This is really very good 🔻. The thing it misses is that air pollution is a *huge* public health problem: the cleaner air caused by the bridge being closed to traffic will be measurably improving the health of a large population and saving the #NHS a massive amount...

Oh no - not another one! #planning #nature #environment

In 2023, life expectancy for females in the UK was 82.9 years, lower than all other comparable countries. Veena Raleigh reviews the latest international data to assess how the UK’s health compares to other countries: https://bit.ly/47PQNSQ

I remember the bonfire nights of my youth - absolutely freezing As the warmest bonfire night on record hit the UK, the BBC managed to report it without mentioning climate change! www.bbc.com/weather/arti...

Government has published one of those quiet but important documents that might get overlooked as it is not 'newsy'. The headline finding is that £1 of public R&D investment generates £8 in net economic benefits for the UK over the long term www.gov.uk/government/p...

With some fabulous playwork, youth work, and school-based colleagues - and with local children - we’ve been working in Jarrow to shout about the value of play, so very very pleased to see “further investment focused on a new play strategy for children” in the developing plans of Jarrow Forward.

In 2012 I saw a similar ad, for a finance writer at The Economist. A few months later I got the job. It is not a pain-free application (you have to submit an original article) but I could only encourage you to have a punt.

In Paris, here in October, in the urban park on the banks of the Seine. It used to be a motorway, and now it is a public space for the enjoyment of inhabitants of all ages.

Breaking news: Councillors voted to approve redeveloping Lewisham Shopping Centre tonight amid angry scenes. We’ll have coverage of this on the website tomorrow.

Everyone should read this 🔻

Always a pleasure to visit #Manchester - but even more so now the #Bee integrated public #transport network is up-and-running. Easy-peasy to get around, even for tourists like me...

Wot no #UniversityChallenge tonight? 😳

A huge thank you to The Developer for this article on Make Space for Girls and helping raise awareness of the fact all donations to our charity are doubled this week: www.thedeveloper.live/opinion/make... #wgmf @biggive.bsky.social

🧵🚨 The UK’s independent scientific bodies are highly vulnerable to politicisation - over the past 5 months I've been working with @martinmckee.bsky.social to map out their vulnerabilities and it's not good news. Today our report is published! www.ucl.ac.uk/policy-lab/n... 1/11

Well, that's one way of handling global ecosystem collapse Block publication of research that might raise awkward questions about whether UK govt is doing enough about it Can't see any flaws in that approach.... www.thetimes.com/uk/environme...

Up for helping with #SlowWays this weekend? This map shows 900 routes across Britain that need just one more good review to be verified🐌✅⭐️❤️ Could you check one... or even a trail of routes? And inspire others to follow in your footsteps? Take look: beta.slowways.org/user/waylist...

#Design is facing an existential crisis, as @edwinheathcote.bsky.social explains so eloquently. 🔻🔻 Design thinking could transform lives for the better (eg in #NHS systems; or wayfinding; or products for older people), but many designers' work just fuels excessive consumption... on.ft.com/46M9mXI

The same in #Edinburgh. It invested in its public realm to increase walking and cycling and Mastercard reported a 20% increase in local spend. Many other benefits were also evidenced in the multi year study - despite predictions of disaster, the scheme was anything but.

@theasrstein.bsky.social warns that other countries haven't made a shift from hospital to community without investment, and we don't have the infrastructure that is ready for that shift at the moment. It's a very difficult equation to make it work with current resources.

At this year's TCPA Annual Conference, we'll hear inspiring examples of community planning & nature recovery, learn what the Planning & Infrastructure Bill proposals mean in practice, & consider how local planning authorities should approach the next year. Tickets: www.tcpa.org.uk/event/tcpa-a...

Parks should be accessible & welcoming to all. Yet in Britain, women are 3x more likely than men to feel unsafe in a park during the day. We must create a community of active bystanders to make our parks safer & more inclusive, writes Dr Anna Barker on the launch of a new campaign. shorturl.at/kti7o

#theBeeAt3 Basic bee facts every day at 3pm. # 179 Bumblebees are aware of the size of their bodies relative to the environment around them. They know how big they are and can judge where they’ll fit! Knowing one’s body dimensions is a core aspect of self-awareness. #bees #nature #environment

Most areas in the UK were affected by heatwaves this summer, with some areas becoming unbearable. This is likely the future of our British summers ☀️🌡️ One way to make your street cooler is to add some trees. Sponsor a street tree today to make next summer easier 👉 sponsor.treesforstreets.org/start

#Planners in #Leeds doing a good job of mixing old and new buildings and patching together public spaces... But still a lot to do!

New Pod: The Grown Up Stuff! (Free) Wills & even more important Power Of Attorney. I'm joined by lawyers to talk peace of mind protection. Do listen. podcasts.APPLE.com/gb/podcast/t... open.SPOTIFY.com/show/6tsU1yc... www.BBC.co.uk/sounds/brand...

