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COMMUNITY LED DESIGNFacilitating the engagement of local people in placemaking

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Cardiff4 Stangate House, Stanwell Road, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan CF64 2AA029 2040 8476

Belfast250 Ravenhill Road, Belfast BT6 8GJ028 9080 6055 Reading1210 Arlington Business Park, Reading RG7 4TY01189 298 040

soltysbrewster.com

ISO 9001 + ISO 14001

A CarbonZero® Company

Soltys Brewster Consulting is the trading name of Soltys Brewster Consulting Ltd.

Registered Office:- 4 Stangate House, Stanwell Road, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan CF64 2AA Registration No. 6262312

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Preface

Section One - An Approach

Introduction

1. Pre-monitoring and perceptual survey

2. Gathering initial thoughts

3. Using events to engage

4. Linking ideas to spaces

5. Workshops - formal and informal

6. Distilling key themes

7. Temporary trials

Section Two - Case Studies

Case Study One: Victoria Gateway, Southend

1.1. The Launch event

1.2. Big maps and lots of colour

CONTENTS

1.3. First proposals - taking it out there

1.4. Putting it together

1.5. Visualising the proposals

1.6. Presenting design proposals

1.11. A village design statement

1.21. Engaging children and young people

1.31. Summarising the outcomes

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This brochure outlines the approaches taken by Soltys Brewster in facilitating community led design. It is intended to both showcase projects that the company have worked on as well as provide a useful resource, a method-ology and outlining the benefits of this way of working. As a consultancy specialising in landscape design, planning and ecology we put an emphasis on integrating the human and natural environments in a way that cre-ates truly sustainable places.

We have extensive experience of facilitating community led design across the UK and Ireland. Working with communities in loca-tions from the inner cities of Britain’s biggest conurbations to remote rural villages. This has resulted in successful implementation.

Soltys Brewster are environmental consul-tants, dealing with all aspects of landscape and ecological assessment, landscape plan-ning and design. Since our formation in 2000, we have established a reputation for high quality consultancy services, delivered across the British Isles. The practice has a depth of specialist skills and expertise and a portfolio of landmark and award winning projects.

We believe that consultancy Services are as much about people and teamwork as they are about the skills and expertise of the practice. We provide a personal approach, focusing on quality solutions and achieving project goals, with the aim of building long term profession-al relationships which are creative and mutu-ally productive.

PREFACE

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The ideas and practice of community-led design have a long-standing tradition, especially in the context of urban design, planning and

architecture. Community-led design goes beyond the one-dimensional process of consultation, helping involve people in decision-making throughout the design process, from visioning to implementation.

Section OneCommunity Led Design, a methodology

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Good participation is when community, mar-ket and politics work together and collaborate to create the setting for place, the stage for daily life to happen. As practitioners, we need to ‘create’ inclusive design processes that allow local people to play a clear and direct role in informing changes in their own envi-ronment and making decisions throughout the projects development. By listening to the people we can make informed decisions and actions in creating the right setting.

It is all about knowledge sharing from the pro-fessional to the people and from the people to the professionals. But present day public engagement is still mostly an invitation to be informed and not a collaborative process of placemaking for the people by the people, with help of the professionals. We need to support this knowledge transfer and look at the everyday, at what people actually value. We need to create locally, before we can think globally. Then the community can ‘lead’ the knowledge transfer to making their own

“‘A process through which local people are engaged in developing

their environment, including buildings,

open spaces andneighbourhoods’.”

locality. To create a holistic Community Led Design process, we need to support commu-nities to have this capacity and willingness to act. Ultimately, there is a need to establish an active civic society that has a sense of agency to start changes from within, without wait-ing for external agents to initiate action or change. Good enabling is providing the means with which people can open doors and cre-ate opportunities in order to build their own neighbourhoods. The following pages repre-sent a possible methodology.

INTRODUCTION

Gathering thoughts and ideas

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1. Pre-Monitoring and perceptual survey

Before directly engaging communities in the design process, it is very useful to get a baseline picture of a street, public place or neigbourhood. Establishing an initial sense of how things are and how people perceive their environment can help structure the early phases of the project. Simply walking about, or sitting and observing how people interact with a place at different times of day can pro-vide valuable insight and orientation.

