Social sustainability: concept to practice in the UK

Saffron Woodcraft 01 November 2012

SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: From concept to practice in urban planning,

urban renewal and new neighbourhoods

What? Why? How?

Social Life is a new organization with a long-heritage of work on communities, planning & placemaking.

200 years of large-scale planned new communities in the UK but still relatively little known about what makes places thrive.

SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: CONCEPT TO PRACTICE IN THE UK

What is social sustainability?

“A process for creating sustainable, successful places that promote wellbeing, by understanding what people need from the places they live and work. Social sustainability combines design of the physical realm with design of the social world – infrastructure to support social and cultural life, social amenities, systems for citizen engagement and space for people and places to evolve.”

Source: Social Life (2012). Design for Social Sustainability: a practical framework for building communities.

Table 1: Urban social sustainability: contributory factors, Dempsey et al., 2009.

Source: Dempsey, N. et al., (2011). The social dimension of sustainable development: Defining urban social sustainability.

“Lexicon of austerity” & social unrest

Debate in planning practice: “… arguably creates a space for innovation and change that we have not seen for decades.”

Bertolini et al., 2011. Planning and the Recession.

Planning Theory & Practice, 12 (3)

Language of social sustainability is reframing and combining existing ideas and practices in new ways. Holistic way of approaching planning that considers social needs today and in the long-term. Emerging area of practice and policy. Much work still required to build evidence base and practitioner experience.

LEARNING FROM THE PAST: WHAT WORKS? HOW DO PEOPLE EXPERIENCE NEW PLACES?

The first question: what is a community?

Source: Egan Review, 2004.

An alternative view: what makes a community? •  Physical boundaries to promote geographical

identity •  Local myths & stories •  Visible leadership •  Strong social relationships, networks & bonds •  Opportunities for informal, spontaneous social

encounters •  Rituals and rhythms •  Shared belief systems eg. garden cities, new

towns, eco-cities.

Reviewing the evidence

•  Experience from the English New Towns, Garden Cities & different forms of post-war council housing

•  Extensive literature about mixed communities and neighbourhood deprivation in the UK

•  International experience of planned new towns (eg. USA to China)

•  Combined with practical work and applied research in new communities

•  Experts workshops to corroborate findings

Barking Riverside, East London

Barking Riverside, East London

Buckingham Park, Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire

Whitecross Street Estate, London. Peabody Trust.

Birmingham CC: Viewing lessons learnt from Community Land Trusts & seeing if it will work as a model for Birmingham. Lozells and Handsworth

Lozells and Handsworth, Birmingham

Malmo, Sweden

Heygate Estate, Elephant and Castle, London

Heygate Estate, Elephant and Castle, London

Patterns in residents’ experience

1.  Good housing, schools and safety are initial priorities but “novelty” of new housing wears off after 12-18 months if social infrastructure is inadequate

2.  Cohesion & integration are local issues: affordable housing plays a key role.

3.  Need for services, as well as buildings, to help people settle

4.  Early provision is crucial – especially basic shops, schools, nurseries, community buildings, open spaces, transport and support workers

5.  Spatial and social integration matter within new development & integration with wider neighbourhood

6.  Shared public spaces and services are important to encourage informal interaction & to build trust

Patterns in residents’ experience

7.  Lack of social infrastructure affects community wellbeing and can create reputational issues

8.  Involving residents in planning community infrastructure creates better built environment & stronger local groups and networks

9.  Strong connection between wellbeing and ability to influence local decision-making

10.  Neighbourhood-based workers and/or micro-investments for community groups and projects make a big difference

11.  Communities need ‘space to grow’ – physically and socially

“ … planning for hard infrastructure alone would never build a community … it would only be done by a matrix of formal and informal opportunities or supported activities.”

Cambridgeshire PCT (2007)

“… where these facilities were already in place when people began to arrive, the community came together and networks were formed more easily”

CLG New Towns Review

“ … most mixing across social groups takes places between children. It is these contacts … that provide opportunities to meet and form relationships.”

