Housing Minister Grant Shapps has now confirmed that CABE will be folded into the Design Council, merging their advisory roles and his department has lined up an array of supporters to back the move.
TV’s Kevin McCloud, presenter of Channel 4's Grand Designs, said: "I think this is one of the most sensible decisions this government has made. The Design Council and the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment have complementary skills, are both beacons of excellence and have recently been working in converging areas. Design and Architecture increasingly overlap as our built environment gets more complex. Interior designers, lighting and product designers and specialists in graphic, landscape, urban planning and retail design all make a significant contribution to how our world feels and functions.
"I'm particularly looking forward to seeing one central body of excellence working with communities across Britain, helping to promote and share the ideas that make our homes, workplaces and means of transport work better and more sustainably and helping to make brilliant architecture and memorable, distinctive places. There is a lot to do."
Royal Institution of British Architects chief executive Harry Rich said: "The RIBA welcomes the partnership of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and the Design Council. Both organisations have delivered excellent work to improve the quality of the built environment and champion design across government, and we are delighted that their experience and influence will continue in a new form in support of our shared objective of improving the quality of buildings, communities and the environment."
Design Council chairman Lord Bichard said: "Now more than ever we need design at the heart of social and economic renewal, and a strong message about design in all its forms. I am looking forward to working with our colleagues at the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and with a wide range of industry partners to make this a success."
Even journalist Paul Finch, who is chairman of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, has been persuaded to express support, saying: "This very positive move will place architecture at the heart of the economy as a driver for competitive businesses and places. I am very much looking forward to the combined expertise of our two organisations to coming together to achieve that."
A review of the Design Council was completed in October 2010 as part of the government's reform of quasi autonomous non-governmental organisations, or quangos. The review, chaired by Martin Temple, considered the role of the state as design sponsor and the role of design within social and economic policy.
The Design Council will officially cease to be a non-departmental public body (NDPB) but will retain its charitable status and become an independent not-for profit organisation incorporated by Royal Charter. The target date for the transition is 1 April 2011, subject to agreement by the Privy Council and Charity Commission.
CABE is the government's advisor on architecture, urban design and public space. It was created in 1999 as the champion for design quality in buildings, spaces and places across England. It promotes the best in architecture and urban design by promoting high standards in the design of buildings and spaces, advising all those who create, manage and utilise the built environment, and stimulating public debate. CABE is sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), with additional funding from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
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