As part of this year’s London Festival of Architecture, we opened our studios for an evening of presentations and Q&A with our panel of special guests. Our theme this year was ‘Reimagining Public Spaces Through Co-Design’. This is a mantra that we have always had as a thread running through our work. The process is now often referred to in briefs, so it was interesting to explore what this means in practice, what works well and the potential pitfalls of the process.

Expertly chaired by Kate Digney (Associate Director and Head of Landscape), we had presentations on two of our projects - Fairlop Waters Country Park in Redbridge and Down Lane Park in Tottenham Hale.

Associate Director and Head of Urban Design, Glyn Tully and I introduced the projects, which were then analysed by our respective clients, Sharon Strutt (Head of Regeneration at London Borough of Redbridge) and Emily Read (Head of Regeneration at London Borough of Haringey) to explore the briefs that were set and what this has meant for the projects.

Lisa Taylor from Coherent Cities, who facilitated the co-design process for Down Lane Park, provided us with some insightful and enlightening points on the details that need to be considered when dealing with co-design.

It was a great opportunity to hear the challenges and the outcomes of these two projects of different scales, with different approaches to co design - both with their own unique pressures in the areas they are situated. In particular, the impact of Covid 19 led to different methods of engaging local residents. Co-design sessions for Fairlop Waters were conducted during the pandemic, and the sessions for Down Lane Park took place post-pandemic. The methods therefore had to vary and be responsive to the needs of the groups. This however provided a comparison for online engagement versus in-person engagement, both of which have strengths and weaknesses that are not to be ignored.

The ultimate take-away from the discussions around co-design, however, has been that the outcomes of the projects would have not been the same without the input of the people that are most affected by them - as without their unique lived experiences within their respective areas, the overall masterplans would not have been shaped in the ways that they were.

Overall it was a fantastic evening with some lively discussion, with visitors that ranged from clients to fellow professionals. Thank you to all who attended - it was a great chance to discuss the important role of people in the places we design.