CIH/JRF 2005

The importance of social relationships to wellbeing, trust, community strength and willingness/ability to act

Social sustainability as a planning framework

Source: Social Life, Design for Social Sustainability: a practical framework for building communities, 2012.

SOCIAL & CULTURAL LIFE 35

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People-friendly layouts eg car free areas, speed reductions, eyes on the street, well-lit areas

Distinctive architecture/landscaping to reinforce/create sense of local identity

Public and congregational spaces eg open spaces, parks, wide pavements, benches

Third spaces (eg cafes, pubs, shops), playgrounds and playspaces

Timebanking – promoting mutual exchange and development of social capital though peer-to-peer timebanking or people-to-agency timebanking

Community projects to encourage inter-generational/inter-group mixing

Neighbourhood Charter, Community Design Statement

Informal local currencies eg Local Exchange Trading Systems (LETS)

Neighbourhood-based groups eg Neighbourhood Watch, Residents/Tenants Associations, Pledgebank

Inter-generational, cross-cultural events and activities eg Under One Sun, The Big Lunch

Local celebrations – eg festivals, street parties, fetes, family days, artists in residence

Local oral history projects like East Midlands Oral History

Connections to neighbouring communities to avoid isolation eg pathways and shared public spaces

Flexible working spaces to encourage home-working, local enterprise (eg spaces in a community centre or café)

Local rules and norms eg Home Zones, car free streets, neighbourhood agreements, local taxes or fundraising Local events – eg

litter picking, planting, fundraising

Neighbouring activities eg household network, loanables

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Fifth dimension: change in the neighbourhood over time.

Great Fleete •  Private development built

in 80’s

Barking Riverside

•  Location of the new school and community centre

Barking Reach

•  Private development built in 80’s

Thames View

•  Predominantly low -rise council houses built in 50s & 60s

•  Roughly 50% white & 50% BME residents

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE FROM THE UK & EUROPE

Freiburg Charter •  12 principles for sustainable urbanism •  Planning “collaborative experiment” •  “Magic triangle of urban development” –

social cohesion •  Designed as a tool for progressive dialogue

& practice in sustainable urban planning

12 13

SPATIAL PRINCIPLES

CITY OF NEIGHBOURHOODS

degree of empowerment and personal responsibility, is indispensable for cities and should be actively encouraged.

importance in: residential living and working, social infrastructure, education and culture, recreation and management of green spaces and networks.

precon di tion for sustainable urban planning and development.

II

“Great neighbourhoods emerge when individuals have a sense of pride and their neighbours have a collective responsibility for the quality of the places where they live, work and visit.” Kevin McGeough

Local markets are open for business in the newly developed neighbourhoods as well as in the historic centre. Freiburg’s specific supermarket policy helped to strengthen the existing local centres by restricting the development of shopping centres on the fringe of the city.

RIESELFELD is one of several newly developed neighbourhoods on brownfield land where the City of Freiburg has revealed its forward-thinking policies over the last three decades. Schools, churches, sports facilities, shops, recreation areas and public transport hubs give shape to the new heart of Rieselfeld’s community; a demonstration of the principles of The Freiburg Charter.

12 12 13

SPATIAL PRINCIPLES

CITY OF NEIGHBOURHOODS

degree of empowerment and personal responsibility, is indispensable for cities and should be actively encouraged.

importance in: residential living and working, social infrastructure, education and culture, recreation and management of green spaces and networks.

precon di tion for sustainable urban planning and development.

II

“Great neighbourhoods emerge when individuals have a sense of pride and their neighbours have a collective responsibility for the quality of the places where they live, work and visit.” Kevin McGeough

Local markets are open for business in the newly developed neighbourhoods as well as in the historic centre. Freiburg’s specific supermarket policy helped to strengthen the existing local centres by restricting the development of shopping centres on the fringe of the city.

