… and Ryan might finally be able to retire his ‘Ban the Bulkhead’ campaign

The newly published GN01/26 – The Avoidance of Obtrusive Light is much more than an update to the previous guidance. Across its 90+ pages, it dives into everything from environmental zones and light spill to glare, mounting heights, curfews, ecological considerations and planning requirements.

It’s comprehensive, technical and, let’s be honest, not exactly bedtime reading.

Thankfully, that’s our job.

So, What’s Changed?

The biggest clue is in the title. The old guidance was called The Reduction of Obtrusive Light. The new version is The Avoidance of Obtrusive Light.

That’s a subtle but important shift. Instead of accepting that light pollution happens and trying to tidy it up afterwards, the message is now to avoid creating the problem in the first place. It’s a bit like saying, “Maybe don’t drive into the hedge,” rather than explaining how to reverse back out of it. It’s common sense, but it’s now backed up by the UK’s leading guidance.

A huge credit to the people behind it

Guidance like GN01 doesn’t appear overnight – it takes months of discussion, technical debate and plenty of real-world experience to produce something that’s practical enough for designers while robust enough for planners.

The ILP panel behind GN01/26 deserves enormous credit. They have brought together experts from across the lighting profession to create guidance that reflects the challenges the industry faces today, from protecting wildlife and neighbours to improving the quality of our night-time environment.

It’s exactly the kind of collaboration that moves the whole industry forward.

So… About those Bulkheads…

For the past year or so, DFL’s Ryan Carroll has been running his Ban the Bulkhead campaign.

One of the things we love about the new guidance is that it encourages designers to think earlier and this is crucial.

Considering Bulkheads in particular, GN01 now recognises that light fittings that emit light outwards are not good for the environment, including wildlife, dark skies and humans! The guidance now encourages the use of downward directional wall-mounted light fittings, rather than outward light-emitting bulkheads.

Lighting shouldn’t be the thing that gets added at the end of a project because someone remembered the planning condition. It should be considered alongside highways, landscaping, ecology and architecture from the outset. When it is – project costs are usually lower, planning is smoother, neighbours are happier and wildlife impacts are mitigated.

Everyone wins.

Ryan Carroll is proud to see the guidance continue to evolve, “Preventing obtrusive light has always been at the heart of my work, and it’s a principle that underpins every design we produce at DFL-UK.”

 

35 pages to read…. don’t panic… that’s what we’re here for

The good news is you don’t have to become an expert overnight – that’s what DFL is here for. Whether you’re at the very start of a development or trying to navigate changing planning expectations, we’ll help you make sense of the guidance and design lighting that works first time.

And who knows? If enough projects start following the new GN01 guidance, Ryan might finally be able to stop talking about bulkheads.

…although we wouldn’t bet on it.