Passive design

Find out more about passive design, including solar sharing, natural lighting nd passive ventilation and cooling.

Take a look at relevant policies.

Useful guides on all these measures are provided by the Town & Country Planning Association [PDF 2.54kb] and Communities Scotland.

Below a quick summary of each measure is provided.

Building orientation for solar gain

This relates mainly to the way in which a building is sited in order to maximize opportunities for solar heat gain, natural ventilation and daylighting throughout the year.

There are a few generic, useful principles to consider:

  • The sun travels east-west making southern exposure the best physical orientation feature for capturing natural heat and light (passive solar energy). 
  • The sun is lower in the sky in winter than in summer requiring a shading devices that allows for capture of heat in winter while avoiding heat in summer. 
  • Placing the most frequently used rooms, which require most heating, and concentrating most of the glazing on the south side of the building and the less used rooms to the north of the building can help to capture natural heat and light and minimise the demand for heating and lighting.

Useful guides can be purchased from the British Research Establishment (BRE): 

Passive ventilation and cooling

These are design measures that allow for natural ventilation to cool the building/s or development in order to improve air quality and reduce the need for mechanical cooling. 

There are a few things to consider:

  • Encouraging air flow throughout the development can help keep down ambient temperatures by preventing heat being trapped in urban spaces and facilitate the cooling effect of wind and night-air. Design choices that can help encourage air flow include orientation with respect to the wind direction and relative heights and density of buildings.
  • Optimal use of natural ventilation measures require knowledge of the prevailing wind direction and pressure fields around the buildings.
  • Passive night cooling can be used in combination with thermal mass to reduce peak cooling loads during the day inside buildings.
  • Water features such as lakes, ponds and fountains help to cool air temperature through evaporation. Their effectiveness will depend on the number of features and size, depth and shading. 

Useful guides can be purchased from the British Research Establishment (BRE): 

Natural lighting

Daylighting features allow for moving natural light deeper into the building/s. These can include skylights, light monitors, clerestories, lightshelves, light tubes, atria, courtyards, and glass or glass-block partitions and doors. Blinds with reflective upper surfaces that bounce light off ceilings and the use of light colored paints and finishings reduce the need for artificial lighting.

Appropriate use of overhangs (awnings, shutters, trellises, or deciduous trees to block the sun’s summer path) and venting is also crucial in order to avoid glare and overheating.

Thermal mass

This refers to the buildings materials such as stone, concrete, ceramic bricks and water that store heat. Incorporating these materials into floors, walls, and fireplaces will help absorb and later release of thermal energy to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures without the use of active heating or cooling. 

Solar shading

This refers to devices such as overhanging eaves, deep reveals, lightshelves, pergolas and shutters that help to prevent internal overheating. Shading is required particularly if windows face south. External solar shading is most effective for reducing overheating potential.  

Deciduous trees and planting can also be effective is providing shading over the summer and allowing sunlight through during the winter. 

Public spaces with sunlit spaces should have some areas of shade to sit in and footpaths should be shaded  to create cooler and more pleasant environments for walking.

Useful guides on these subject can be purchased from the British Research Establishment (BRE): 

Other measures

Colours of buildings, building materials, glazing distribution, shading and urban vegetation should all be considered to design effective low energy buildings. 

Relevant policies

National Policy
PPS1: Delivering Sustainable Development
Supplement to PPS1: Climate Change and Planning

Brighton & Hove Local Plan
SU2: Efficiency of development in the use of energy, water and materials [PDF 799kb]