Planning

Robin Tetlow, managing director, Tetlow King Planning

Verdict:
2003 B minus Some good signs but a lot of catching up to do
2004 B minus Some progress but a truly coordinated approach remains elusive.

This is a long-term process. One year on, though, I am still inclined to give the government the benefit of the doubt.

There has been important progress on the defined South-east growth areas. However, if affordable housing needs are to be properly addressed, the focus needs to extend well beyond these areas.

My warning last year – that some areas with high housing demand could become marginalised (such as the South-west) – is coming true. There has been some progress on the housing market renewal areas but they still suffer from a lack of focus.

There are still doubts over the coordination of infrastructure, especially transport and links with jobs. National spatial and housing strategies are still awaited.

Much remains to be done in terms of integrating planning and housing functions at the national, regional and local levels.

It is essential that the forthcoming Planning & Compulsory Purchase Bill establishes a statutory link between local development frameworks and housing strategies.

Uncertainties remain over the interface between the Housing Corporation's funding system and procuring affordable housing through the planning system. These doubts have not been silenced by the recent planning obligations consultation paper.

Development

Ken Dytor, chief executive, Urban Catalyst

Verdict:
2003 B plus for effort
2004 C for delivery, B for effort

I've seen a significant effort to bring about coordinated working practices between different government agencies, in order to deliver the plan. I believe central government is sincerely pushing forward these policies. But there are grounds for improvement: I would like to see higher sustainability standards set.

There is a perception that the important thing is simply to build more houses. But making a community also means improving services. Not enough developers understand this. Government agencies need to state that they will only work with developers that deliver sustainable communities. We need a more integrated approach.

Those implementing the plan also need a broader approach. Too many regions are still in decline, so I'd like to see its efforts implemented on a nationwide basis.

The skills factor is a very important issue. The government needs to better understand what constitutes regeneration at a local level: this means improving communities' skill base. Local authorities carry a heavy burden boosting skills, but they don't have the resources to address the issue. They need more support from central government.

Renewal

Chris Brown, development manager, Igloo Urban Regeneration Fund

Verdict:
2003 F for fail
2004 maybe a D

The plan is looking threadbare. The rationalisation with retrospect offered by the interim Barker review is not that strong. Indeed, many would read it and conclude that the previous policy – improving existing neighbourhoods – was more rational than building tens of thousands more homes on greenfield sites.

There seems no possibility that sufficient houses can be built to have any impact on long-term prices, which have pretty closely tracked income and are no more volatile than those in the rest of Europe.

Certainly a regional policy that helps to cool down the overheated South-east is a prerequisite: indeed, the Barker review could be read as a justification for gap funding, urban renaissance and all the other important regeneration tools that the government seems to have forgotten.

On the upside, many of the housing market renewal areas are now managed by people who understand regeneration. There may be too much bureaucracy and too great a focus on too few areas, but at least they appear to be seeking holistic regeneration.

However, regional development agencies continue to disinvest from regeneration, the regional housing boards are public sector-dominated and English Partnerships is pretty focused on delivering the plan rather than England's wider regeneration.

The one hope is that "sustainable" will really mean something. The Sustainable Development Commission has got involved. There may still be time to save the South-east from concrete and to rebuild our most deprived communities.

Finance

Andrew Heywood, senior policy adviser, Council of Mortgage Lenders

Verdict:
2003 B plus a good start
2004 B minus some progress but some worries among stakeholders also

The verdict is still out on some of the plan's fundamental issues, such as boosting housing supply. This was never going to be a short-term fix, so it's too early to judge.

There are initiatives that could make a contribution to boosting supply: the real estate investment trust initiative is one, though details are yet to emerge. The continuing preoccupation with pushing modern methods of construction in the social housing sector is a worry in this context.

We need a proper certification scheme to achieve high standards of modern methods of construction, and to make sure that properties conform to the long-term requirements of lenders, insurers and tenants. Innovative designs should prove themselves in the private housing market before being launched within social housing.

Lenders offering finance to registered social landlords see uncertainty ahead. It isn't clear how many local authorities will opt for arm's-length management organisations rather than large-scale stock transfers, but a drop in large-scale voluntary transfer could signal that some lenders are reassessing their commitment to the sector.

Housing policy regionalisation has begun with the production of regional housing strategies, but the extent to which these strategies will be overridden by Whitehall remains to be seen.

Academia

Anne Power, professor of social policy, London School of Economics

Verdict:
2003 B minus Terrific messages buried in worrying signals
2004 Too early to say

The plan is moving forward. Four urban development corporations have been announced. A new Thames Gateway office for the ODPM has been set up. Several market renewal areas are starting to deliver. But is this sustainable?

To create decent homes, it will be crucial to raise energy efficiency in existing and new homes. Higher standards are needed.

To tackle abandoned housing, fast reliable inter-regional transport is an obvious requirement to generate inward investment. The "heritage dividend" and the potential to re-grow our major cities offer big gains, but the resources are not yet there.

Decentralising away from London is one of the plan's goals. Faster rail links will make a vast difference, but finding new uses for our obsolete industrial heartlands is an urgent prerequisite for success. Paying back this huge environmental debt is long overdue.

Additional affordable housing is needed. Crucially, this must target a broad band of the working population on or below average incomes – 60% of households – to ensure social integration and community viability.

Green belts are guaranteed. If these protections are not enforced – and there are breaches – there is a danger that developments will simply merge into one another.

Growth pressures in London and the South-east offer the biggest challenges. Ambitious targets may be hampered, not just by congestion, but by economic and social conditions.

Neither large-scale demolition in the North and Midlands, nor ambitious building plans in the South are popular. Yet these are major planks of the plan. We have the chance to work out how existing and new communities can work for our benefit.

Then our children will inherit communities worth living in.