"The lure of the romantic suburb caused the successful to move out, with unfortunate results. The community was deprived of its leaders, and thus lost its social dynamic, i.e. the capacity to renew itself, to hold the affection of its inhabitants.
Some existing slums are capable of regeneration, provided that a social dynamic can be created, or maintained. To take people from close packed row-houses and place them in seventeen storey blocks 600ft. apart has resulted in little social improvement. Delinquency rates go up and the new environment is soon reduced to the level of the old. What has happened is that the slums are no longer capable of growing, or able to retain their natural leaders: that is, those citizens who have made some kind of success and therefore exercise an almost unconscious control by civic example. Crude rehousing merely segregates the poor and the weak, flushing their leaders and exemplars into middle class ghettos of their own. No society can be stable, restrain its violent and criminal element, unless it is in a general way committed to law, order and a constructive way of life. It is the function of the planner to provide the format within which this commitment can be realised.
He must also be able to recognise those elements of our existing environment that are conductive to social growth. By protecting and extending these he will be able, often astonishingly, to revitalise a community without having to reach for his handy bulldozer.'
T19 Rip it Up Belfast
"This is how space begins, with words only, signs traced on the blank page. To describe space: to name it, to trace it, like those portolano-makers who saturated the coastlines with the names of harbours, the names of capes, the names of inlets, until in the end the land was only separated from the sea by a continuous ribbon of text. Is the aleph, that place in Borges from which the entire world is visible simultaneously, anything other than an alphabet?" - Georges Perec
T18 Revised Manifesto
"what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger" or is it "what doesn't kill you only kills you a little bit"
time will tell...
wading through a sea of acronyms to get to the meaning behind a remark is still holding back progress...
'proposals will be expected to contribute positively to the character of the built environment...'
the proposal for a massive spike with bells on still gets through...
Policy must exist - but in what form?
a picture is worth a thousand words?
time will tell...
wading through a sea of acronyms to get to the meaning behind a remark is still holding back progress...
'proposals will be expected to contribute positively to the character of the built environment...'
the proposal for a massive spike with bells on still gets through...
Policy must exist - but in what form?
a picture is worth a thousand words?
T17 Revised Glossary DRAFT
'The Political' - the dimension of antagonism which I take to be constitutive of human societies
'Politics' - a set of practices and institutions through which an order is created, organising human coexistence in the context of conflictuality provided by the Political
- Chantal Mouffe
Glossary of Terms 2#
Acronym – n a word formed from the initial letters of other words.
Quango – n (pl - os) an autonomous body set up by the government and having
statutory powers in a specific field.
Ma SPUD – Masters in Spatial Design and Urban Design
DFL – Design for London
GLA – Greater London Authority
GLC – Greater London Council
CIL – Community Infrastructure Levy
GOVT –
IOC – International Olympic Committee
BOA – British Olympic Association
LOCOG – London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympics Games
ODA – Olympic Delivery Authority
UDLF – Urban Design Landscape Framework
LDA – London Development Agency
TFL – Transport for London
HQI – Housing Quality Index
RIBA – Royal Institute of British Architects
RTPI – Royal Institute of Town Planning
ARB – Architects Registration Board
CABE – Commission for Architecture and the Build Environment
RICS – Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
LCC –
OAFP –
DCLG – Department for Communities and Local Government
This is an ongoing exercise and I intend to expand the definitions of each Quango and their role...
'Politics' - a set of practices and institutions through which an order is created, organising human coexistence in the context of conflictuality provided by the Political
- Chantal Mouffe
Glossary of Terms 2#
Acronym – n a word formed from the initial letters of other words.
Quango – n (pl - os) an autonomous body set up by the government and having
statutory powers in a specific field.
Ma SPUD – Masters in Spatial Design and Urban Design
DFL – Design for London
GLA – Greater London Authority
GLC – Greater London Council
CIL – Community Infrastructure Levy
GOVT –
IOC – International Olympic Committee
BOA – British Olympic Association
LOCOG – London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympics Games
ODA – Olympic Delivery Authority
UDLF – Urban Design Landscape Framework
LDA – London Development Agency
TFL – Transport for London
HQI – Housing Quality Index
RIBA – Royal Institute of British Architects
RTPI – Royal Institute of Town Planning
ARB – Architects Registration Board
CABE – Commission for Architecture and the Build Environment
RICS – Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
LCC –
OAFP –
DCLG – Department for Communities and Local Government
This is an ongoing exercise and I intend to expand the definitions of each Quango and their role...
T16 Job application
To whom it may concern,
I would like to be considered for the role of Urban Design Officer at Croydon Council.
I have a passion for the built environment and a keen interest in the development and future of the city. I am a qualified architect and have been working in a London based practise for the last two years. Whilst undertaking my RIBA part 2 I also completed a Masters degree in Spatial Planning and Urban Design in collaboration with Design for London at London Metropolitan University. I feel that this training has furnished me with a skill set that puts me in good stead to take up the position you are offering within your Urban Design team. I have a good knowledge of current policies and objectives in London and the United Kingdom.
