| The Millennium Communities Programme The Millennium Communities Programme was initiated in 1997 with the launch of a competition to find a designer for the Greenwich Millennium Village. Seven different sites have now been chosen to demonstrate that energy efficient, environmentally responsible development is achievable regardless of geographic location. These are: Greenwich, South London; Allerton Bywater, near Leeds; New Islington, Ancoats, East Manchester; South Lynn, King's Lynn, East Anglia; Telford Millennium Community, Telford; Oakgrove, Milton Keynes and Hastings, East Sussex. Objectives One of the main objectives of the Millennium Communities Programme is to influence the house building industry and to encourage higher standards of housing developments and improved energy efficiency. Each Millennium Community Project has to meet tough environmental standards for its homes that are more demanding than any current regulations. For example, the aim is to reduce the energy used in constructing homes by 50 per cent; the amount of water consumed in them by 20 per cent and the amount of energy used in them by 20%. House builders involved in the projects will be encouraged to use modern and energy efficient construction methods and materials, so the programme can deliver high quality homes that set a standard for other house builders to follow. All Millennium Communities will aim to meet the following objectives: • Minimise resource consumption |
 |