Proptech and planning: connecting to communities

After the Levelling Up white paper left the property industry feeling somewhat underwhelmed last month, there was a small but encouraging signal this week that government is serious about enabling residents to have a greater say in shaping and regenerating their communities. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and new housing minister Stuart Andrew announced on Monday (21 March) that more than £3.25m from the Proptech Engagement Fund would be spent on 28 projects across England. These will trail cutting-edge digital tools to make the planning system more open, engaging and accessible. Think 3D interactive maps and virtual reality. The aim is to help people better envisage proposed new developments in their communities, and encourage them to get more involved in planning locally. The hope is that increased community participation in local decision making will include underrepresented groups, such as renters and those from Black and minority ethnic groups. Encouraging progress Sceptics might suggest that the announcement has been timed to distract from lack of progress in delivering the wider levelling up agenda. Afterall, the announcement comes before the results of the first digital engagement pilot are even known or have been shared. This involved 13 projects and more than £1m of funding announced last October, and is due to conclude this month. However, it is encouraging to see that the second round announced this week is much larger than the 10 projects expected to be chosen at this stage – and the modest £3.25m pot of money allocated is larger than the £1.2m previously announced. [caption id="attachment_1129968" align="alignright" width="473"] Image © Built-ID[/caption] The selected projects include: Watford Borough Council, which will develop a digital platform to help residents have their say on how to spend contributions from developers towards infrastructure in their community; Walsall Council, which will use funding to encourage underrepresented community voices to have their say on the regeneration of Bloxwich and Walsall Town Centre (projects supported by the Towns Fund); and Plymouth Council, which alongside South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council, will produce a set of interactive maps for residents to identify what infrastructure is needed in their local area. There will be considerable time pressure to bring in tech partners and show tangible results, as these pilots will only run until September 2022. They will then be used to inform the government’s work to modernise the planning system. DLUHC said it is working closely with planning authorities across the country to establish best practice and identify where further digital guidance and innovations are needed. Those selected are clearly enthused. Speaking as deputy leader of Walsall Council, councillor Adrian Andrew said it was “vital” to find new ways to engage with residents and keep them informed. “We will continue to talk to people in-person whenever possible, but this technology is 24/7 and gives people the information they need to make informed comments and help us build a better Walsall for everyone.” Universal appeal The reaction from industry experts canvassed by EG was broadly positive, too. Liam Ronan-Chlond, head of engagement at developer Socius – which was spun out of First Base last year and has a £1bn pipeline of mixed-use urban regeneration schemes – said digital tools could be hugely effective in “reaching out to the silent majority”. Prior to the pandemic, he worked with Savannah de Savary, founder and CEO of social impact tech company Built-ID, to develop the consultation for its mixed-use redevelopment of the Soapworks site in a deprived area of Bristol. “Often what we found in the past was that only a very small number of people from a narrow demographic would turn up when we held public exhibitions. We would pat ourselves on the back if we received 100 pieces of feedback,” Ronan-Chlond explained. “But here we had 5,888 people take part across two surveys, with more than 80% of those coming into the survey through social media.” Knowing the local community is key to effective digital consultation, he said. For Soapworks, that meant ensuring that the local Somali population could complete the survey in their first language if they wanted to. If a local resident had the Facebook app switched to Somali, then they would receive a notification about the survey in Somali. “It’s more than just tech. A number of people don’t think consultation is for them. Tech is part of a multi-channel, varied approach of engaging with local people. It’s a huge fix [to the problem of engaging local people], but its not a single fix,” Ronan-Chlond said. [caption id="attachment_1129973" align="alignright" width="847"] CGI plans for Soapworks, Bristol. Courtesy of PR[/caption] Community impact For councils, Ronan-Chlond said digital engagement could help “democratise” the allocation of Section 106 contributions from developers. “That would be really helpful for communities,” he said. De Savary said her business had taken part in a recent showcase of leading community engagement platforms, organised by DLUHC for local authorities applying for the pilot projects. “I have to say that some of the projects the councils wanted to explore were really, really inspiring. It’s fantastic to see so many of them getting approved because they are going to make a genuine impact on communities,” she said. To do so, the goal has to be about much more than “just a communications exercise”, she added. “It’s actually about getting diverse voices, having a constructive part in changemaking, an actual plan. “Part of the work is figuring out what is actually financially feasible and what is viable from a design and planning perspective. Only if it ticks both those boxes, do you ask the community [if it is something they want]. “If you know that you’re going to be able to make data-driven decisions which work for your plans and work within your budget, it means you can now empower the community so that this isn’t a comms exercise.” Ronan-Chlond agreed: “The reason councils would say they haven’t been doing this is capacity. Putting money behind this is something we really support.” To send feedback, e-mail julia.cahill@eg.co.uk or tweet @EGJuliaC or @EGPropertyNews Main image © Pexels/Pixabay