Overview

Good design improves the economic value of new development. It’s an important message which wasn’t reaching project developers or managers in either public or private sectors. To help the message get through, RENEW set up Places Matter!, offering expert advice and comprehensive assessments regarding design in development. Through a series of workshops, training programmes, learning schemes and breakfast/ dinner briefings, it has widened the horizons and understanding of industry professionals.

A research study commissioned by RENEW and Northwest Regional Development Agency called: ‘Economic Value of Urban Design’, concluded that investment in good quality public spaces can result in a legacy of economic, social and environmental benefits - as well as improved business performance. Great news, but only if the right people get to hear about it. Places Matter! was set up to overcome a failure to communicate these ideas across the market place.

Working with a wide range of stakeholders, RENEW developed and delivered a programme of learning and awareness raising, centred on the concepts of place-making and the economic value of good urban design. In addition a Design Review Panel, populated by a number of urban regeneration experts, offered expertise in place making.

The results are impacting on both a micro and macro level. Individuals are benefiting from continued professional development, better understanding about design, and discovering the evidence to support good design decision-making. More widely, well-planned urban design has moved higher up the regional agenda, which, together with the establishment of new relationships between regional partners, is resulting in better quality development.

Summary
• Research, commissioned by Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and RENEW Northwest, showed that investment in high quality design and building in the public realm has a wide range of economic benefits.
• The RENEW programme, working with a range of partners, developed a programme of learning to spread this message
• The programme included training, written publications, breakfast/dinner briefings, action learning, access to a panel of experts etc.
• Individual participants have brought changes to their working practices, a better understanding of sustainable communities, access to evidence to support the case for quality design and access to networking opportunities.
• Regionally, the programme has strengthened relationships between regional partners and resulted in more high quality places, especially in disadvantaged areas.

» Background

Background

The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and RENEW Northwest commissioned research on the Economic Value of Urban Design. A collaborative team of external consultants carried out the research and the findings indicated that:

• investment in good quality public realm can result in a legacy of economic, social and environmental benefits;
• high environmental quality can contribute to improved business performance; and
• investment in the setting of the public realm in terms of the built fabric is equally important.
• There has, however, been a failure to respond to this signal and to make the economic case in the market place.
• The identification of the need for the Places Matter! project is a recognition of this market failure.

» The Project

Overview «

The Project

The learning laboratory forms part of a wider programme called ‘Places Matter!’ that consists of a number of complementary strands including:

• a regional design review service, offering expert advice and comprehensive assessments of schemes to public and private sector clients and developers;
• the dissemination of the findings of a major research project into the economic value of good design;
• the promotion of good quality place making in the region.

The programme aims to target key professional and decision-making audiences in order to ensure that project developers and managers provide strong client leadership to drive up the quality of the built environment.

RENEW worked with the following organisations in order to develop and deliver a programme of learning and awareness raising centred on the concepts of place-making and the economic value of good urban design:

• NWDA – which acted as the core funder, and main partner with RENEW in Northwest Design
• Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) – Funding for two years education related work that included ‘How Places Work’ (a schools programme) and ‘Building in Context’ (a series of events)
• Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Northwest – which employs four members of RENEW staff with grant support
• HCA – who funded the learning lab
The activities and events delivered by the project included:

• Production of two high quality publications;
• Launches;
• Workshops;
• Training programmes;
• Opportunities for action learning;
• Industry dinners/breakfasts; and
• A Design Review Panel composed of a wide range of experts in urban regeneration and able to offer expertise in place making.

» The Impact

Background «

The Impact

Initial feedback shows that the programme has created a number of benefits for participants including:

• continued professional development;
• improved networking;
• a widening of horizons and a better understanding of place making; and
• enabling officers to achieve their goals by providing the evidence-based case for quality design.

Partners are expected to benefit in particular from the promotion of key messages relating to sustainable communities and positive changes in working practices brought about by staff who have benefited from the training and personal development.

At the wider regional level:

• there is evidence that the case for the benefits of well planned urban design has been placed high on the regional agenda;
• new relationships between regional partners has enabled an improved regional focus;
• more high-quality places, especially within disadvantaged areas and those experiencing historic under-investment;
• demand for training at the Architectural Centre for Northwest has been bolstered.

More widely the benefits include:

• improved client leadership and thus better built environment developments;
• the establishment of useful links out with the region including with BEAM, Wakefield’s Orangery, Regional Design Reviews and the Urban Design Group.

Overall the learning lab, together with the other strands of the Places Matter! programme, is playing an important role in capacity building and raising awareness of good design throughout the region. What’s more, the courses are extremely popular and spaces are generally filled within one day.

Give its success, the project has been submitted for consideration in the HCA Academy awards.

» Lessons Learned

The Project «

Lessons Learned

One action that proved particularly successful was targeting the project to include a wide range of professionals involved in regeneration. For example, the Design Review Panel benefited by being comprised from a wide range of experts and the Board has an excellent mix of skills and expertise.

The programme is seen as a “neutral ground” and an independent voice. Involvement of other agencies has aided transparency although it should also be said that there have been tensions between being part of the public sector whilst also aiming to be independent.

The difficulties encountered provide valuable insight for any future similar programme:
• there would have been value in having had a much more evolved website from the beginning;
• there have been some difficulties inherent to working with new organisations;
• none of the projects attempted as part of the programme were likely to happen quickly.

For unassociated reasons RENEW ceased to trade in July 2007 but Places Matter! has been successful in attracting funding from the NWDA to take the programme through to 2012.

» Reference

The Impact «

Reference

Annie Atkins
Programme Director
Places Matter!
Unit 101
The Tea Factory
82 Wood Street,
LIVERPOOL,
L1 4DQ.

Tel: 0151-703-0135
Mob: 07515-066-108
Annie.Atkins@placesmatter.co.uk

Other relevant web sites
Places Matter!

Lessons Learned «