Overview
Informed by Eco-Town principles, Hawkwell Village forms a key part of the sustainable extension of North-West Bicester. Our team lead the planning and masterplanning of the site, utilising our digital and graphic expertise to develop and prepare the new master plan. Community engagement has been supported through the creation of an innovative website, which has helped gather input, and aided the submission of the outline planning application.
Project Highlights
Clients
Hallam Land Management
Date
2020-Present
Scale
3,100 homes
During the pandemic, our Communications and Mapping Team explored new and innovative ways to engage with the local community, developing an adaptable, user-friendly website. The platform offered accessible feedback forms, online exhibitions and virtual Village Halls, which paired with an outreach strategy informed hard-to-reach groups. While in person engagement has returned, digital engagement is here to stay, and this project allowed us to test and refine new methods of consultation.
Stephen Haines, Partner, David Lock Associates
The Project
North-west Bicester is one of the original government designated Eco-Towns, with an encompassing vision to deliver high quality, low carbon development. The site is well integrated with the existing town, and will provide 6,000 new homes, jobs, and local services in an attractive landscape setting. Our client, Hallam Land Management, is bringing forward the delivery of a substantial part of the total allocation in the area, delivering up to 3,100 homes with a focus on creating sustainable futures and promoting healthy lifestyles. Hawkwell Village will form an integral part of the sustainable extension of Bicester, creating a new community that utilises the benefits of the areas existing facilities and services.
The Process
Utilising local knowledge and established placemaking and design principles, we developed a master plan for Hawkwell Village, a sustainable, mixed new community. Central to our work has been utilising our digital, communications and graphics expertise. The project was impacted at a key phase by the Covid-19 pandemic, requiring us to adapt and identify an effective approach to obtaining crucial community and stakeholder input to inform the outline planning application and advance the site’s design development. To aid this, we designed, built, and launched a bespoke digital engagement website, coordinating a hybrid communications strategy to encourage the community to explore the proposals and submit their views. The platform served as a virtual exhibition, allowing the community to establish a better understanding of Hawkwell Village, presenting the vision and plans for the site, and encouraging feedback of local knowledge via an online portal, to feed into the master planning process and influence the outline planning application.
We prepared and coordinated the submission of the outline planning application with accompanying Environmental Impact Assessment, and a suite of 3D visualisation material to effectively communicate and illustrate proposals. We are currently engaged in ongoing negotiations with local councils, stakeholders, and key consultees.