Laying the foundation for more efficient future cities
Francis Maude visited Cardiff University to see a new Spatial Design Network Analysis tool and regeneration plans for Swansea High Street.
The Minister for the Cabinet Office met students and lecturers working on developing tools and designs to make sure that today鈥檚 cities are fit for the future.
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Spatial Design Network Analysis (sDNA)
The pioneering was developed by Cardiff University鈥檚 School of Planning and Geography and the University鈥檚 flagship Sustainable Places Research Institute. It uses spatial design analysis to look at street networks and how these affect patterns of urban activity. Local authorities and architects are already using it to help understand how cities use land, and how this affects efficiency and residents鈥� wellbeing.
Regenerating Swansea High Street
Students also showed off their regeneration exhibition of Swansea High Street. The strategy and design work was developed with Swansea City Council and is informing the way the historic High Street can be regenerated to serve today鈥檚 business and retail needs.
The government鈥檚 property strategy
Innovations like these will help inform the government鈥檚 property strategy. This has already seen more than 拢1.25 billion raised in capital receipts in the past 3 years, with a further 拢5 billion of land and property to be released between 2015 and 2020.
Find out how to rent government workspace or challenge the government to release land that you think could be better used.
Francis Maude said:
It is great to see the fascinating work that Cardiff University is doing to create efficient cities that best serve their communities and to hear about the regeneration of Swansea High Street. There are lessons here that many town centres across the country can learn from.
Efficiency is at the heart of this government鈥檚 long-term economic plan. It鈥檚 this approach which helped save hard-working taxpayers 拢10 billion last year alone. But we want to do more, including releasing more surplus properties that could be put to better use.
I鈥檓 interested in how analysis from initiatives like Cardiff University鈥檚 sDNA tool could help my officials examine how our plans will shape the local environment in the future.
Alain Chiaradia, lecturer in Urban Design at the School of Planning & Geography said:
The sDNA tool helps drive better and more reliable evidence-based urban planning and design.
Through our work we have found that sDNA enables far more efficient and effective spatial planning analysis. The tool models low-cost 鈥渨hat if鈥� scenarios providing a better understanding of the impacts on health and wealth before investments are made.
Another innovative element of the sDNA project has been combining sDNA software with off-the-shelf open data, and industry standards, to improve the analysis of spatial planning and design.