Taking photographs, mapping features, taking notes or making quick sketches can also help reinforce the understanding of a place. Looking at a place in it’s wider context, analysing pedestrian flows, exploring key

Getting to know a place and how people use it at different times of the day

Use of door to door or on-street surveys elicits valuable data

Getting to know the ‘site’ and the people

who live there

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linkages and open space provision are also useful. Experiential mapping can also be used to spatially capture subjective experiences, such as feelings of safety, smells, vibrancy etc.

Pre-monitoring using carefully designed, questionnaires, ideally tailored to the particular locality can also be invaluable, providing a benchmark, against which to measure progress. This can be useful in evidencing the positive impact of changes which could be used to win over stakeholders,

politicians and win funding and or investment. The initial survey can also get some quick initial feedback on what people do and don’t like and initial ideas they might have. This baseline picture also helps with reporting and evaluation. It also helps to provide an overview of the demographic and a sense of where might be best to intervene and where there is a high level of interest or most urgent need for intervention.

“Getting a sense of a place, prior to engaginga community will help establish orientation”

Experiential mapping example

Mapping pedestrian flows

The wider context might include local green space and corridors

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The initial stages, especially the survey work should have established a broad idea of who makes up the community, who are those who live, work, shop, socialise, play in a locality. This intial scoping excercise can then form the basis for strategies that can access the initial thoughts and ideas of the widest cross section of the population as possible.

A good early approach, is simply to set stall at a busy node, and invite people to participate by breifly explaining the purpose of the project, provide information leaflets and get feedback to questions such as: what do you like about this place? What do you dislike, what would you change? What’s missing, what ideas do you have to make this space

better? etc. This is a form of crowdsourced brainstorm. The feedback gathered isn’t guided or filtered or categorised, rather it becomes a mass of raw data. It is very much being open to the good, the bad and the ugly.

In terms of capturing a broad cross section of the community, this approach has it’s limita-tions and is only really effective when it is part of a raft of approaches. It tends to miss a lot of people due to factors such as time of day, the location chosen, how busy passers by are and their willingness to participate generally.

Collecting thoughts, opinions and ideas on postcards

Visiting local businesses to get their input

2. Gathering initial thoughtIdentifying the ‘community’ and collecting,

thoughts, views and ideas

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A more targetted approach is usually needed in addition. Hard to reach groups might be encouraged to participate by working with organisations or community leaders who work with a specific demographic rather than attempting to approach them directly. The use of social media can also be a powerful means of reaching a broad spectrum of peo-ple, and in particular young people. Setting up Facebook and Twitter accounts for the project can prove effective allowing users to post comments, see what others have said as well as recive information about the project. A seperate blog or website that acts as a central

repository and point of contact can be useful in holding all the other elements together. It becomes the online equivalent of a project hub. A physical pop-up community space ded-icated to the project, utilising an empty shop, for instance could also provide a permenant presence within a neighbourhood. In terms of capturing ideas, a wide variety of approaches could be used such as big blackboards, post-cards, luggage labels, posted materials, social

Big blackboards are a classic way to collect ideas

Thoughts and ideas written on luggage labels tied to a fence

media (as described), fiilming or recording people as well as feedback gathered on more formal surveys or questionnaires. The main-stream media are also an important way of getting attention and capturing the views of a wide range of people. People coming to-gether to improve their locality can be very nesworthy, attracting the press and broadcast media. The media can help facilitate a positive feedback where the publicity brings in more people and more people bring more publicity. A win-win situation.

