Councillors

Councillors have a critical role to play in making the places they represent safer, more pleasant and more prosperous.

Portrait of Beatrice Fraenkel

Councillor Beatrice Fraenkel, Design champion for Liverpool City Council
Photo by Michele Turriani

A councillor’s influence over the design and form of buildings, places and spaces can be critical to achieving this.

How we help councillors

We support councillors through publishing guidance on the importance of design, campaigning for local leadership on design issues and providing training and best practice case studies.

Championing design

Find out about our design and heritage champions programme.

Sustainable Cities

Get help to create better places. Cut through the complexities of climate change with clear priorities for action and see which places are getting it right.

Case studies

Browse hundreds of the best buildings in England in our case study library, all with high quality photos.

Building for Life

See how the Building for Life toolkit can help your council make better planning decisions.

Adapting to climate change

Learn from our research and guidance on mitigating the effects of climate change.

Good design: the fundamentals

Read why architecture and urban design are important and hear some common excuses for poor designs.

Buildings and spaces. Why design matters.

Download our short guide on why good architecture and design are essential.

Designing places for everyone to use and enjoy.

Learn how to deliver inclusive and equitable places.

Useful links

Home and Communities Agency Academy

Promoting skills and knowledge for better places.

English Heritage

Guidance for local authorities on the historic environment.

Improvement & Development Agency

Working for local government improvement.

ATLAS

Planning for large-scale development.

CapacityCheck

Assessing urban design capacity in individuals and organisations.