Scottish Urban Regeneration Companies
The Scottish Urban Regeneration Companies (URCs) have set successful placemaking at the heart of their plans. These case studies illustrate how they have delivered the Scottish Government's Designing Places policy. The examples were selected to illustrate different scales of place and different points in the placemaking process.
Tenant Welcome Project
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
Tenant Welcome aims to help people to sustain their tenancies and improve their life chances. It is a project that involves vulnerable tenants in home and garden improvement work in order to help them to live independently and start them on a path to education, employment or training.
Making Money Work
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
Making Money Work is an advice project for people who are unemployed and living on low incomes or at risk of finding themselves in that position. It aims to remove financial barriers that people may face in trying to return to work.
Fairfield Housing Cooperative Toolkit
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
Looks at the Toolkit Project in Perth that was set up by Working Rite; an Edinburgh based social enterprise supporting disaffected young people into employment. The Toolkit Project aims to support 20 young people each year.
Elderpark Housing Association Youthpoint
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
The project's aim is to divert young people away from involvement in youth crime and anti-social behaviour and to help them improve their employment prospects.
Linkwide Green Action Volunteers
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
Linkwide Green Action is a work experience and employability project based on volunteer placements for young people aged 16-24.
Lochgelly Regeneration
Scottish Centre for Regeneration
This award winning project has resulted in the redevelopment of the town centre to aid economic regeneration in Lochgelly. It has involved the provision of new mainstream and amenity housing, new sheltered housing, the refurbishment of existing stock, a major community project housed in the former Lochgelly Miner's Institute and a new Business Centre for start-up businesses.
Ardler Village Trust
An independent charity and limited company set up by a partnership that includes local residents, local churches, the Ardler Complex, Dundee City Council and Sanctuary Scotland Housing Association. Tells the story of huge changes as the 1960s tower blocks and four-storey flats are being replaced with quality houses based around a central social area. The 'Village' offers green space, a large community complex with library, new shops, football pitches, bowling club, water features, multi sports area and a youth shelter.
Raploch Urban Regeneration Company (URC)
Describes the strategic vision and investment programme for the first phase of regenerating Raploch. Details how the URC intends to develop a community fit for the 21st century between 2004 to 2012, and and how it will ensure that no-one in Raploch is disadvantaged by where they live.
Dumbiedykes ecocity
SUST
Dumbiedykes, The Old Town and Southside (DOTS) area in Edinburgh is located close to the new Scottish Parliament. This project involved 44 children from four schools in the Dumbiedykes and surrounding area. Based at Our Dynamic Earth and working alongside 20 local community representatives, the children developed a 5m x 5m scale model of the area - addressing sustainability issues and envisaging the future of their area.
Sustainable designs on you
SUST
This innovative training course was designed to enable both staff and committee members from housing associations to take a sustainable design approach to their building projects. The final question and answer session brought committee members and staff together and a panel of experts offered comments and advice on how housing associations can better ensure sustainable design in their projects.
One Brighton - Building homes that promote greener lifestyles
Housing and Communities Academy
One Brighton is a mixed-use development in the New England Quarter of Brighton, offering 172 eco-homes plus office spaces and areas for community use. The development reflects the One Planet Living principles of sustainability, which aim to make green living easy, attractive and affordable.
Paddington Development Trust - Building a sustainable community through effective partnerships
Housing and Communities Academy
An independent, community-based organisation that aims to deliver sustainable social and economic regeneration in the Paddington area of London. Secured £13.5 million of funding for the New Life for Paddington initiative which ran from 1994 to 2001. Projects delivered through New Life for Paddington included: building a creative business centre, Westbourne Studios; creating two modern youth centres; refurbishing local community facilities; creating employment and business opportunities for residents; and building leadership skills among local communities.
Eco-towns: Freiburg (Germany) - Leading environmental policy and best practice
Housing and Communities Academy
Freiburg, a historic town in South-Western Germany, has been leading environmental policy and practice for over two decades in Europe. Its two urban extensions Vauban and Rieselfeld have generated great interest. Vauban, a former barracks, is virtually complete with 5,000 residents. Rieselfeld, on the site of a sewage works, currently has 8,000 of a planned 10-12,000 residents. Both have low rates of turnover, and property values that match those in the centre. Both show how to cut energy consumption and car use, and create active communities.
Benchmark for brownfield developments - Eco-towns: Hammarby Sjöstad
Housing and Communities Academy
Hammarby Sjöstad is a good example of the Swedish 'green welfare state' approach to rco-towns and shows how it can "promote sustainable development, new jobs, growth and welfare" into the future. Originally planned for development as part of Stockholm's bid for the 2004 Olympic Games, this formerly disused, polluted brownfield site is now one of Europe's leading eco-towns. It is envisaged that the area will house some 35,000 people by 2015.
Upton sustainable urban extension
Housing and Communities Academy
The Upton Sustainable Urban Extension was delivered through the teamwork of English Partnerships as landowner, Northampton Borough Council as the planning authority and the Prince's Foundation as advisers. In 2001 they set out to deliver an urban extension which would be an exemplar of sustainable urban growth. A master plan was developed through a highly participative process, and a design code was used for assessing all developer proposals.
Eco-towns: Amersfoort (The Netherlands)
Housing and Communities Academy
Amersfoort, a prosperous historic town near Utrecht with a population of 135,000, has developed three new settlements on its outskirts to provide over 20,000 homes. The aim was to stay 'small, beautiful and modest', while taking advantage of the government's Ten Year Vinex housing programme. Amersfoort is now designated 'one of the greenest cities in Europe'.