07 December 2007
Architecture + Design Scotland (A+DS) have responded to the Scottish Parliament Finance Committee's review in Procurement methods.
A+DS Chair Raymond Young in his letter to the Convenor of the Committee, Andrew Welsh MSP, states that:
"Scotland is special. This specialness is attributable to a number of things, including its people, its culture, its history, and its natural and built environment. Its places are special. Many are of exceptional quality, requiring protection and, occasionally, enhancement. Some are of poor quality, requiring regeneration, renewal and improvement. All need to be cared for, continuously.
"As our recently published Annual Report sets out we do not consider that Scotland is getting the best value from new developments in the built environment...we offer our expertise and assistance as the national champion for good architecture, design and planning in the built environment.
"We recommend that the review examine funding and procurement methodologies against the following three broad principles - 1 Policy and delivery should be linked; 2 Public leadership of procurement processes; 3 Procurement processes should recognise and value design quality."
A+DS's full submission can be found here.