Sustainable Urban Neighbourhood is the title of a new book by David Rudlin and Nicholas Falk published by the Architectural Press. It updates the 1999 edition Building the 21st Century Home that has come to be seen as an important text in the rediscovery of urbanism in the UK..

Following study tours organised through the Town and Country Planning Association, and also URBED's case studies of new settlements in Freiburg and Amersfoort, Sir Peter Hall and Nicholas Falk drew out the conclusions and asked 'Why not here?' Presentations of the findings are being made to a number of conferences. .

Dr Nicholas Falk gave a presentation to a packed audience at the London Building Centre on October 15th to launch the ‘Over the Edge?’ report, produced by URBED for the North and West London Strategic Alliances, as part of the London's towns; shaping the polycentric city exhibition (on until mid November). The summary was published in Planning in London, Issue 67 Oct-Dec 2088, www.planninginlondon.com. .

A masterplan for expanding the population of the City of Ely by up to 50% was released for consultation this week. .

At the time of the first Urban Summit back in 2002 URBED was commissioned to work with 24 major towns and cities and the ODPM, and the resulting set of five reports set out the state of the cities and lessons from over 60 case studies. .

URBED have been appointed by the North London Strategic Alliance and West London Alliance to undertake an inquiry into the economic health of their main town centres, the roles they play, and how they could contribute to a more diverse and sustainable economy. It aims to look at what action can be taken to stimulate strong employment markets in outer London’s town centres..

URBED (Urban and Economic Development) Ltd with Comedia have been appointed by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA) and Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company (GHURC) to research the opportunities for attracting creative businesses to Gloucester. .

URBED, with Colin Buchanan has been appointed by the London Borough of Wandsworth to draw up a strategy for conserving the essence of Northcote Road, near Clapham Junction, one of the most successful specialist shopping centres in the Borough..

Ten years after URBED developed the first ever Vision for Cirencester, we were invited back to run another event to build consensus over the priorities for the further development of the town centre, 'soft' and 'hard'. .

Stepping Out: Towards an action plan for Stroud's evening economy This report looks at the future of the evening economy in Stroud, Gloucestershire, and puts forward proposals for reinforcing the upsurge of activity in the town centre, by attracting a wider group of people to come into town at night. .

A study tour of major development projects in three Dutch cities suggests that planning in Britain would be improved by adopting their practices, particularly as far as collaboration between different agencies is concerned. .

Nicholas Falk addressed a fringe meeting of the LGA conference in Harrogate on July 7th, where he went through the findings. A summary report is available free, and the final report and literature review is available from the LGA..

At a packed seminar at the Building Centre on March 26th, as part of their Sustainable London series, a group of speakers suggested ways of making the policy of building housing at higher densities work. Chairman Andrew Scoones warned we are building close to what used to be considered the maximum density, and higher densities bring risks. .

A report by URBED based on a range of consultation events sets out a vision and strategic framework for the future of York - published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. .

A study aimed at providing practical guidance for housing providers on managing mixed communities has been launched today (Monday, 4th December)..

URBED has been appointed by Yorkshire Forward to lead the Urban Renaissance Programme for ‘Selby Towns Renaissance’. 05/01/05.

Appointment to lead a consortium to develop a Vision and Development Strategy for Bury Town Centre. .