Bartons’ Sustainability Pledge: Building Healthy, Vibrant Communities for the Future

At Bartons Planning & Development Consultancy, sustainability is more than just a commitment—it is a guiding principle embedded in every project we undertake. Our sustainability pledge revolves around the three key pillars of sustainability: social, environmental, and economic. By addressing these interconnected pillars, we aim to create developments that are not only financially successful but also contribute positively to the well-being of communities and the environment. This approach ensures our clients’ proposals are healthy, resilient, and beautiful, in line with the good design principles set out in both national and local planning policies. By integrating sustainability into every step of the development process, we help our clients create places where people want to live, work, and thrive, ultimately maximising returns and reducing risks for developers.

The Three Pillars of Sustainability

Our sustainability approach is rooted in the integration of the three pillars of sustainability—social, environmental, and economic. By developing bespoke sustainability matrices, we ensure that our clients’ proposals are optimised across all these dimensions, making development proposals more successful in planning, reducing abortive costs, and creating valuable, future-proofed developments. Here’s how each pillar plays a critical role in our sustainability pledge:

1. Social Sustainability: Creating Thriving Communities

Social sustainability is about creating developments that go beyond providing housing; it is about fostering well-being, inclusion, and social cohesion. At Bartons, we recognise the importance of designing developments that meet the needs of residents, enhance their quality of life, and contribute to a sense of belonging. This focus not only creates desirable communities but also makes developments more attractive to buyers and investors, thereby maximising returns.

Our sustainability pledge ensures that our clients’ developments align with national and local policies focusing on social sustainability. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) emphasises the importance of creating strong, vibrant, and healthy communities, and our approach reflects this emphasis. By integrating affordable housing, green spaces, and community facilities, we help developers create places that support both physical and mental well-being, offering residents access to services that improve their quality of life and enhance the marketability of the development.

• Health and Well-Being: Our projects prioritise health by incorporating features like green spaces, pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, and opportunities for active lifestyles. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of health-focused design, and we work closely with our clients to ensure developments provide ample opportunities for exercise, relaxation, and community interaction, which in turn makes the properties more desirable and valuable.
• Community Engagement: We believe in the value of community engagement from the earliest stages of a project. Our approach involves working with local communities to identify their needs and address concerns, fostering goodwill and ensuring that developments are tailored to the specific context of each location. By bringing communities on board, we not only facilitate smoother planning approvals but also create developments that reflect the aspirations of local residents, thereby enhancing project success and value.
• Social Infrastructure: Social infrastructure, such as schools, healthcare facilities, and community centres, is essential for the long-term success of a community. Our sustainability pledge focuses on ensuring that developments are well-served by social infrastructure, supporting community well-being and making the development an attractive place to live, which ultimately drives demand and increases returns for developers.

2. Environmental Sustainability: Protecting and Enhancing the Environment

Environmental sustainability is central to our work at Bartons, ensuring that our developments minimise their impact on the environment while enhancing ecological resilience. We understand the importance of designing developments that conserve natural resources, reduce carbon emissions, and protect biodiversity. Our bespoke sustainability matrices help clients navigate environmental requirements while maintaining the viability and appeal of their projects, ultimately enhancing their market value.

• Energy Efficiency and Carbon Reduction: The UK is moving towards a low-carbon future, and our sustainability pledge supports this transition. We help our clients design energy-efficient buildings that meet or exceed the requirements set out by Building Regulations and the Future Homes Standard. By integrating renewable energy technologies, such as solar panels and heat pumps, we help clients reduce carbon emissions while enhancing the long-term value of their developments, making them more attractive to environmentally conscious buyers.
• Sustainable Materials and Methods: The choice of materials and construction methods has a significant impact on the environmental footprint of a development. At Bartons, we encourage the use of sustainably sourced materials, low-carbon construction techniques, and modern methods of construction (MMC) that minimise waste and enhance resource efficiency. By adopting these practices, we help clients create developments that are environmentally responsible and aligned with evolving policy requirements, which adds to the project’s overall value.
• Biodiversity Net Gain: Protecting and enhancing biodiversity is a key aspect of environmental sustainability. Our sustainability pledge ensures that our projects incorporate features that enhance biodiversity, such as green roofs, wildlife corridors, and habitat creation. By aligning with the requirements of the Environment Act 2021, which mandates biodiversity net gain, we help our clients create developments that contribute positively to local ecosystems and enhance the natural environment, thereby improving the appeal and market value of the properties.
• Water Management and Flood Resilience: Climate change has increased the risk of flooding, making effective water management an essential consideration for sustainable development. Our sustainability pledge includes the integration of sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) and other flood resilience measures to reduce flood risk and enhance the resilience of developments. By working with clients to design effective water management strategies, we ensure that developments are capable of withstanding the impacts of climate change while also protecting local communities, which increases buyer confidence and value.

