SNUG trumps planning policy
The amazing news this week is that the development control committee of Bristol City Council unanimously voted to support the planning application for the SNUG home in Bristol. The committee made up of cross party councillors made the unprecedented decision to enable the creation of a dedicated one person low impact dwelling, the first one person dwelling to obtain permission since the last local plan was introduced in Bristol.
The SNUG is also unprecedented as it delivers a one person dwelling over two storeys. There is currently no given dimension within the space standards for a one person dwelling over two storeys. The committee recognised that as a city, bold decisions needed to be made to support innovative housing projects that could help towards addressing the chronic housing crisis.
The outcome of the decision to grant planning permission for the SNUG now unlocks the next phase in the development. A small site in Lockleaze in Bristol will be leased from the city council to create a pop-up fabrication and training space. The SNUG will be built bringing in those who would like to skill up and get involved. We want the SNUG to be a ‘peoples built home’, and we will be documenting the process to share with you along the way.
We are truly grateful to the openness and level headed thinking of councillors on the committee to not be driven by bureaucratic outdated planning policy, and to overturn the recommendation for refusal of the planning officer. We are also grateful to all the letters and statements of support from you out there. Your support was overwhelming, and proves to us that there is a real need for change in how we create homes.
Whatever your position on climate change, there is unequivocal evidence that we need to start considering ‘adaptation’ to enable communities to prepare and come to terms with the changes ahead of us. We believe that community involved design and development of how we live, and a transition towards low impact resilient homes with a smaller footprint can support in this process.
One small step for SNUG, one giant leap for innovative people involved housing.