New guidance has been published that seeks to ensure places are designed to be equitable to everyone, including women and girls.
The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), supported by sustainable development and engineering consultant Arup, have published a guidance handbook aimed at planning authorities, design teams and developers, so that they can make gender-informed decisions on urban design and planning that ensure safe access to public spaces for women and girls.
Adopting gender-informed urban design principles can play an important part in addressing gender inequalities and ensuring fair access to services and opportunities.
Since 2021, LLDC has pioneered gender-informed design and planning and is the first local planning authority to publish such guidance.
Development of the handbook has come from extensive consultation and research into the gender biases that are embedded in traditional urban design and planning practices, which often fail to consider the needs of women and girls and consequently led to inequalities in planning. A diverse group stakeholders were involved in the production of the handbook, including local women, gender equity experts and other research groups and campaigners in this area including 'Make Space for Girls' and UN Habitat.
The handbooks key recommendations include:
Applying a gender-informed approach to planning has already seen benefits. When the Waterden Green Play Area on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park was redesigned, the LLDC worked closely with local girls and women to ensure that the area was made inclusive and welcoming to teenage girls, so that they too would be able to benefit from a green space intended for all teenagers.
Mei-Yee Man Oram, access and inclusive environments operational leader at Arup, commented: “For too long, the role that the built environment plays in the safety and inclusion of women, girls and gender-diverse people has been a secondary concern. Building and developing places guided by principles that explore different people’s experiences and perspectives is an important shift as we strive to create more positive spaces for all.”
LLDC principal planning officer, Marina Milosev, said: “We need to change how we design our cities, particularly for women and girls. If we are to create places that are inclusive for all then we must involve women and girls in the decision-making and design processes.
“This requires a long-term commitment to adopting planning policies and development processes that will lead to inclusive, healthy, child-friendly and socially prosperous environments that feel safer for everyone. It will improve, protect and empower the lives of women and girls while enhancing cities’ potential to address climate change, sustainable development and economic growth.”
For more information on this subject, see:
