Glossary of terms
- Accessibility
- The degree to which places, services and environments allow all people to use and access them regardless of any physical or psychological needs.
- Active travel
- Going from one destination to another in a physically active way such as walking, running, wheeling, cycling, or scooting.
- Adaptability
- The degree to which a design responds to present needs whilst considering how future needs can be accommodated without the need for intensive, disruptive, or costly building works.
- Affordable housing
- Whilst there is no agreed definition of affordable housing, this document uses the term to describe genuine and long- term value for money for tenants with rental prices, including service charges, at least 20% below local market rates with a guarantee of long-term price control.
- Air Quality Management Area
- Areas with poor air quality that have been designated for improvement in order to achieve national air quality objectives.
- Building systems
- Parts of buildings which generally relate to the services of buildings e.g. mechanical and electrical services such as heat pumps.
- Circular economy
- An economic model which focuses on reducing waste to a minimum by extending the lifespan of a material or component for as long as possible through robust specification, maintenance, refurbishment, deconstruction for reuse, reprocessing and recycling.
- Climate Emergency Action Plan
- A document produced following the Council’s declaration of a climate emergency in 2019 to support Hounslow’s direct carbon emissions reaching zero by 2030.
- Climate resilience
- The ability of a building or landscape to efficiently respond to and recover from environmental changes such as droughts, heat waves, flash floods, rising temperatures, or strong winds.
- Community Wealth Building
- Directing investment into the local economy and prioritising local decision-making to support local people and places with employment, procurement of goods and services, and use of land and assets.
- The Corporate Plan
- A Hounslow Council document which sets out our aspirations and challenges to deliver a greener, healthier, cleaner, thriving, safer and liveable Borough.
- Design-life
- The expected time that a building or component can be used as intended before it becomes obsolete or needs repairing. External factors such as weather, pollution, intensity of use and maintenance routines can all have an impact.
- Embodied carbon
- Carbon dioxide emissions associated with the resourcing, manufacture, transportation, installation, maintenance and disposal of construction materials throughout their whole life-cycle.
- Eyes on the street
- A condition where overlooking from adjacent inhabited buildings can provide passive surveillance of streets and public spaces, thereby contributing to an urban environment that feels safer.
- Fabric first
- Prioritising the materials and workmanship of the building fabric so that the building, as far as practicable, delivers comfortable internal environments before the utilising of mechanical or electrical building services.
- Future-proof
- Designing to avoid obsolescence to ensure that schemes are able to cope appropriately with, for example, future technologies, a changing climate, or new working patterns.
- Good Growth by Design
- A Mayor of London initiative to support London becoming a more inclusive, healthy, diverse, accessible and resilient city to live, work and visit.
- Play space
- Spaces that allow children, teenagers and adults to play. Formal play spaces can include play equipment, sports pitches, running tracks, or multi-use games areas. Incidental play spaces can include playful and interactive elements in the public realm which encourage curiosity and imagination.
- Long-term value
- Ensuring that the value and affordability of a project embraces its long-term existence, for example maintenance, wear and tear or management costs, against upfront value.
- Post Occupancy Evaluation
- The process of gathering and analysing information on a scheme’s performance once occupied, such as energy efficiency or user satisfaction.
- Public realm
- Shared spaces between (and sometimes within) buildings. These might be playful or functional, interactive or reflective, but should be accessible and inclusive for all.
- Social Value
- Supporting and improving local communities and the environment through the delivery, specification and procurement of services and goods which provide opportunities for disadvantaged individuals, local businesses and social projects such as local training and employment.
- Tenure-blind
- Housing design which is not segregated or visually distinguishable by tenure type. Housing should have the same external and internal finish and appearance, with shared facilities accessible for all.
- U-value
- A measure of the thermal performance of a material or component such as a wall, roof, or window. U-values are dependent upon the level of insulation, the workmanship and the installation of components and have minimum values set out as part of the Building Regulations.
- Urban heat island
- The phenomenon of a city or town being hotter in temperature than the surrounding countryside due to higher densification and population, transportation systems, hard surfaces and emissions.
