<b><b>Housing minister Lord Falconer has consistently called on the industry to improve designs of new developments. The Building for Life initiative, as HBF head of external affairs Mark Rice explains, is doing just that</b></b><br><b>Current political, and to some extent public, perceptions of the private housebuilding industry are acknowledged to be poor. The industry is accused of being wasteful of resources, particularly land, unwilling to adapt or to invest in design and innovation, or to reflect local circumstances and character in the product. </b><br><b>Many of these criticisms are both generalised and often unfair, but this misses the point. They are widely held perceptions and whilst they exist, they hamper the industry and discourage those who are responding to criticism and to new market opportunities in a positive way.</b><br><b><b>design initiative</b></b><br> HBF, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) and the Civic Trust have set up the Building for Life initiative in the belief that collectively the industry needs to demonstrate more clearly its willingness to change and adapt. There are many examples of well-designed and executed schemes that demonstrate the industry&amp;’s commitment to good design, yet too rarely have these positive examples been drawn out and publicised. <p></p><p>Chaired by the …