The pandemic has forced many of us to stay home: to stop commuting, stop socialising, stop travelling, wear a mask and put on a coat.

Housing challenges in the UK aren’t a new concern, but they’ve been exacerbated by the financial pressures of the pandemic.

In this series of local government Q&As, Ken Bean, Associate Director of Planning Policy at Capita Local Public Services, answers a series of questions about the national model design code and what challenges and opportunities this brings to local authority planning teams.

Stephen Ottewell, Director of Planning and Building Control at Capita, interviews planning experts - this Q and A focuses on planning masterplans and design codes.

Most planners would agree with the need to standardise and simplify - as far as possible - the process for identifying housing need as the starting point for developing policies for residential development in local plans.

Our business intelligence and reporting software makes it easy to produce reports with a clearer view of performance, sharper insights and data in one place.

We provide regulatory service solutions, including for environmental health, local land charging, trading standards and licensing.

Make the most of your resources with our cloud-based housing repair, maintenance and workforce management software to improve efficiency and work allocation.

Our managed planning and building services help local authorities meet regulatory obligations, keeping places and communities compliant, safe and in growth.

We can manage all aspects of building control – to be switched on and off to meet demand - freeing your teams to deliver other core services to residents.