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longer, get more involved and be more recep-tive to the possibilities of the project. Where animating space is a potential outcome of a project, the act of setting up events that en-gage on a pop-up basis also suggest a longer term, more permenant change of use. It, in its own right becomes a form of placemaking and can bring people together and create a sense of shared ownership of a neighbourhood or public space. Through Placemaking, com-munity places not only become more active and useful for the people who help to create them, they can become more welcoming to people of all ages, abilities, income levels and

Rather than the dry excercise of simply asking people what they would do to change their neighbourhood, it can be particularly combine it with an event or series of events and activ-ities. This draws people in and can encourage people to stop a while, get more generally involved, meet and gather together. A colour-ful gazebo, bunting, balloons, flags and inter-esting images etc. is a good start. Add in tea, coffee and soft drinks, tables and chairs and it becomes more appealing. Take it further and include food, music, games and other activi-ties and the more likely people will gather, stay

“By engaging people who live and work

there, we make spaces that are more, exciting, robust and grounded in

community”

3. Using events to engage Music, food and participation in arts or

sport can help draw people in

Active participation helps draw people in

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backgrounds. Since public spaces can both reflect and shape the communities they serve, they become incredibly meaningful places for people working to create more equitable cities. Many underserved communities have been systematically excluded from the pros-perity and vibrancy that their city continues to generate for its wealthier residents. When neighbors come together to improve their public spaces, results can be tangible and immediate, and this process itself amplifies the sense of inclusion that great places can generate.

It is the little pockets or bursts of community cohesion that can act as powerful catalysts for greater involvement down the line for some and simply an opportunity for people to quick-ly express their opinions and ideas, who would not otherwise do so. Where these events occupy the same spaces at regular intervals, the cumulative engagement becomes a factor and commitment can begin to emerge. Those with particular interests and skills may emerge and become facilitators from within the com-munity. The more the facilitator can initiate community leadership the more effectivethe outcomes are.

Active participation helps draw people in

Music, art sport and play directly involve people in the placemaking process

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When ideas become attached to particular places, we begin to get involved in the world of spatial design. The very act of placing a post-it note with a particular proposal on a map, walking around a neighbourhood, stand-ing in a particular spot and making a sugges-tion, moving elements around in a physical or computer generated model all become acts of urabn design.

By setting up situations where members of a community can start to physically design their own neighbourhood, we as facilitators, provide tools that can can empower people to make desciscions that can be translated in to more formal design proposals that can be communicated to a range of individuals, agencies and organisations that can help

“The act of placing a written proposal or

image in a particular location becomes a form

of urban design”

4. Linking ideas to spacesUse of mapping, walking tours and models helps

connect ideas and places

An outdoor drop-in mapping event

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realise ideas through, for example, statutory authority, investment capital and professional expertise. That is not to say these things do not neccessarily occur within acommunity. But the combination of the creativity, knowledge and expertise of local people, combined with a de-mystification of the design process and the provision of tools to express a communal vision can be extremely powerful.

Mapping ideas at an indoor worshop

“By engaging people who live and work there, we make spaces that are

more, exciting”

Walking tours also allow participants to explore and feed back ideas in real space

Simple models can be less abstract than plans and maps

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Formal workshops are one way is for users of a space or members of a community to become partners. Moving beyond the ini-tial thoughts and ideas stage, participants in workshops can more thoroughly input into the design process, working actively with design-ers to shape the definition and direction of the project. Participation can include sharing personal experiences and perspectives, con-tributing to the generation of new design con-cepts, the evolution of those concepts, analy-sis, interpretation, decision making, evaluation and more.

When taking a community led design ap-proach it is our role as designers to facilitate that participation. At the beginning of the design process we work with users to under-stand the design project in relation to their everyday lives including their habits, rituals, dreams, attitudes and experiences. These then become resources for inspiring design concepts and direction. In order for people to actively and effectively participate in the design process they must be able to imag-ine, access, and express their experiences and expectations. As with any workshop, the

“Workshops canprovide the structure

and space to really drive ideas forward”

5. Workshops, formal and informalAn opportunity to explore ideas in more

depth using a drop-in or defined sessions

An invented local currency

Formal workshops can really help focus ideas

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specific activities will differ depending on the topic being investigated and the nature of the participants and the place. However there are several qualities or principles that underpin most codesign activities that help to make people’s everyday experiences available and create a platform for sharing and ideation.

Formal workshops can make use of visual ma-terials as a way to assist people to make and communicate associations and experiences. This is because images are more accessible and quick to use and participants are able to attribute their own meaning to them. Random images can remind people about significant things they might not have considered or can act as metaphors to represent complex concepts. Images are also evocative and help to provide multiple frames and ways of see-ing and expressing. They can be ambiguous enough to allow creative and unusual connec-tions to be made and leave space for people to explore their own interpretations. The pro-cess of selecting images can also act to gener-ate valuable discussion between participants. Create a shared understanding and shared language between participants and designers.

