Just heard Open Conty on radio 4 and a very nice house compared to the timber and plasterboard that the big housing companies are forcing people to live in.
Was going to ask whether anything had been done for wildlife and had written a long email with info but then looking at a photo spotted 2 Ibstock swift bricks so talking to the converted already! Speakers placed in the boxes or nearby playing swift calls will encourage swifts to come and hopefully take up residence. Even if swifts don’t come other birds will use them such as blue tits or sparrows especially in winter for roosting. Swifts can take up to 4 or 5 years to turn up if you’re lucky!
Stephen Fitt a RSPB volunteer in the southwest has done much for swifts and Exeter City Council have a well publicised swift tower in the centre but what is not realised is that close by there are probably about 400 nestboxes incorporated into buildings.
I’ve attached a link to Exeter City Council that has their guidelines:

https://exeter.gov.uk/planning-services/planning-policy/supplementary-planning-documents/residential-design-guide-spd/

THe chapter 11 Residential Design Guide has the guidance.

There is lots of info out there whether it is the Swift Conservation Website, RSPB swift section, or actionforswift blog spot and it is architects and planners who can ultimately help wildlife in the long term by incorporating slight modifications to new building projects and make the human experience in life more interesting and satisfying in the urban environment.

All the best and like your house. Would be good if Kevin McCloud could bang on about wildlife modifications on those Grand Designs programmes tooo but I’m just bias!

Best wishes

Alistair Whybrow