The Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration and the Fire Service in London, Jules Pipe, talks to AT about the new Town Architect initiative the Greater London Authority has launched, discussing what the role entails and what we can expect from these new Town Architects.

Credit: The Mayor’s Office.

Ten Town Architects have been named in the new Town Architect pilot scheme recently unveiled by the Greater London Authority. They are:

• Jas Bhalla: Ilford, LB Redbridge
• Adam Khan: Abbey Wood, LB Greenwich
• Ken Okonkwo: Barking Riverside, LB Barking and Dagenham
• Holly Lewis: Hackney Central, LB Hackney,
• Hilary Satchwell: Angel Edmonton, LB Enfield
• Farshid Moussavi: Lewisham & Catford town centres, LB Lewisham
• Paul Monaghan: Croydon town centre, LB Croydon
• Tom Holbrook: Brentford, LB Hounslow
• Julian Lewis: Uxbridge & Hayes Town centres, LB Hillingdon
• Alice Fung: Northolt, LB Ealing

We spoke to Jules Pipe, deputy mayor for planning, regeneration and the fire service to find out more about this new role.

What will a Town Architect do and what can we expect from them? 
The Town Architects will work collaboratively with selected boroughs to support design excellence where there is a significant development opportunity and the need to improve the quality of a place. The Town Architects will also support borough officers navigate complex relationships between public and private stakeholders as part of developing and implementing a strategic vision for high streets and public spaces across the city.

Each Town Architect’s role has been shaped by borough officers who know the local context and are the front line of addressing the specific challenges their boroughs face. So the remit of a Town Architect will be very much tailored to the local need.

Town Architects will work closely with borough Chief Placeshaping Officers and Design Champions. This could range from providing feedback on major developments; identifying where design research is needed and contributing to the development of an area’s vision for urban change and development; to establishing best practice design quality management protocols.

Town Architects could also help borough officers build in-house capacity for the long term, for example by introducing design review panels, or delivering design-related officer training.

We have seen that investing in good, well thought through design can help unlock development opportunities and smooth the planning decision making process. With the right expertise embedded in London’s boroughs we can support better design processes across our city and see better outcomes in terms of creating well-designed places that meet the needs of local communities.

Can you define the roles of Chief Placeshaping Officers and Design Champions and explain how they will work with Town Architects?
Chief Placeshaping Officers have strategic oversight and decision-making responsibilities for design, spatial planning and regeneration.  Their remit and areas of focus will vary by borough. Design Champions work with local authorities on specific sites or development proposals to oversee design quality and ensure community needs are met.

Town Architects will act as a ‘critical friend’ to Chief Placeshaping Officers and Design Champions, providing constructive feedback and challenge.

How were the Town Architects chosen?
For the pilot phase, the Town Architects were selected from our diverse cohort of Mayor’s Design Advocates. Their experience and expertise span a broad range of areas, including architecture, masterplanning, high streets, public realm, and design quality management. Many of the appointed Town Architects also bring valuable place-based knowledge to their roles, through previous projects or lived experience.

And how were the ‘towns’ chosen too?
‘Towns’ were invited to participate in this pilot phase based on an assessment of social deprivation data undertaken by GLA Regen and TfL Growth & Masterplanning officers and their understanding of local areas vulnerability to climate change. This work was supplemented by the knowledge and experience that officers have built up over the years through the GLA’s longstanding collaboration with boroughs on its regeneration programmes.

The GLA and TfL officers established a long list of places, across different areas of the city. Boroughs were invited to participate in the programme by submitting a proposal which included a detailed brief for the role of a town architect in their identified locations.

The shortlist of ‘towns’ was chosen with a view of the need to reflect a range of urban conditions and challenges so that we can evaluate what works well in different parts of the city. For example, some places are town centres with opportunities for growth in housing and mixed-use development that will help diverse communities to thrive. Others are places where much needed public improvements could help create safer, more accessible and inclusive places that support a mix of uses, and in some places there is significant economic opportunity to intensify industrial uses and reshape them to create vibrant, productive and more welcoming parts of the city.

Are they paid?
As Mayor’s Design Advocates, they have a set daily rate across the cohort of £500 per day.

What can we expect if the pilot scheme is successful?
We expect to see the principles of Good Growth, meaning urban change that is socially and economically inclusive, accessible and high quality, embedded in the regeneration projects that will be supported. Whether that’s through a more carefully considered and connected public realm that is designed with the safety of women, girls and gender diverse people in mind, or greater public participation in the processes of urban change.

A successful scheme – be it a building, high street or public space – will respond to the needs of Londoners and visitors alike. It will be adaptable and fit for purpose for the future, and provide much needed capacity and capability to public sector planners and built environment commissioners in our city.