Although designers as facilitators have certain knowledge or expertise, in terms of placemak-ing in community led design, it is only partial. Workshops encourage the designer to bothto step back and intervene. Ultimately, however workshops are about the immersion, dialogue, creativity and perspective of those who will use and experience the final outcome.

Techniques to challenge preconceptions

Short presentations as well as direct participation

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The mass brainstorm or crowd-sourced thought at the early stages of the design process can at first seem to productive an overwhelming and incoherent mass of infor-mation. From imaginative visions, particular ideas, perspectives, complaints, hopes and perspectives on a whole host of topics related to the space or neighbourhood involved.

Where formal workshopping is able to take place, for example, when there are enough people and a representative enough group, this mass of information can form the prime matter to start working with to develop cre-ative outcomes. However, with or without the formal workshop approach, broad themes soon become apparent. Putting all of the col-lected comments and ideas in to the ‘Wordle’

6. Distilling key themes Identifying the broad themes that

emerge from all the initial thoughts

Encouraging participation by capturing particular interests

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app can be immediately revealing. It creates a text graphic that makes words bigger accord-ing to their frequency of use. A manual review of all the gathered will also most likely see much of the gathered data coalesce or con-stellate around big themes (with a few out-liers). By identifying these themes, the ideas can be presented back to the community in a more focused way. The next round of events and workshops can then look at how these ideas might be taken forward and further ex-plored. This, along with linking ideas to partic-ular places can become a powerful resource in the development of early design proposals.

It’s important at this stage to establish that relative focus. Separate boards or work areas concentrating on separate themes can help with this. This is where ‘community leaders’ with specific interests or expertise can be in-valuable in taking the lead in developing those particular areas; e.g. someone who is a keen gardener, historian, market trader, café owner etc can bring invaluable expertise and passion.Although the clarity of themes is helpful, the connections between them and a holistic ap-proach is important in creating multifunctional places.

“Themes tend tonaturally form as

constellations of ideas”

Exploring the idea of multifunctional places

A ‘Wordle’ can quickly highlight key themes

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Events that involve the occupation of a spa-cein some ways are the beginnings of a tem-porary trial. But these trials go further. They aim to create in a quick, affordable way, an approximation of the potential future use of a space. By painting a vehicular surface in a way that is at aodds with highways conventions, it instantly changes the perception of that piece of road, both for pedestrians and drivers, in favour of the pedestrian. Drivers tn to treat it with more caution as it is unfarmiliar. Cheaply painting part of a road can become a proxy for a raised table or a change of material.

Placing planters with shrubs, fruit and vege-tables or even semi-mature trees can quickly suggest how a space can become greener. This is particularly powerful in an extremely urban context. Similarly, placing temporary seating,

“Temporary interventions help

identify opportunities and potentail problems”

7. Temporary trialsCheaply, quickly and simply creating an

approximation of what people asked for

Occupying a space with temporary features

Blank frontages animated with paint

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setting up market stalls, bandstands and cafes within underused spaces or even on roads (either through temporary closure or using parking bays) can quickly enliven a place and invoke a possible future in a more immediate and experiential way.

Simply closing a street and letting children play there can be powerfully transformative in terms of perception and can help make a case for more permanent interventions. The organisation ‘Playing Out’ has had a great deal of success with this approach. Addressing blank frontages using paint, planting or other means can also effectively change the experi-ence of a place. At night, lighting can also act as a quick and effective way of making a space less threatening.

Another approach is to set up an event where people can literally draw a ‘design’ on the ground using chalk, ribbons and hay bales etc. With this approach new paths, road align-ments, building frontages, seats and other feautures can be drawn in real space. All these interventions can potentially be adopted more permanently or form the basis for future de-velopment. Trees and seating ‘tried out’ in a formerly underused space

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Victoria Gateway is a newly created ‘plaza’ at an important gateway to the town, as its name suggests. It exists at the intersection of three major

roads and addjacent to Southend Victoria railway station as well as the main shopping centre. It replaces a large roundabout and was designed to improve the pedestrian experience as well as be a ‘place’ in its own right.

