Capita Symonds held its first special breakfast debate -
‘Changing the DNA of Community Regeneration’ – at its Cityscape
‘green cube’ on the second day of Ecobuild 2010.
Guest speakers Joe Duckworth - CEO of Newham Council (which has
most of the Olympic 2010 infrastructure within its boundaries);
Chris Brown - CEO of Igloo Regeneration; and urban designer and
regeneration consultant Liz Kessler, analysed how to balance the
need to generate economic value and attract investment with
delivering social value and sustainable lifestyles.
Chris Brown of Igloo Regeneration began by asserting his hopes
that urban regeneration practice will soon ‘turn on its head’ with
politicians finally moving towards an approach - after 30 years of
‘top down’ urban regeneration - where more developmental power is
given to either Local Authorities or, more importantly, communities
themselves.
Chris went on to reiterate the importance, and benefits, of
involving local communities in major schemes by discussing his work
on the Channel 4 featured ‘Castleford Project’ as well as a major
scheme in Brentford, West London. In both instances local
communities were engaged by the Local Authority to input their
ideas into the developmental plans, resulting in award-winning work
which was very different to what might have been produced had the
communities views not been heard.
Unfortunately, as Chris pointed out, there are no tools in the
current planning system to really help local communities make their
own plans for a locality happen. Therefore, in his own ‘Election
Manifesto’ wish-list, Chris made two major points. The first was
that any major development site should be masterplanned by the
community as a matter of course (or law). The second, more radical,
idea was that, instead of one developer, putting forward plans for
a scheme, there should be four or five involved in a competition
with schemes assessed on criteria such as design quality. This
would revolutionise the industry and force engagement with the
community to produce better, more sustainable designs.
Chis Brown at Ecobuild
Liz Kessler told of her work on the EC1 New Deal for Communities
(NDC) project in a deprived area of Islington, North London – a
sometimes bleak and colourless area dotted with council estates.
After six years’ hard work, the NDC project is having a hugely
positive effect on the area.
Liz works as public space co-ordinator for the project and,
although work remains to be done, a massive amount of improvement
has been seen. For example, the area’s parks have been improved
with five being completely redesigned while 14 of the area’s
streets and public spaces have been totally transformed,
particularly for pedestrians (one of the key points in the
development’s research was that local people wanted to be ‘out and
about’). Four of the council estates have also had extensive
landscaping to improve the areas and spaces around the buildings,
making them more accessible and enabling residents to enjoy their
surroundings. Landscaping and green areas are also key - Liz has
found that time and time again communities say they want to green
areas.
Liz also reiterated the point that you cannot get good design if
you do not engage with the community which will be affected by the
designs. For example, steering groups made up of the local
community have played an integral part in Liz’s work, leading to
ideas such as reviving and expanding the local market and even
employing local people to work on the redevelopment.
One final point was that Local Authorities need to be more
geared enough towards delivery. Liz has found that too often input
is required from a plethora of various departments with rigid
managerial hierarchies.
Liz Kessler at Ecobuild
The morning’s final speaker - Joe Duckworth of Newham Council –
told of the plans that are making the borough one of the most
exciting in the UK.
He began by discussing how Local Authorities have the most
important role as placeshapers, having the ultimate responsibility
in making sure communities are sustainable. The reasons are simple
– direct accountability through the ballet box and the fact that it
is a Local Authority who will, particularly with regards to 2012,
have to oversee new developments in the long-term. He also
mentioned the key role of the private sector, not just architects
and developers but in terms of developing new business models and
encouraging wealth creation.
Newham has a raft of exciting developments and ideas,
highlighted by the fact that The Olympics is only the area’s fourth
biggest regeneration scheme. As London rolls forever eastward
Stratford is also fast becoming a metropolitan centre for the city
with an airport and internal station. The borough even has the
youngest population in Europe with just under 50% aged under
25.
It does however face a unique set of challenges - it is the
sixth most deprived borough in the country; 18,000 people in the
Borough have never worked; it has the fastest growing birth-rate in
the country, doubling since 2006 (they’ve had to put in 70
temporary reception classrooms in their schools); and average size
of a Junior school is 700 pupils.
What’s more, 25% of the population moves every single year (in
some wards it’s 40%) so that every time the borough creates a
middle class…it moves. This level of churn destabilises the area
and can cause problems, a point highlighted by the fact that for
every station passed going eastbound on the Jubilee line, life
expectancy amongst the local populace decreases by one year.
Joe Duckworth at Ecobuild
But the outlook is overwhelmingly positive – it has one of the
biggest BSF/PCP programmes in the UK; GCSE results A-C improved by
6.2% this year, and the £22bn investment will give an unmissable
opportunity to bridge London’s ‘west-east divide’. Newham also
successfully encompasses a myriad of religions, races and
nationalities being one of the UK’s most tolerant areas - 90% of
residents enjoy living next to those of different backgrounds.
Initiatives such as training academies to develop the local
communities’ skills are also providing a huge boost in providing
jobs (of the 110,000 people who work in Canary Wharf, just 6000
live in the local community – a situation that has to change).
The speakers generated an interesting debate on ways in which we
can ‘change the DNA of community generation’ and let our audience
with plenty to consider as they made their way to the morning
conference sessions on day two of a very well attended Ecobuild
2010.
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