Community Regeneration

In from 2011 - 2013 I worked as a consultant for Westminster based charity Vital Regeneration on a number of regeneration initiatives, including supporting them to turn around their young peoples programme, deliver their communications and successfully tender for Westminster City Council’s Neighbourhood Renewal Programme.

Part of my role often involved developing and delivering creative public engagement campaigns, including consultation meetings, workshops, community events and public exhibitions.

An example initiative was a mural and film making project which aimed to engage younger people in the regeneration of the Church Street area.

This began by delivering a series of creative workshops and consultation activities where the young people worked alongside experts and artists to explore the concept of civic pride. We then related this back to their local area changing, considering employment, housing and green issues; such as water shortages, biodiversity and a proposed Green Spine running through their community.

The young people then worked with us to create a mural and short film capturing how they felt about the local government approach and the improvements they wanted to see in their local neighbourhood.

The the mural and film were showcased as part of the public engagement campaign in April 2013. The mural then found a more permanent home local Library, continuing to raise awareness of the Neighbourhood Renewal Programme as it evolved.

Church Street residents backed the first phase of the regeneration proposals in May 2013 (by 87%) – This positive vote was just the start of a 15-20 year vision, known as the Futures Plan, that will improve the neighbourhood’s streets, parks, green spaces, community facilities and market. It will see more affordable, energy efficient homes and boost employment opportunities.