Section Two: Case StidiesVictoria Gateway, Southend-on-Sea

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Southend Borough Council, in 2012 complet-ed the major ‘Victoria Gateway’ public realmimprovement scheme. This encompasses the area surrounding Victoria Station, the link be-tween the station and the High Street, and the junction of the A127 Victoria Avenue and the A13 Queensway. A key feature of the scheme is the use of “shared space” principles to reduce traffic dominance, increase pedestrian priority, enhance public space, and present a positive image of the town to all those using the station itself and others passing by. It is understood that the implementation of key ‘place’ elements of the design was com-promised by a necessary value engineering exercise prior to delivery. With cost therefore being a key issue, it is recognised that any improvements and money spent subsequent-ly should be determined in full consultation

with the local community. As such a major public engagement exercise was launched, to address the issue of the perceived bareness of this public space and the lack of use. This approach was recognised by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council as giving the greatest possi-bility for the space to be good value for mon-ey, well used and supported politically.

CASE STUDY ONE VICTORIA GATEWAY SOUTHEND-ON-SEA

“Local people are the real experts and usually have good insight in to what can be done

to make a place better”

Victoria Gateway as it was. High quality material but lifeless

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The first priority was to hear the views of the widest range of users of the space and local residents as possible. This included com-muters using Southend Victoria to travel to London, holiday makers who arrived at the station, people passing through the space to access the library, council offices or the town’s main museum, as well as shoppers using the adjacent shopping centre, part of the town’s main shopping area. The approach taken was to set up a launch event, right in the heart of the plaza. To attract attention in such a large

space, it needed to be colourful, occupy a large enough area and be interesting. In this instance a giant ‘H’ shaped blackboard was set up in the middle of the space, along with a gazebo, tables and chairs, bunting, helium balloons that could be taken away with mes-sages attached (spreading the word beyond the space). Tea and coffee, soft drinks and a bike powered smoothie maker also became attractions. Setting up what essentially became a tempo-rary outdoor cafe also suggested future uses for the space. This actually became an instant hub, encouraging people to stop and stay rather than hurrying through. Essentially the

1.1 The launch eventGrabbing attention right in the heart of

the new plaza

Setting up stall at Victoria Gateway for the launch event

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writing on the giant blackboard or later via the website, Facebook and Twitter accounts the addresses of which were added to the post-card flyers used initially.

As result of this event, a wide range of people were consulted of all ages and backgrounds, as well as a multitude of comments and ideas for the space, much of it being about making it more animated and welcoming. This was taken and carried forward to the next stages.

event became a precursor for the potential use of the space. Ultimately it attracted a wide range of people who were passing through as well as those who came along because of pre-vious promotion through fliers, social media and traditional media. Being set up on a Sat-

urday during the winter it did have a certain demographic. It would have been different at other times or in other seasons. Nonethe-less, a wide range of people participated and shared their ideas, thoughts and concerns about Victoria Gateway, either verbally, by

“As a high profile public space, engaging a broad spectrum of users was

essential”

Victoria Gateway as it was. High quality material but lifeless

The launch brought people togetherMost of the initial ideas collected were about animating the space

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Large scale plans were produced using Ord-nance Survey mapping data. These maps showed roads, pavements, crossings, sur-rounding buildings, existing trees and seats and other relevant features as well as the open space of Victoria Gateway itself. Several A0 sheets were joined together to make the maps big enough to have an impact when displayed outside. The large scale also allowed groups of people to interact with the map at one time.

