Why community engagement is key to successful built environment projects

Written by Robbie Blackhurst, the founder of Black Capital Group (BCG) and the Procure Partnerships Framework

With the UK’s population and demand for affordable housing both continuing to grow, the urgent need for more public facilities becomes increasingly clear. Not only is access to good-quality, well-maintained public infrastructure vital to our physical and mental wellbeing, but it also enable us to live more comfortable and convenient lives. As communities across the UK continue to develop, the only way to adequately support the needs of their diverse populations is through the provision of better and more inclusive public facilities.

However, local authorities cannot hope to deliver successful built environment projects without community engagement. After all, it stands to reason that local people will want to have their say over their public facilities so as to ensure that projects provide the genuine sense of value that they expect them to.

Collaboration is king

This idea is becoming especially important as the world continues to face the pressing challenges of climate change and the need for sustainable development. With many people now so well attuned to these issues, councils are rightly receiving increased scrutiny from communities that the projects they deliver not only provide convenience, but are also forward thinking and sustainable in their designs. By engaging with residents right from the start of the development process, therefore, local authorities can ensure that projects align with the specific needs and values of local communities, which can lead to more energy-efficient designs, the use of renewable materials, and the introduction of environmentally friendly building practices in the area.

To dismiss such collaborative gestures as tokenistic would be a severe error of judgement on the part of councils, given the sense of social cohesion that successful projects can provide. Indeed, knowing that they have positively contributed to green building projects in their community can help to foster a sense of ownership and pride among residents in their public facilities, which in turn can create a greater level of trust towards local authorities, and encourage wider community cooperation with future projects. Engendering both trust and cooperation is crucial if councils want to ensure that the communities they serve continue to thrive, and benefit from a better quality of life.

Besides ensuring that the values local people hold are reflected in public sector projects, community engagement also provides residents with the opportunity to voice any other concerns that they may have, such as how work might encroach on their homes and have a negative impact on their standard of living. By listening to people’s concerns and doing whatever they can to allay them, councils can ensure that projects have a positive impact, rather than negatively impacting communities.

Giving residents a voice

It’s evident that community engagement is just as much in the best interests of the councils that commission public facilities as it is in that of local people who use them. As such, local authorities should look for opportunities to involve residents in the design and development process wherever possible and appropriate to do so. This might mean holding community workshops and consultations, incorporating online surveys and virtual townhalls, or establishing partnerships with local organisations, such as community development corporations or environmental groups. The range of ways to collaborate with residents is incredibly broad, and local authorities are encouraged to experiment with different methods in an effort to produce the best results. Whatever approach that councils decide to take, however, the most important thing of all is that local people are given a voice, and can truly have their say over the public facilities upon which they rely.

 

About the author

Robbie Blackhurst is the founder of Black Capital Group (BCG) and the Procure Partnerships Framework, which works to ensure contractors don’t inflate their costs when delivering major construction projects for local government procurement contracts.