop well-designed and located housing that represents value for money for the community.
Last updated 14 April 2009
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