Town Centres & High Streets

We met John Macaulay and Sophie Macaulay, the team behind GRIT Studios in Stockport and founders of Art Battle Manchester.They shared what has made Art Battle successful and how they have worked with local authorities and developers to take over empty spaces in town centres...

Street Food: Hawkers and the History of London (Oxford University Press) by Charlie Taverner. Street Food traces the history of London’s street traders starting from the sixteenth century and bringing things bang up to date with the impact of the Covid-19 lockdowns. It takes us through...

We recently visited Woolwich for the first time, an area with a long history and importance to London. A walk with The London Society explored the municipal architecture of the town centre, it took in all styles of architecture and streetscapes from Victorian and Georgian to art deco...

We´ve been working on High Street Task Force projects recently across England where the evening economy has come up in discussions.This includes a town centre we were supporting with a new vision and visual identity, where the discussion turned to the evening economy and the...

The Fabric District CIC is working to develop the area a few minutes walk away from Lime Street station in Liverpool. It is home to historic buildings, indie businesses with a growing hospitality and creative sector and an international food offer.Its neighbours include University of Liverpool, The...

We were fortunate to spend a few days in Athens this month, a city we'd been meaning to visit for a while and we weren't disappointed.Aside from the big sights (as good as we imagined), we really enjoyed exploring the many different neighbourhoods that make...

How can we create happier places? Everyone has different measures for happiness, but according to the World Happiness Report in 2022 happiness levels depend on a number of factors, including financial security, perceptions of social support, place of living, work, feelings of personal freedom, and much more. According to...

Shakespeare North Playhouse opening marks another milestone in Prescot's revivalPrescot is a small town in the borough of Knowsley located approximately 10 miles outside Liverpool. With a history focused on watch making and more recently as the former site of BICC Cables it has had...

Winner of ‘Best large indoor market’ at the Great British Market Awards in 2022.Having visited the temporary market in Warrington a few years ago for a NABMA meeting, I was keen to see the new, permanent market.The market is in the new build Time Square...

Behind the scenes in the City's newest parkRecently we took part in a fascinating tour with The London Society of the City’s newest public park, Exchange Square with architecture, urban design and research studio DSDHA and landscape architects FFLO.Tucked away behind Bishopsgate – we weren't even...