During my time working with ‘A N Architects’ I worked on a mixed use development in Hackney, London. I was responsible for arranging and leading meetings with the client, council members, contractors, consultants and the local housing association as well as producing specifications, schedules and construction drawings. The project was to redevelop the site of an existing 1950s Baptist Church just off Mare Street. The site was owned by the Baptist Church who planned to demolish the building and erect a new church and community centre to house their growing congregation. In order to fund this, the church sold the site to a housing association that would then develop the scheme with just over half the area dedicated to two seven storey shared ownership housing stock arranged around a private courtyard shared with the new Baptist church. Throughout the term of this project I was offered an insight into the policies and inner workings of the planning department at Hackney. In meetings I chaired my role was key to ensuring that each party had a voice and were treated fairly. I played diplomat and aimed to ensure that the aspirations of the client were communicated in a language that was familiar to the contractors whilst also highlighting the areas of value to the members of the council. I also assisted with breaking down the policy documents and sustainability targets set by the housing association and council to the congregation of the Baptist Church and outlining the construction constraints on behalf of the contractors in order that no member felt uneasy with the proceedings. Having identified and agreed the priorities of each phase I published and circulated the minutes of all meetings held.
I am creative and hard working. I have high aspirations for the opportunity to work with you at Croydon and am only satisfied when I know that I have committed everything I have to a project in order to see it succeed. I also see the realities and constraints that may affect that implementation of a scheme. I will always aim to find value in each exercise I carry out within the design process. I enjoy collaborative work and believe that creative problem solving stems from sustained research and analysis into each facet of a proposal. A patient approach is a key asset. I am keen to aid Croydon in improving the quality of the built environment, whether it is public realm, housing, infrastructure or community based projects.
I am proficient with AutoCAD, Vectorworks and Microstation as well as the full Adobe suite. I also enjoy measured hand drawing and find diagrammatic sketching an invaluable tool for quickly and efficiently communicating ideas and concepts with others.
I believe that the diverse workload and prospects of collaborating with practicing professionals in the area will provide a nourishing environment for me to continue developing as a good urban designer.
Yours faithfully,
M A Charlton
I would like to be considered for the role of Urban Design Officer at Croydon Council.
I have a passion for the built environment and a keen interest in the development and future of the city. I am a qualified architect and have been working in a London based practise for the last two years. Whilst undertaking my RIBA part 2 I also completed a Masters degree in Spatial Planning and Urban Design in collaboration with Design for London at London Metropolitan University. I feel that this training has furnished me with a skill set that puts me in good stead to take up the position you are offering within your Urban Design team. I have a good knowledge of current policies and objectives in London and the United Kingdom.
During my time working with ‘A N Architects’ I worked on a mixed use development in Hackney, London. I was responsible for arranging and leading meetings with the client, council members, contractors, consultants and the local housing association as well as producing specifications, schedules and construction drawings. The project was to redevelop the site of an existing 1950s Baptist Church just off Mare Street. The site was owned by the Baptist Church who planned to demolish the building and erect a new church and community centre to house their growing congregation. In order to fund this, the church sold the site to a housing association that would then develop the scheme with just over half the area dedicated to two seven storey shared ownership housing stock arranged around a private courtyard shared with the new Baptist church. Throughout the term of this project I was offered an insight into the policies and inner workings of the planning department at Hackney. In meetings I chaired my role was key to ensuring that each party had a voice and were treated fairly. I played diplomat and aimed to ensure that the aspirations of the client were communicated in a language that was familiar to the contractors whilst also highlighting the areas of value to the members of the council. I also assisted with breaking down the policy documents and sustainability targets set by the housing association and council to the congregation of the Baptist Church and outlining the construction constraints on behalf of the contractors in order that no member felt uneasy with the proceedings. Having identified and agreed the priorities of each phase I published and circulated the minutes of all meetings held.
I am creative and hard working. I have high aspirations for the opportunity to work with you at Croydon and am only satisfied when I know that I have committed everything I have to a project in order to see it succeed. I also see the realities and constraints that may affect that implementation of a scheme. I will always aim to find value in each exercise I carry out within the design process. I enjoy collaborative work and believe that creative problem solving stems from sustained research and analysis into each facet of a proposal. A patient approach is a key asset. I am keen to aid Croydon in improving the quality of the built environment, whether it is public realm, housing, infrastructure or community based projects.
I am proficient with AutoCAD, Vectorworks and Microstation as well as the full Adobe suite. I also enjoy measured hand drawing and find diagrammatic sketching an invaluable tool for quickly and efficiently communicating ideas and concepts with others.
I believe that the diverse workload and prospects of collaborating with practicing professionals in the area will provide a nourishing environment for me to continue developing as a good urban designer.
Yours faithfully,
M A Charlton
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