About the Charrette
A Design Charrette is a multi-day collaborative planning event that harnesses the talents and energies of all parties to create and support feasible design options for an area. It is a model developed in the US over the last 20 years and is growing rapidly in popularity as a method to unlock longstanding deadlocks and avoid the costly cycle of consultation, conflict and subsequent reworking. Our work is being guided by Bill Lennertz of the National Charrette Institute in Portland, Oregon. Bill has worked on over 150 Charrettes including one delivered to address the rebuilding of New Orleans in the wake of hurricane Katrina. It is a mechanism whereby an integrated design response can be developed, tested, consulted on and jointly agreed between ALL stakeholders simultaneously.
The Creekside is a unique and complex area comprised of over 57 separate freeholds, coupled with diverse natural and cultural resources. Although a number of good design frameworks have been produced, there is no existing mechanism whereby an integrated design response can be developed, tested, consulted on and jointly agreed. Therefore site owners develop plans in isolation and often find the planning process frustrating and negative. On the ground, the great potential of the area remains unreleased. The last significant new build scheme in the area was Laban, which was completed in 2004.
As one of the last central largely undeveloped corridors in the Thames Gateway, there is great pressure for development. The area has an exceptionally diverse and rich culture with an established and growing creative economy. It has definitive potential to become a major centre for cultural and creative production, new business incubation and a visitor destination. However a different approach is needed to enable the existing cultures and economic activity grow and thrive.
The Charrette process differs from other collaborative planning techniques in several ways. A very detailed and comprehensive preparation process precedes the intensive design event. The structure of the event itself enables multiple stakeholders and a multidisciplinary design team to interact, review ideas in smaller and public meetings and develop alternative concepts in a series of short feed-back loops. The Charrette event must be at least three days (but is often five to seven depending on complexity).
Due to the growing complexity of urban regeneration and the shortcomings of many public consultation methods and techniques, Charrettes are sure to be used more frequently in the coming years.
The Creekside Charrette will run from 9th - 13th June. There will be a Kick-Off day on 22nd May and a Final Review day on 9th July. Please see the calendar for more details.
In some cases a Charrette may result in an actual finished design of an area, with everything from buildings to community space. However with an area as multifaceted as the Creekside, the Charrette seeks to explore issues and options for different themes, with all affected parties working collaboratively. The required output from the event will include a number of Charrette Products. The process also seeks to catalyse voluntary land assembly and will provide a basis for up and coming planning frameworks.
For more information on how to get involved please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .
The Charrette is funded by the London Development Agency.
Partners involved in the project include:
| Battle McCarthy | www.battlemccarthy.com |
| BRE | www.bre.co.uk |
| bptw partnership | www.bptw.co.uk |
| Cathedral Group | www.cathedralgroup.com |
| City Growth | www.southlondonbusiness.co.uk |
| Design for London | www.designforlondon.gov.uk |
| Deutsche Bank | www.db.com |
| GHPA Planning | |
| Halcrow | www.halcrow.com |
| Laban | www.laban.org |
| Lewisham College | www.lewisham.ac.uk |
| Lewisham Council | www.lewisham.gov.uk |
| London Development Agency | www.lda.gov.uk |
| National Charrette Institute | www.charretteinstitute.org |
| Raw Nerve | www.raw-nerve.co.uk |
| Stephen Lawrence Centre | www.stephenlawrence.org.uk |
Major developers and a range of local community groups are also involved in the process.