RIESELFELD is one of several newly developed neighbourhoods on brownfield land where the City of Freiburg has revealed its forward-thinking policies over the last three decades. Schools, churches, sports facilities, shops, recreation areas and public transport hubs give shape to the new heart of Rieselfeld’s community; a demonstration of the principles of The Freiburg Charter.

12

Source: The Freiburg Charter for Sustainable Urbanism

Government-backed scheme for assessing design quality and spatial planning in neighbourhoods. Contributed to improved public realm and integration of social and private housing in new neighbourhoods.

Eco Bicester: working with council and developer of exemplar stage to build social sustainability into the ambitious new development, planned to be 20,000 homes over 20 years.

Community-led planning: Shaping amenities & infrastructure; addressing business & social issues; innovative work to capture different voices.

Development Trusts & Community Land Trusts: Managing assets, delivering services, providing affordable housing.

Community charters & agreements: Tools for dialogue & shared responsibility between residents and public agencies.

How to develop a local charterA guide for local authorities

www.communities.gov.ukcommunity, opportunity, prosperity

Chapter 5 Step by step guide to developing a local charter 25

What are the community’s priorities?What do existing documents, surveys, and forums tell us about local community priorities? What do local councillors believe community priorities are?Is additional consultation on priorities needed?

– Are all areas of the community represented by the existing information? – What could additional consultation be coordinated with?

What are agency priorities locally?What services do agencies provide locally?Where does the delivery vary from the norm?Which LAA targets are particularly relevant for the area?What are agencies’ priorities locally and which initiatives do they wish to pilot or promote?What local level data do agencies have on the community and community level needs?

What will the charter cover?What actions are planned to meet local priorities?Is the charter going to focus on all relevant issues or will the charter be better focused on a single

set of issues?

Is there consensus on local priorities?Is there a consensus on priorities for the local area? Do agencies and communities agree? Do voluntary and community sector organisations agree?Is there a community organisation with an appropriate mandate to agree community input and responsibility on behalf of the community? If not what further consultation is necessary?

If agencies won’t engage, what is the role of the local authority, LSP, local members to encourage buy in?

What will the published charter look like?Is the charter short enough to publish in its original form? If not, how can a shorter, more readable version be produced? How will the costs of publication be met?Is the charter written in plain English and in an accessible style?Does it include contact details for service providers and local councillors?

Charter signed and publishedWho will sign the charter on behalf of the local authority and community? Is there LSP endorsement of the charter and commitment by them to monitor?Will there be a high profile launch event?What wider monitoring and evaluation will be put in place?

Timebanking & neighbouring schemes: Building social networks and mutual aid; creating shared experiences for people from different backgrounds.

Meanwhile use: Temporary and pop-up use of land and buildings to boost local economic development and create community focus.

MEASURING SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

Could other frameworks we be used?

Social sustainability indicators •  Three dimensions, 13

indicators, underpinned by 45 questions

•  Majority of questions from nationally recognised surveys or industry frameworks

•  Small number of created questions

Data analysis

•  Data from residents survey

benchmarked against national data & statistically tested

•  Benchmarked against national psycho-geographic categorisations (OACs)

•  Only results that had statistical significance reported

•  Site survey data assessed against industry standards

•  Created questions assessed separately

The Hamptons OAC categories

Empire Square, Bermondsey 567 homes, 30% affordable, completed 2007

•  Pic and v short description

Imperial Wharf, Fulham 1,428 homes, 47% affordable, completion 2013

Knowle

•  Pic and v short description

Knowle Village, Hampshire 701 homes, 31% affordable, completed 2012

The Hamptons, Worcester Park 645 homes, 33% affordable, completed 2012

Resident responses

The Hamptons

Spatial exclusion of different housing tenures created tensions. Few if any opportunities to shape decision-making about physical environment or social life. Problems encouraged residents to organize and act. Initially as campaign group, now to run community assets.

Challenges and future work

•  Social sustainability is complex and context specific

•  Requires serious consideration of how social justice & equality translate to the built environment

•  Investment in capacity-building within public agencies/government and private sector

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