Are better streets and parks a route to better mental health?

Public parks are good for our mental and physical health. They provide a sense of community for local people and passers-through. They provide social role valorisation for the dispossessed. They contribute to improving urban environments and combating the stress of city life. And they are highly valued by the public, argues Julia Thrift. But recognition of their many benefits may come too late to inform the government's sustainable communities plan and its plans to construct thousands of new homes throughout the south east.