Community groups can now bid for a share of a £1 million pot of money from developers with the return of the council’s Greenwich Neighbourhood Growth Fund. greenwichwire.co.uk/2025/09/18/g...

Given Farage's comments on marriage yesterday, worth saying that levels of support for same-sex marriage among Reform supporters are almost double those who oppose it, and not far off the national average.

Another free link to this, in case people have going to bed reading requirements on.ft.com/3K1ZFg3

🗣️ 'Planning has been described by some, rather mischievously, as a ‘system without a purpose’. But we argue that the planning system can be transformational.' Lachlan Anderson-Frank reveals what to expect from this year's Annual Conference: The purpose of planning. www.tcpa.org.uk/announcing-t...

#OtD 11 Sep 1946 the Abbey Lodge block of flats in Regents Park, London was squatted by homeless families of WWII ex-servicemen. It was part of a wave of similar occupations in the wake of WWII stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8359...

EPC ratings are being used for access to grants, to ban landlords for letting low-rated properties, and for access to green finance. But yet another study has found they bear no relation to energy used. share.google/oqiQWuAtGTJ4...

Important question 🔻

Remember folks, to keep your house even cooler in summer, your Venetian blinds are best fitted to the exterior of your home. Just like they did in old Venice. On the inside, and it's too late, as the heat is already in the house.

Abbey Wood station alone now sees more passengers a year than Bristol Temple Meads station. Also more than Cambridge station, Sheffield station and Newcastle station. The power of the Liz line (and why it's baffling Southeastern cut trains serving it for interchange)

#OtD 8 Sep 1946 numerous empty properties, including 148 luxury flats in the Duchess of Bedford House in Kensington, were squatted by homeless ex-servicemen and their families in London in a wave of occupations across the country stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/1086...

📢 We're hiring a Public Affairs Lead! An exciting opportunity has come up help us influence the political agenda about the impacts of the food system on our diets, our health and our planet. More info & apply: ➡️ bit.ly/3CoZaoy

Nuclear energy - it certainly ain't cheap www.ft.com/content/ee89...

It's disappointing that the government's plan to get people moving is focused around "Go for a jog" rather than, as the evidence suggests, building environments that encourage everyday incidental exercise: the ability to walk to amenities liveapp.inews.co.uk/category/388...

Almost 8,000 discharges took place on dry days over the six months in England, polluting rivers and seas when wild swimmers would least expect it

People can find it hard to believe that major streets could be closed to #traffic without causing huge problems... so making Oxford Street #pedestrian-only for a day just to see what happens is a great way to demonstrate that the sky won't fall in... And #free events and #fun makes it even better 🔻

📝 Today CIH has joined the @local.gov.uk & others in calling for changes to permitted development rights to: 🔹 Ensure all new homes meet safety and decency standards 🔹 Provide Section 106 contributions for more affordable homes Read the letter & analysis here ⬇️ www.local.gov.uk/about/news/n...

Lucid, convincing case for a tax on high-value property, from the UK's most eminent housing economist, John Muellbauer. Would raise revenue *and* be good for growth. ://www.ft.com/content/bb4e7566-4bc6-45c9-87e4-271cc40c66a5

Beautiful villas in #Dinard, France, built for wealthy merchants in late 19th century, a time of huge wealth inequality. Great to see so many being immaculately restored - but renovation of this quality must cost millions. Presumably only possible as a result of today's huge wealth inequality...?

📢 We're hiring! Osborn Research Assistant (New Towns & Garden Cities) This role works on a range of projects, with an emphasis on large-scale new communities inc. New Towns & Garden Cities. Salary: £26 -28k p.a. Deadline: 1 Sep 2pm. www.tcpa.org.uk/osborn-resea... #CharityJob #ResearchJob

A minute of calm, restful biking for you. A minute of biking on an Utrecht fietsstraat (bike-street). People who bike have priority, and people who park and drive cars are guests. Een minuutje rustig en ontspannen fietsen voor jou. Een minuutje fietsen op een Utrechtse fietsstraat. Mooie wolken!

Life’s getting a bit more crap here if you are a person from an ethnic minority 🧵

‘Yet for many people, life is so hectic that a glimpse of beauty on the walk to the office or a tranquil spot for a hasty lunch break may be as important to quality of life as the creation of large specialist havens.’ - Dr Sally Cairns New: From the archive blog archive.tcpa.org.uk/posts/news/2...

Via the London Minute: "Meanwhile the Stockwell Gardens area of Lambeth will trial a new ‘healthy neighbourhood’ with new traffic restrictions and ‘public realm improvements’" love.lambeth.gov.uk/lambeth-to-t...

Oxford Street will go traffic-free on Sunday September 21 for a trial event ahead of its planned pedestrianisation by the Mayor www.standard.co.uk/news/london/...