Comment: Promoting ethnic and cultural diversity in planning and engagement

By Alex Fuller and Fola Kalesanwo

Please note that this article was published prior to the new brand name of PREACH Inclusion® on 25 April 2024, so you will notice references to BAME in Property.

Our ethnicity in planning and engagement roundtable, held at Turley.

Is local and national policy adequately responsive to the diverse needs of our population? Does ethnic and cultural diversity influence the way we plan and make decisions regarding the future of our city?

These were some of the questions explored during a London-focused roundtable discussion, held at Turley’s office in the capital on Wednesday 1st November, in partnership with BAME in Property Ltd.

As London’s population continues to grow, planners and built environment practitioners need to tackle huge challenges from the ongoing housing crisis to preserving the Green Belt, whilst also striving to be a net-zero carbon city by 2030. As we rightfully focus our efforts on those big challenges, it is also important that we do not lose sight of the people we are planning and building for. Being the most ethnically diverse region of the UK, London has long been known as the melting pot of cultures and recent data from the ONS Census 2021 shows that London now has a majority ethnic minority population.

So as our city looks set to become increasingly diverse, is enough being done to cater to everyone’s needs?

The roundtable brought together a diverse group of built environment professionals, including local authority and private sector planners, architects, community engagement specialists, developers and lecturers.

Policy as an enabler

Among the themes explored, it was acknowledged that although some progress had been made, policy is often still too broad. The NPPF suggests we “should aim to” provide inclusive communities. Arguably this wording could be more direct to mitigate the risk of some in the industry being tempted to settle for doing the bare minimum or treating diversity and inclusivity efforts as a very light-touch tick box exercise.

With national policy and guidance providing a broad scope around ethnic diversity in planning, it is up to each of London’s 32 boroughs to act in the interests of their ethnically diverse residents. Local Planning Authorities need to decide how much they want to engage with and serve their ethnically diverse local communities, and they must take measures to optimise and promote this level of engagement at a local borough level. Local Planning Authorities therefore need to set the scene and expectations more clearly for developers and housebuilders regarding design and engagement, and place greater emphasis on this in the planning and planning application process.

Positive strides, such as Lewisham’s Developers Protocol and the City of London’s Cultural Plan exemplify efforts being made to promote proactive and meaningful engagement with local communities.

Desirable design features within ethnic households

The discussion also delved into design features commonly sought by ethnic minority communities, revealing insightful preferences such as:

• Multi-generational living spaces;
• Separate (non-open plan) kitchens - to contain cooking smells apart from the family gathering and entertaining spaces;
• Logical layouts easily linking key living spaces;
• Downstairs bedrooms – to support multi-generational living; and
• Porches – primarily used for removing shoes and cleansing oneself before entering the home.

Through conversation, it was found that some features initially deemed as being exclusive to certain communities are actually sought after by many cultures, due to the overarching principles of good design. And more specifically, multi-generational living is set to become more popular regardless of ethnic background with many young people opting to (or having to) live with their parents due to the rising cost of living. It is important to also highlight that such design requests must also be balanced with viability.

Inclusive community engagement principles

Another significant point addressed was the challenge of fostering inclusive and meaningful community engagement, recognising that there is no meaningful community engagement without trust, and in many cases, we need to actively work to address mistrust. The necessity for building trust through early and ongoing engagement initiatives was highlighted as key in addressing this. Examples were shared of engagement with prominent local community and religious leaders that harnessed their cultural influence to promote more successful engagement processes with ethnic minority community groups.

Other times, making the community ‘the star of the show’ allows for more effective engagement. An example of this can be seen in Aberfeldy Street, where Poplar HARCA collaborated with the predominantly Bangladeshi community to rejuvenate the high street in a way that would work for the existing Bangladeshi community as well as new visitors to the area.

The roundtable held on 1st November 2023 with stakeholders across the Built Environment sector.

Exploring different housing models

The roundtable discussion also touched on the need for equitable housing models that cater to varying needs and ensures a fair access to housing for all. Various perspectives across the board revealed that there is no single approach to creating such a model, however through collaboration, local authorities, planners and developers should consider:

• Local design guides which reflect local communities and needs;
• The need for a proactive local authority who can champion this;
• The need to consider housing design that responds to the climate context;
• The idea of each community having a list of negotiables/ non-negotiables;
• The possibility of including multi-generational homes in housing numbers;
• Acknowledging that the lack of social housing makes customisation difficult.

Diversifying the Built Environment sector

The importance of diversifying the built environment industry itself concluded the roundtable discussion. There was a focus on the need for more active efforts to engage people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds from early on in life (potentially as young as primary school) to encourage them into the industry.

Marketing pathways towards becoming a built environment professional with an increased focus on minority groups in the recruitment processes would no doubt contribute towards a greater presence of people with different backgrounds and perspectives.

Making diverse representation more visible to the public, for example through Design Review Panels and Community Review Panel membership, will also hopefully inspire future generations to pursue a career in the built environment sector, as they can see that their participation is genuinely achievable and valued.

An increased focus on community engagement with ethnically diverse groups and consideration of cultural needs in planning decisions would also increase awareness of how the UK planning system affects and supports ethnically diverse communities to in turn influence a new generation of planners.

As with anyone, retaining ethnically diverse talent, should be done through continued support, empowerment and opportunities.

Concluding points

A key takeaway from this discussion was that in the current climate, placing importance on ethnic diversity largely requires the willingness to do so. With national policy and guidance providing a broad scope around ethnic diversity in planning, it is up to Local Planning Authorities to act in the interests of their ethnically diverse residents.

Developers must also get used to the fact that their tick box exercise approach may be insufficient in the future and must start to think about ways in which they can also engage with the community and meet their needs and as well as making their own financial returns.

Communities also play a crucial role in this – if a community wants change, then they need to speak up and engage with the planning process. Creation of groups and organisations mean strength in numbers and can ultimately contribute to driving the desired change.

Ultimately, engaging with young people from ethnic minority backgrounds gives us an opportunity to advocate for our profession and support the next generation of talent.

A summary of the discussion was also provided to the GLA for consideration as part of the Planning for London Programme.

Thank you to Priya Aggarwal-Shah, founder of BAME in Property for chairing the session and to the following stakeholders for participating in the roundtable:

• Mark Underwood, Turley
• Fola Kalesanwo, Turley
• Lauren Theide-Palmer, Turley
• Vinesh Patel, De Montfort University
• Isabelle Asante, MUSE
• Lerato Marema, Populo Living
• Danielle Lennon, Notting Hill Genesis
• Lisa Fairmaner, GLA
• Parag Dhanani, Brent Council
• Anna Pagani, UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering
• Michael Forrester, Lewisham Council
• Alex Fuller, Turley

If you’d like to further discuss the themes covered in the piece or if interested in getting involved in future events, please get in touch with: Alex Fuller (alex.fuller@turley.co.uk), Fola Kalesanwo (fola.kalesanwo@turley.co.uk) and Priya Aggarwal-Shah (priya.shah@bameinproperty.com).