Government design body for Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland will launch its first Government-led design body next year in a bid to raise the standard of urban design across the region.

The governing body is being set up by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure at the Northern Ireland Executive.

It will champion design best practice and advise on

how best to implement the region’s newly launched policy on design in the built environment.

The Architecture and the Built Environment for Northern Ireland policy document launched in June, calling for a step-change in the way design was run in the region.

‘We want to raise the standard of design in the public sector across the whole built environment,’ says a spokesman at the DCAL.

Members from the design industry in Northern Ireland will be appointed to join the ministerial advisory group next year, says the spokesman.

A team of specialists, including academics and practitioners, will also be set up to support the group. It will hold regular panels to review design aspects of major projects in the region.