Matt Morris, director, Nexus Planning, discusses why community needs must be considered as part of the UK Government’s New Towns programme
The House of Lords Built Environment Committee’s recent inquiry into the New Towns programme has provided a useful addition to the body of evidence and research on the wider mix of land uses required as part of the programme.
At a time when national debate is heavily focused on housing numbers and delivery targets, the report asks a more fundamental question: what does it actually take to create places where people want to live, stay and thrive?
Lessons learned from post-war new towns
This edition of the Lords’ inquiry focuses on place, community, health, and inclusion, and provides a welcome emphasis on the human dimensions of creating thriving communities.
It looks beyond housebuilding targets and focuses on the people who will live in the next generation of new towns, including their day-to-day needs for social infrastructure and health care. In doing so, it brings long-standing lessons into sharper focus, while highlighting the risks of getting this balance wrong.
The report provides a reminder of the ‘lessons learnt’ regarding community and social infrastructure, from the various waves of post-war new towns, from Runcorn, Harlow, Hemel Hempstead, through to the ongoing development of the new towns at Northstowe in Cambridgeshire and Cranbrook in East Devon.
Understanding local community needs
However, it is not just the first wave of post-war new towns which provide guidance for the future.
In East Devon, the District Council has been reflecting on how the new community of Marlcombe can learn from the challenges encountered at nearby Cranbrook, particularly around its new town centre and the provision of community facilities.
As a consequence, this will be a key theme for the Council and Great South West at UKREiiF in May.
Whilst many of the recommendations in the House of Lords’ report remind planners, developers and politicians of well-established principles, there are some important key takeaways.
A key message from the report is the need for a proper, early understanding of local community needs, and how provision may well evolve over time as a new town or garden community grows.
The committee’s valuable investigative work highlights the following themes:
What might be necessary for phase one of a new town may need to be adapted for future phases
The lessons learned over the past 70 years show that residents’ needs evolve over time due to the growing size of a new community and external influences. Social infrastructure must therefore be designed and built to be flexible for the medium- to longer-term, with the ability to span different uses.
This requires attention from both design and social/community infrastructure planning perspectives, with both disciplines working hand in hand. Master-planners, architects, developers and local authorities must be provided with sufficient evidence to show the scale and type of communities’ needs, and how these will change and evolve over the medium- to longer-term.
This will allow buildings to change over time to meet social, commercial and community requirements. Without that information, neighbourhood, local and district centres which are successful in an early phase will be in danger of becoming white elephants.
Community organisations, with the help of several architects, are now focusing on the opportunities offered by flexible mixed-use accommodation. This includes organisations such as Without Shape Without Form, which, in association with a local Sikh gurdwara, has occupied a refurbished former car showroom in Slough to provide a multi-use arts and cultural venue. It is likely that many other organisations will follow, as they see the opportunities for buildings to provide both sustained commercial income and retail and service functions, whilst also supporting local community groups.
Building social and community infrastructure into the New Towns programme
The House of Lords report reminds us of the importance of social infrastructure to local communities and how this, in turn, will become a key attractor and driver of footfall.
This presents a valuable opportunity to plan and develop new towns, districts, and local centres within the New Towns programme.
Whilst there may be a temptation to concentrate on retail, service and commercial leisure uses in planned new centres, those designing and planning New Towns should be bolder and include a wider set of education, health and other community uses.
It won’t be perfect or finished in phase one (or even phase two)
New towns could take up to 30 years to fully mature. Therefore, alongside the need for flexibility, there will be a need to allow community spaces to grow. Consequently, it will be important that assessments of need for social infrastructure are used to help retain and protect land for these uses in accessible locations. Whilst it may seem alien to some, leaving land in and around town, district and local centres undeveloped will provide a long-term benefit, allowing space for community facilities to change and grow alongside traditional retail, leisure and other commercial uses.
The need for sound evidence to support master-planning and delivery of community infrastructure
Invariably, planning for social and cultural infrastructure is closely linked to the evolution of new towns, districts, and local centres. Through robust needs and impact assessment, demographic and socio-economic analysis, and spatial analytics using GIS, a proper understanding is gained of how communities will grow, change, and function over time, ensuring that infrastructure provision is evidence-led, viable, and aligned with real patterns of demand.
The Government is due to provide its response to the House of Lords report by 26th May.
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