Ardler has been included in a new guide, also backed by the Chartered Institute of Housing and social policy charity the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which will be used to help organisations build places where people from different incomes, lifestyles and ages live together.

Craig McLaren, a regeneration expert from Communities Scotland, said, “There are a number of excellent examples of successful mixed communities.

“These have proved to be popular places to live and it is likely these neighbourhoods will be more sustainable in the longer term.”

He said the guide would be a valuable tool, showing housing and regeneration groups the techniques that would help them become more effective.

Ardler used to be mostly council housing, but housing agency Sanctuary was brought in to help work with residents to demolish unpopular flats and build a new street layout with family houses.

A Communities Scotland spokesperson explained, “During the 1990s this estate was suffering from high levels of social deprivation and population decline.

“A range of methods for engaging with communities was used, including household surveys. It was agreed there would be a wholesale demolition, except for 73 low-rise properties on the edge of the estate.

“In 2003 the Ardler Village Trust was set up to promote social, economic and community regeneration. By November 2006, 693 houses for rent were completed and a final phase of 47 new houses for rent was on site.”

The other case studies in the guide are the redevelopments of the Craigmillar area of Edinburgh and the Gorbals in Glasgow.

It was launched today at the Scottish Centre for Regeneration conference in Edinburgh.

Alan Ferguson, Scottish director of the Chartered Institute of Housing, said, “Building mixed communities goes beyond the bricks and mortar of housing and also encompasses creating the right spaces, environments and opportunities for people to mix and thrive.

“This guide will help housing and other professionals deliver on this and move away from the mono-tenure areas with limited public facilities of the past, which have failed many communities.”