Last week we went to London discuss the future of security, accessibility and social value in BREEAM with the BRE Core Science Team. CPTED-UK are part of the BRE Health and Wellbeing Technical Working Group. The session was recorded for those who were unable to attend.
The event was hosted by BRE and the participants represented the highest level of expertise in their respective areas of sustainability. CPTED-UK deliver the full range of security services under BRE. We act as a Suitably Qualified Security Specialist (SQSS) for BREEAM and HQM. We routinely deliver Hea06 Security Needs Assessments across the UK. The variety of projects we’ve supported over the years gives us an in-depth knowledge and practical understanding of the application of the Hea06 criteria.
As a SABRE licensed company CPTED-UK represent the full range of competencies within the security risk management. It makes CPTED-UK one of a handful of companies that can advise the built environment at all the stages of the project’s lifecycle. Recognising the interdependencies between the RIBA stages and the project management simplifies the process of integrating security into the design.
CPTED-UK also delivers the Social Risks and Opportunities assessments under the BREEAM International scheme. Our competence in the Social Value is based on academic qualifications and over 20 years of experience working with governments, local authorities, NGOs and diverse communities across the world.
Security, accessibility and social value as disciplines of urban planning and design are interdependent and complement each other. Recognising that BRE created a collaboration platform to encourage the interdisciplinary approach. The outcomes of this collaboration are to inform the further development of the BRE environmental assessment methodology.
The afternoon session was open by Christina Georgiadou, the Sustainable Finance Lead at BRE Group. Christina welcomed everybody from the TWG and set the scene by presenting the current provision for Health & Wellbeing under BRE.
Following that, Jose Salazar-Vela (aka Pepe), the Social Value Consultant at BRE, introduced the terms well-being and social value in the built environment context. The theory was supported by case studies, one of which presented Pepe’s Social Value assessment of an office complex. The first assessment of social risks and opportunities we carried out in 2020 was also for an office complex. Malta Office Park in Poznan, Poland has been shortlisted for the BREEAM Award as the first scheme that integrated Social Value into their BREEAM In-Use portfolio.
Gareth Hulmes, the Head of SABRE at The Security Institute, presented the overlay of security in the RIBA process and explained how the Security Assurance by BRE complies with the National Protective Security Authority (NPSA, formerly CPNI) guidelines.
Following the presentations, we worked in groups exploring answers to some thought-provoking questions. Although the debate is by no means concluded, it expanded our understanding of accessibility needs in the built environment and its impact on social cohesion.
We hope our contribution helped others understand how security, if applied in a socially sensitive way, can enhance both the accessibility and social value of places. The workshop was a tangible example of how multi-disciplinary cross-sector approach enhances the quality of design and the overall end user experience.