/ / Design guidelines

Design guidelines

The design guides help to ensure that all design and building projects meet our standards, and reflect our design principles.

Our design guides are for everyone involved in the planning, design, or construction of a Kāinga Ora development or housing project.

They set clear expectations for delivering quality homes and communities, providing a consistent framework guided by our key design principles.

Ngā Paerewa Hoahoa Whare: Design Requirements

Ngā Paerewa Hoahoa Whare: Design Requirements sets the design and construction requirements for all new public housing delivered by, and for, Kāinga Ora.

First published in 2023, the standard is reviewed and updated annually to reflect evolving requirements and best practice. The current version is Ngā Paerewa Hoahoa Whare: Design Requirements v2.1.

Tāone Ora: Urban Design Guidelines

These urban design guidelines outline our urban design expectations for the development of all Kāinga Ora housing - covering public, affordable and market housing across Aotearoa. These guidelines focus on the development of superlots and buildings. They consider neighbourhood context, making the most of the site and guidance focused on buildings that enables good urban design outcomes. These guidelines will support our organisation and our delivery partners, with the aim of ensuring that our work meets our core objective of delivering sustainable, thriving communities, which enable positive social and built outcomes.

This document replaces existing urban design guidance for all new projects initiated from 16th March 2023.

Tāone Ora: Urban Design Guidelines [PDF, 18 MB]

Design Review Panels Terms of Reference

These terms of reference outline design review processes, timeframes and documentation requirements for all market projects within Kāinga Ora Large Scale Projects.

Kāinga Ora Design Review acts as a sounding board and critical friend. The Urban Design team aims to work in a partnership approach with build partners, sharing input, review and perspective to help get the most out of development opportunities within the Large Scale Projects, while ensuring alignment with the masterplans.

Design Review Panels Terms of Reference [PDF, 1 MB]

Toitū Te Whenua Toitū Te Kāinga: Landscape Design Guide For Public Housing

Landscape is a critical component of Kāinga Ora developments at all scales, and directly affects the health and wellbeing of our communities. The guide applies to Public Housing across all delivery programmes with the aim of ensuring that our work meets our core objective of delivering sustainable, thriving communities, which enable positive social outcomes.

This document replaces existing Landscape Design Guide for State Housing for all new projects initiated from 24th March 2023.

Toitū Te Kāinga: Landscape Design Guide For Public Housing [PDF, 18 MB]

Open Space and Streets Design Guide

Kāinga Ora has published new guidance for the development of streets and open spaces, including parks, play areas, wayfinding elements and multi-modal/pedestrian pathways within and around our developments and Large-Scale Projects (LSPs).

The Open Space and Streets Design Guide acts as a toolkit for internal delivery teams, local government departments and civil construction partners.

The guide diagrammatically depicts suggested typologies, allowing future projects to be easily coordinated with both councils and civils delivery partners around the country. The document also details cost efficient material and furniture selections as preferred design choices by local authorities and asset owners.

The guidance aims to improve internal processes and improve collaboration with external partners, helping to achieve significant time and cost efficiencies.

Kāinga Ora Open Space and Streets Design Guide [PDF, 19 MB]

The Retrofit Design Standard

The Retrofit Design Standard outlines the requirements for all work carried out under the Retrofit Programme.

Version 1.2 is the current version and applies to all Retrofit briefs from 1 July 2025 onwards.

Retrofit Design Standard [PDF, 1.1 MB]

Solar photovoltaic (PV) ready building guide

This document provides guidelines for the design of Kāinga Ora buildings that are to include solar PV systems. It is provided as a resource to the Kāinga Ora Renewable Energy Trials and does not currently form part of the Kāinga Ora performance requirements (M-134/ M-135).

Solar Photovoltaic Building Design Guidelines [PDF, 908 KB]

Fences - Standard design sheets

If your property borders our property and you have plans for the fence-line, we may consider contributing to the cost of a new fence or an improvement to an existing fence, but you'll need to give us written notice and include information about the proposed work.

The proposed fence should meet our minimum fencing Wire mesh timber fence details standard detail [PDF, 163 KB]

For more information, including a full list of documents to include when requesting a Kainga Ora contribution to a fence, see our fencing page.

Subdivision Plan Guide

The Subdivision Plan Guide provides guidance to external surveyors and build/development partners on subdivision scheme plans and Land Transfer plans to reflect Kāinga Ora operational and asset management requirements.

Download the:

Masterplanning for Universal Design

This document is now out of date and no longer used.

Page updated: 6 July 2026