Design Commission for Wales

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗜𝗻 𝗟𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘀 When communities are involved in shaping their local areas, the outcomes are more inclusive, reflective of people’s needs and can help build a sense of community. But how can we ensure engagement is meaningful and effective? Our latest Placemaking Wales article by Mhairi McVicar at Cardiff University / Prifysgol Caerdydd explores the role of community engagement in Local Development Plans, outlining ways in which we can move from consultation to genuine involvement. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eP-Hfbqt #CommunityInvolvement #Placemaking #UrbanPlanning

𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 Public art has the power to help create vibrant, connected and liveable neighbourhoods. But what makes a public art initiative truly successful? Our latest Placemaking Wales article by Jo Breckon at Studio Response explores the role of public art in placemaking and how artists can help involve the local community. The article looks at the opportunities, benefits, and key success factors of public art projects - from revealing the history and heritage of a place to creative community involvement and developing a sense of identity. Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/e2EfDTVr #PublicArt #Placemaking #UrbanDesign #CommunityInvolvement

𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗧𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝟭𝟮-𝟭𝗽𝗺 How do we make our town centres more sustainable? There are lots of elements to this – decarbonisation of buildings, sustainable transport modes, increasing biodiversity, managing rainwater runoff, for example. But what about the goods we consume? Is the future of our town centres about consuming more or is there an alternative that values the goods we have and moves away from individual ownership? In this webinar Benthyg Cymru (library of things) and Repair Cafe Wales will be sharing how their presence on the high street help support sustainable behaviour change but can also provide an accessible and social place for all. Join us if you would like to find out more about how to bring these uses to town centres and the benefits they can bring. Sign up here https://lnkd.in/ezWmaTju

𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀: 𝗔 𝗖𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 Our recent 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, in collaboration with Welsh Government, brought together 143 people from across the public, private, and third sectors in Wales - all united by a shared goal to create vibrant, resilient town centres. A line up of national and international speakers provided a range of examples and inspiration but one key theme was that action is just as important as planning. While long-term Placemaking Plans set the vision, more immediate interventions - such as events, street makeovers, pop-ups, street parties, and community-led initiatives - can quickly and affordably breathe life into our town centres. Local authorities have a crucial role in building trust and empowering local communities, businesses and retailers to take the lead on these interventions. Watch David Engwicht’s inspiring keynote speech on how to transform town centres through agile placemaking - https://lnkd.in/e5xHkTbT Join our upcoming free webinars: 𝟮𝟬 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 – 𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴 Register here - https://lnkd.in/ezWmaTju 𝟭 𝗠𝗮𝘆 – 𝘈 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴 Register here - https://lnkd.in/eCC8phMq Thank you to all our speakers – David Engwicht, Jayne Bryant MS, Richard Baker, Hamish Munro, Andrew Harradine, Steven Smith, Emma M Price, Jo Breckon, Kiki Rees-Stavros, Laura Alvarez, Gitti Coats, Paul Relf, Laura Willcox, Finlay McNab and Marianne Mannello.

The Placemaking for Town Centres Conference is coming up, and we’re excited to invite you to join us for a day of inspiration, collaboration, and real action on the future of town centres in Wales. 📅 When: Thursday 20th February 2025 📍 Where: Cardiff Marriott Hotel, Mill Lane, Cardiff, CF10 1EZ We’ll be exploring key topics like: - Meaningful Community Involvement - Doing More with Less - Getting to Action Quickly This conference is about sharing experiences, tackling challenges, and exploring the opportunities of placemaking in our town centres. Whether you’re part of a local authority regeneration team or a passionate placemaker, it’s an excellent chance to network and spark new ideas for better ways of working. There are free places available for local authorities and general delegate tickets open to all. There are also a few tables left for practices to book within the exhibition space. A big thank you to the incredible David Engwicht and Laura Alvarez for being part of the event – we can’t wait to hear from them! Don’t miss out – book now to secure your place! #Placemaking #TownCentres #CommunityInvolvement #Regeneration Book here - https://lnkd.in/epZr6cbh

Would you like to be included in the Placemaking Practice Directory? The deadline for entries has been extended to 5.30pm on the 15th January.  

Placemaking for Town Centres Webinars Check out the Design Commission for Wales YouTube channel - https://lnkd.in/ehPdx8Fi - for a series of insightful webinars on Placemaking for Town Centres, including: -         Embedding Placemaking in Local Authorities -         Empowering Communities Through Placemaking -         Promoting Private Sector Investment -         Tackling Vacant Units Look out for more placemaking webinars next year!

Placemaking for Town Centres Conference – Call for Exhibitors   DCFW and Welsh Government Place Division are organising a town centre placemaking conference on the 20th February 2025 at the Marriott Hotel, Cardiff. In addition to a packed programme of speakers and workshops there will be time for delegates to browse an exhibition space. Tables will be available within the exhibition space for relevant practices to display their work and be available to talk to delegates. The conference is aimed primarily at local authority regeneration departments and relevant colleagues who will make up the majority of the audience. However, there will also be tickets available to relevant private and third sector organisations. The aim of the exhibition space is to connect local authorities with a range of practices and organisation who can provide the skills and capacity to feed into placemaking plans and the projects and initiatives that come from them.  This will include: ·      Urban design ·      Architecture ·      Community involvement and cultural engagement ·      Landscape architecture ·      Regeneration ·      Commercial property advice ·      Transport planning and street design The cost of a table is £100 which includes one person who can also participate in the conference between attending to the table. Any additional attendees will pay the standard delegate rate of £85. Set up will be from 8:30am on the day with the conference starting at 9:30am until 5pm. Tables will be allocated on a first come first served basis but with some tables reserved for smaller practices. To secure your table please book via the Eventbrite page for the conference https://lnkd.in/epZr6cbh

Placemaking Practice Directory - Call for Entries   Do you have the placemaking expertise Wales needs?   Over the last two years, local authorities across Wales have been working on developing Placemaking Plans for their town centres as part of the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns programme. There are still more plans to complete and now a range of interventions and projects coming from those plans that are in place. A range of professions and skills are needed to support local authorities in taking these initiatives forward, and we want to make sure they have access to the best people for the job. Therefore, we are compiling a directory of practices so that those commissioning projects are aware of who they can go to for help*. As placemaking is a multidisciplinary practice, we are calling on practices with skills including: ·      Urban design ·      Architecture ·      Community involvement and cultural engagement ·      Landscape architecture ·      Regeneration ·      Commercial property advice ·      Transport planning and street design Each practice will be allocated one page of an A5 booklet that will be available online and provided in print copy to all local authorities. The cost of being included in the directory is £50. The directory will be published in February 2025. If you would like to be included in the directory you need to provide the following: ·      Name of practice ·      Contact details ·      Logo ·      Up to 150 words about your practice ·      Two images to reflect your work ·      Payment of £50 (following receipt of invoice) All of the above must be sent to placemakingwales@dcfw.org by 5:30pm on the 10th January 2025. *Please note that required procurement processes will still be in place to appoint a team for any given job. Inclusion in the directory does not guarantee appointment and does not represent endorsement by DCFW.

Next week our Placemaking for Town Centres webinar series will focus on tackling vacant units. Addressing empty property is a key challenge in most town centres. There is no single, easy fix but we will look at some examples of creative and dynamic ways to bring life to these empty spaces. Hear from Ben Reynolds, Urban Foundry, on pop-up spaces and activation and Wendy Maden, BaNES Council, on working with cultural partners. Book your place here: https://lnkd.in/eH7jTpC7