As part of the Scottish Sustainable Communities Initiative (SSCI), a Charrette Series was held between 1 and 25 March 2010. The SSCI Charrette Series provided a unique and innovative opportunity for Scotland to develop new approaches to sustainable planning while enabling a new level of public engagement in the place-making process. A ‘charrette’ is an interactive and intensive multi-disciplinary event that engages local people with experts to develop designs for their community. It is a hands-on approach where ideas are translated into plans and drawings.
The charrettes developed designs for three of the SSCI exemplar projects at: Ladyfield, Dumfries; Lochgelly, Fife; and Grandhome, Aberdeen. This involved a series of intense design workshops lead by the internationally acclaimed designer, Andres Duany, each engaging with key stakeholders to deliver community masterplans and a vision of vibrant future communities. The events featured large, public presentations, encouraging the views of local communities to help formulate the visions, as well as several specific meetings for special interest groups within each of the sites’ local areas.
The SSCI Charrette Series has been designed to provide new potential models of good practice for sustainable development, and will illustrate that high-quality, sustainable places can be delivered across the whole of Scotland.
Speaking about the SSCI Charrette Series, Stewart Stevenson, Minister for Planning said,
“The charrettes are a truly innovative and exciting approach to empowering communities that the Scottish Government is pioneering on a national scale. They allow people to positively shape the decision-making process in their communities in a dynamic and effective way, improving the quality, attractiveness and success of places across Scotland.”
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