3. Economic Sustainability: Delivering Long-Term Value

Economic sustainability is about ensuring that developments are financially viable, resilient to market changes, and capable of delivering long-term value to both developers and the wider community. At Bartons, we understand that economic sustainability is key to the success of any development, and our approach focuses on creating projects that generate lasting value while contributing positively to the local economy.

• Market Analysis and Demand Alignment: A key aspect of economic sustainability is understanding and aligning with market demand. We work closely with our clients to conduct thorough market analysis, ensuring that developments are well-positioned to meet local needs and generate strong demand. By aligning development proposals with market trends and consumer preferences, we help our clients create developments that are not only economically viable but also highly desirable, thereby maximising returns.
• Mixed-Use and Diversified Income Streams: Mixed-use developments are an effective strategy for enhancing economic sustainability. By incorporating residential, commercial, and community uses within a single development, we help clients create diversified income streams that reduce risk and enhance long-term resilience. Mixed-use developments are also more attractive to residents, as they provide a range of amenities and services that enhance quality of life, which in turn increases the market value of the development.
• Efficient Resource Use and Cost Management: Economic sustainability also involves managing resources efficiently and minimising costs. At Bartons, we help clients adopt modern methods of construction (MMC) and other resource-efficient practices that reduce costs while maintaining quality. By optimising land use, managing construction timelines, and minimising waste, we ensure that developments are delivered on time, within budget, and with maximum financial returns.
• Planning Gain and Negotiation: Planning obligations, such as Section 106 agreements and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), are key considerations in ensuring that developments contribute positively to the local community. Our sustainability pledge includes a commitment to negotiating these obligations in a way that aligns with our clients’ financial objectives. By understanding local authority priorities and aligning them with the project’s goals, we help clients meet planning obligations while enhancing project viability and maximising returns.

Bartons’ Role in Supporting Sustainable Placemaking

At Bartons, our expertise in planning and development, combined with our commitment to sustainability, makes us the ideal partner for creating healthy, vibrant, and sustainable communities. Our bespoke sustainability matrices ensure that every project we undertake is optimised across all three pillars of sustainability, resulting in developments that are resilient, attractive, and financially successful.

• Integrated Sustainability Approach: Our approach to sustainability is integrated into every stage of the development process, from initial feasibility studies to design, planning, and delivery. By embedding sustainability principles from the outset, we ensure that our clients’ projects are not only compliant with policy requirements but also capable of delivering long-term value and community benefits, ultimately maximising returns.
• Collaboration with Stakeholders: Creating sustainable developments requires collaboration with a range of stakeholders, including local authorities, community groups, and environmental organisations. At Bartons, we work closely with stakeholders to identify shared goals and build consensus, ensuring that developments are well-received and supported by the local community. By fostering positive relationships, we help our clients secure planning approvals more efficiently, reducing delays and costs while enhancing the overall value of the development.
• Bespoke Sustainability Matrices: Our bespoke sustainability matrices provide a framework for assessing and optimising developments across the three pillars of sustainability. By considering social, environmental, and economic factors in a holistic manner, we help clients create balanced, resilient, and future-proofed developments that contribute positively to both the local community and the wider environment, ultimately enhancing the market appeal and profitability of the project.

Creating Healthy, Vibrant Communities While Maximising Returns

Our sustainability pledge is ultimately about creating places that people are proud to call home—healthy, vibrant communities that offer a high quality of life, economic opportunities, and environmental benefits. By focusing on the three pillars of sustainability, we help our clients design and deliver developments that are not only financially successful but also socially inclusive and environmentally responsible, which significantly enhances their market value.

• Beautiful and Healthy Designs: Good design is at the heart of sustainable development. Our approach ensures that developments are both beautiful and healthy, with a focus on creating high-quality public spaces, incorporating green infrastructure, and promoting active lifestyles. By adhering to good design principles, we help our clients create developments that are not only functional but also inspiring and attractive to residents and visitors alike, thereby increasing demand and maximising returns.
• Reducing Abortive Costs and Enhancing Planning Success: Our sustainability pledge helps reduce abortive costs by ensuring that development proposals are well-aligned with planning policies and community needs from the outset. By addressing social, environmental, and economic factors in an integrated manner, we help our clients create proposals that have a higher likelihood of gaining planning approval, reducing delays and associated costs, and maximising profitability.

Conclusion: Bartons’ Commitment to a Sustainable and Profitable Future

At Bartons Planning & Development Consultancy, our sustainability pledge is a reflection of our commitment to creating developments that are not only successful today but also resilient and valuable for generations to come. By addressing the three pillars of sustainability—social, environmental, and economic—we help our clients create healthy, vibrant communities that contribute positively to the local area and the wider environment, while maximising returns and reducing risks.

If you are a developer or landowner looking to create sustainable, resilient developments that maximise value and contribute to community well-being, Bartons is here to help. Get in touch with us today to learn more about our sustainability pledge and how we can support your development project in achieving its full potential.