The maps were set up on several tables and gazebos were put up to provide cover from the inevitable rain. The gazebos also helped generate a presence and focal point in the in the square. Large posters were also displayed explaining the project and how to use the maps. Facilitators were also on hand to both explain more as well as understand the aspira-

Adding thoughts and ideas in to specific spaces

1.2 Big maps and lots of colourHelping people to connect thoughts and

ideas to actual places

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tions of the participants. Generally, people en-gaged quickly, using the coloured post-it notes or sticker icons to make specific proposals for particular locations. Participants were often drawn in as they were curious to see what others had written, this also sparked conversa-tions between strangers and a certain amount of communal participation. Although there was no shortage of ideas, there seemed to be a lot of agreement amongst participants. Of-ten someone would write on another partici-pant’s comment ‘yes’ or ‘agree’. This exercise

was repeated several times at different times and days of the week. Through the process a cumulative picture emerged. Overwhelming-ly, participants wanted more trees and other planting, more colour and more activity on the Gateway. Outdoor cafe seating, arts events, markets and play activities were prominent themes. The skateboarders who were previ-ously the only users who spent any time in this space also inputted significantly in to the process, concerned that changes did not im-pact adversely on their use of the space.

Engaging different age groups

Greening, markets and temporary events emerged as key themes

“It emerged that what people wanted was for Victoria Gateway to be a truly multifunctional place”

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Many people engaged online through the project blog, which was set up prior to the on-street activity, and at smaller indoor events. The picture that emerged was again similar to that of the outdoor events. The next phase of the project involved taking the outcomes of the process so far and synthesising it in to a form that could be reflected back to the ‘com-munity’ as a coherent set of outline proposals that were at the same time not too fixed or specific. The use of symbols or icons used on maps of country parks, for example, were utilised.

Added to a large scale plan, the icons allowed for trees, market stalls, planting beds, cafe ar-eas etc to be shown in approximate locations without delineating the form or proposing ex-act locations. Simple dashed lines and arrows and the use of colour coding also indicated proposed pedestrian and cycle routes and other linear elements. In essence this became an easy to read distillation of the process outcomes gathered so far. This plan was then published online and taken to various events in Southend as well as displayed at Victoria Gateway itself. Since Victoria Gateway is a

“Markets are a great wayto animate spaces. They can be temporary and test how they

might boost the localeconomy”

Many people want to bring back markets to Victoria Gateway, it’s part of the town’s heritage

1.3 First proposals - taking it out thereSetting up stall at the ’Village Green’ and

other festivals

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it was possible to engage a large number of people in a short space of time, mostly people who had not at that stage heard about the project. It was also an opportunity to advertise future events at the Gateway. All the feedback was again recorded and used to inform the next stages of the process, i.e. converting the symbolic masterplan in to something more concrete.

major public space in the centre of the town that most residents pass through at some point, it made sense to target big events that attracted people who lived in the town. One such event was The village Green Festival, a music and arts festival that attracted 100 000 people over the course of the weekend. There was a lot of interest in the initial proposals and

“By setting up a stall at a major festival, we managed to talk to large numbers of

Southend residents”

Stand at a large summer festival. Mapping using icons generally locates elements prior to more concrete design proposals

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The community led design process can lead to various outcomes. It might for example lead to temporary interventions that become per-manent; markets, street art, guerrilla gardens etc or the opening of cafes or art galleries, i.e. placemaking that does not go through the traditional design, planning and construction process yet changes a place nonetheless. Or alternatively it informs a planning authorities strategic vision for a place which may later be ‘put on the ground’. In the case of this exam-ple, however, the client, Southend-on-Sea Bor-ough Council wanted concrete design propos-als, to be constructed via the usual process. Consequently a spatial design was created. This aimed to create a multifunctional space fixed elements with spaces created to frame and host the animating activities desired.

“Previous phases meant that specific proposals for the plaza were embedded in the desires

of its users”

Section across Victoria Gateway as part of the initial design proposals

1.4 Putting it togetherSynthesising information and putting it togeth-

er initial design proposals

An early sketch design

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Illustrative masterplan showing the initial proposals for Victoria gateway

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The design proposals produced were accu-rate, costed and deliverable. They included general arrangement plans, planting plans and schedules, materials palettes and an illustrative masterplan. The illustrative mas-terplan, based on the CAD produced GA plan added texture, drop shadow and colour to bring it to life and make it as accessible as possible to a broad audience. Photomontages were also produced to help communicate the ‘permanent’ features such as seating, trees, and in this case giant oval ‘planters’ with integrated seating in a more accessible way. The photomontages, more than the illustra-tive plan, also helped show the animating features that were so important to the users of the space such as markets and cafes. It also showed how blank frontages could be trans-formed through the use of relatively cheap suspended banners.

