Town and Country Planning Association - Definition

The Town and Country Planning Association is England's oldest environmental charity. It was founded as the Garden Cities Association in 1899 by Ebenezer Howard, initially to promote the development of Garden cities.

Today, the purpose of the TCPA is to "promote and improve the art and science of town and country planning and to promote, encourage and assist in all other arts and sciences connected therewith." [1] (http://www.tcpa.org.uk).

The TCPA has established more specific aims and objectives. It "is working to improve the quality of people's lives and the environments in which they live." (op cit) To this end, it seeks:

• to secure a decent home for everyone; in a good human-scale environment which combines the best features of town and country;
• to counter over-centralised decision-making and to give people greater choice and the power to influence the decisions that affect them; and
• to improve the planning system in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.

Polcies adopted to further these objectives cover a wide range of major national and regional issues, including, sustainable development, improved strategic planning, inner city regeneration and the provision of affordable housing, building new and extended settlements to reduce development pressures on existing towns and villages and to achieve a more sustainable pattern of development, particularly in the south of England.

External links

TCPA website (http://www.tcpa.org.uk)