1.5 Visualising the proposalsPhotomontages proved effective in com-

municating design proposals

Photomontage showing how the proposals for Victoria Gateway might appear

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“Feedback was mostly positive but also provided

constructive criticism which was incorporated in to design

iterations”

To get public reaction and test the first concrete design proposals, a strategy was developed to get the maximum exposure. This included publishing the drawings and visualisations online, in local publications. But to really get people to take notice, create a buzz and get mainstream media coverage, a big dynamic event was held to accompany the display of the visual materials. This involved the creation of an illuminated pyramid with a

1.6 Presenting design proposalsCreating an interesting event and putting

the design proposals at the heart

Presenting the illustrative plans, sections and photomontages at an event on Victoria Gateway

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projector on top, projecting down on the floor of the Gateway. People who came along could use iPads to control the projections in real time or create their own text or images. Inside the pyramid, the design drawings and visual-isations were dispalayed and feedback gath-ered. Multiple means of feeding back were provided including a digital ‘graffiti’ wall, tradi-tional pens and paper and postcards. A film of the vent was also made and some were happy to feed back this way. The outcomes shed light on how the design could be improved. But in broad terms it was enthusiastically supported.

Gathering feedback

Many people shared their views on video (a still from a film about the event)

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A Village Design Statement is a community baseddocument that describes the qualities and characteristics

of a settlement. It sets out design guidance for futuredevelopment and can influence planning applications

and decisions.

Section Two: Case StudiesLucan village, Ireland

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In February 2006, members of the local community, supported by The Heritage Coun-cil and South Dublin County Council came together for a scoping meeting to explore the possibility of a Village Design Statement forLucan. A Steering Group of local community representatives was established to direct the project and in October 2006 with funding from South Dublin County Council and TheHeritage Council, a team of consultants was appointed to work in partnership with the Steering Group and other village residents to meet this aim.

The VDS was produced through an extensive community consultation programme com-bined with desk-based study. This included an introductory meeting with community mem-bers, distribution of a key issues leaflet and questionnaires, and a series of workshops in-volving a wide cross section of the community

including adults, children, and young people. Over 60 questionnaires were completed and over 75 people attended the main workshop. The consultation material was made available at Lucan Library and also on the South Dublin County Council. The Design Statement is a non-statutory document, but is intended as supplementary guidance.

CASE STUDY TWO VILLAGE DESIGN STATE-MENT, LUCAN, IRELAND

“Lucan always appealed to me I love the friendly

village atmosphere.”

Traffic congestion was recognised as a major issue

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Lucan Village Services and AmenitiesServices such as banking, post office, chem-ists, doctors, Garda, pubs and restaurants have tended to stay around the original village core, however community feedback suggests that there is a lack of diversity of shops in thisarea of the village. At present community events are generally held at the Lucan Spa Ho-tel or St Andrew’s Hall. The four churches also provide an important social as well as spiritual function for many in the village. 5.3 Infrastruc-ture Lucan village because of its strategic lo-cation as one of the few crossing points along the Liffey, has always attracted through-traffic. The expansion of Dublin’s suburbs to and be-yond Lucan has meant that the through-traffic combined with general commuter and local traffic has created a very congested road network within the village. Plans for the outer ring road and proposed park and ride schemes should help alleviate traffic problems in thefuture. Cycling is considered dangerous by many residents. Whilst there are some cycle paths, they are not continuous, making it diffi-cult to cycle around the village. Walking isnot made easy due to lack of pavements and safe crossings. There is some pedestrian ac-

“Reduce speed limit to 20 kilometers an hour in

front of all schools and install speed cameras

for the safety of children”

Identity and creativity of children

1.11 A village design statementInitial thoughts and perspectives from

local residents

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South Dublin County Council has recently en-gaged consultants to carry out a disability au-dit of the village. The community also feel that public transport network is not as efficient or effective and as it could be. The Rail Procure-ment Agency (RPA) is currently conducting afeasibility study for a new Lucan line (Line F) from the city

cess to the riverside, but more could be done to access it. South Dublin County Council plan to develop a ‘Green Routes’ system connect-ing Roads, Parks and Open Spaces in South Dublin with walking and cycling routes. Routesare proposed for Liffey Valley and Griffeen Valley. Disabled access throughout the village has been raised as an issue by many residents.

“Not enough buses or trains.There are constant traffic

jams.”

Working with schools was an effective way of engaging children

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As part of the Community Consultation, two workshops were carried out in January 2007, with children and young people of Lucan to ascertain their thoughts on their village. Eighteen children ranging from 9 – 18 years attended from: Scoil Mhuire Girls’ National School; Scoil Mhuire, Dodsboro; St Andrew’s School; St Joseph’s College Both workshops proved to be very informative and thought provoking, reflecting their views on growing up in Lucan and the issues that they feel affect their village and their daily

“We’re being blamed for loitering and being

moved on when we have nowhere to go”

lives. The children proved to be lively, knowl-edgeable and enthusiastic members of the community with important views and opin-ions. Their maturity and awareness of their village was extremely impressive.The issues covered were based on the adult community consultation workshop but there was also the opportunity to explore the key issues that affected them directly such as play provision and services for young people. Due to the differing ages, the comments reflect-ed a mix of requests in terms of provision of services for children, however in relation to the village itself, all the children were clear and in agreement about the key issues. All the children placed great emphasis on the environment and the issues of climate change,

1.21 Engaging children and young peopleChildren articulating their experience of

Lucan, the good and the bad

Young people felt blamed

The ‘Wish Fairy’ helped personify hopes for the future

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Aerial view of the centre of Lucan

Childrens’ images of the village

pollution and energy waste. They also made connections between these issues and their village, referring to pollution from traffic, theimpact of losing green space to development and saving energy in their own schools.

As with the adult responses, the majority of the children felt that the heart of the village was around the village green. Schools and super-markets were also mentioned as key locations within the village. For some the heart waswhere they ‘hung out’, such as the chip shop, rather than the historical and geographical heart associated with the village.

In terms of facilities, almost all of the pupils were adamant that what they wanted was a swimming pool, but they were also keen to see improvements to the village that would benefit the community and village as a whole. This in-cluded improvements to the river area such as cycle-ways and footpaths, and development of the weir area. All the pupils felt that there was a real lack of things to do in Lucan that were focused for child/young people. Although they enjoyed walks along the river, they alsofelt that there were too few facilities for them within the village.

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• Tackle the problem of graffiti and litter• Provide more play areas and sport facilities

within housing developments and open green spaces

• Provide visitor signage and informal boards

• Have consistent palette of materials for all street furniture

• Develop relationship between village and Italian Embassy

• The Rivers - Develop new amenity space particularly along the River Griffeen to include:

• A new pedestrian network, including

A summary of key concerns and objectives was created based on returned questionnaires and workshops carried out in January 2007. The following key themes were identified:

LANDSCAPE

• Protect views in and out of the village• Promote the village as a tourist attraction• Protect and enhance the flora and fauna

around the village and along the rivers• Give Lucan “Heritage Village” status

EVOLUTION

• Better consultation with community over future planning of developments

• Stop inappropriate developments• Ensure appropriate materials in any new

developments or improvements to existing buildings

PUBLIC REALM

• Open the cemetery behind Kenny’s Pub• Create a public park behind the Sarsfield

Estate

“The future vision for Lucan must be to protect and preserve its unique character and amenity

value”

1.31 Summarising the outcomes of the processKey points identified by participants in

surveys and workshops

The Italian Embassy

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circular• walks and footbridges• A new cycle networks• Improved access to River Liffey from Main

Street• Enhance amenity area around the weir

and Lucan Bridge, to include lighting of bridge

• Viewing platforms and seating• Upgrade the village green

COMMUNITY FACILITIES AND SERVICES

• Support the development of an evening and weekend economy

• Improved recycling facilities• A Lucan Festival• Farmers Markets• Children and Young People• Improve play provision and out of school

cultural and sporting facilities• Review of all transport issues affecting the

village including: Parking Traffic levels and congestion Public transport School transport Traffic calming measures

The Italian Embassy

Workshops engaging all age groups produced varied outputs which also had a coherence

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