We’re not usually ones for awards at Create Streets. Our “what do people like” led approach to design does not always mesh well with professional award criteria. But as the planning pendulum swings in favour in favour of beautiful, popular and resilient places, we are delighted to share that our Birmingham Road Design Code with Lichfield District Council has won the RTPI regional gold prize for Best Plan.
This award isn’t just about a smart-looking design code, though it is that. It’s about what the code is already unlocking. The site was stalled for decades, torn between hotel schemes which the people thought were ugly and low-density suburbia which the market said was not deliverable and planning said was not sustainable. We turned the problem round and instead of asking “what is viable” we asked “what do people love” and “what will they support.” Unsurprisingly, people who live in gorgeous Lichfield love … Lichfield. And who can blame them? So we are growing the middle of Lichfield with a gentle design, mid-rise Georgian-style extension to the city, filling the missing link between the station and the city centre.
The site is now unlocked after years of delay.
At the heart of the code is what residents told us they wanted. We engaged with 5,778 people. The result is a set of beautiful new buildings rooted in Lichfield’s character but meeting modern environmental standards. And thanks to the historic, tight-knit urban grain and mid-rise form, the code delivers more homes than previous proposals ever did.
Just as importantly, it gives developers clarity and confidence, encouraging smaller, higher-quality builders to get involved. Tellingly, the first developers have welcomed the code’s firmness. They see value in certainty over looseness, in clarity over risk.
If you would like us to help you unlock public support for beautiful and walkable, popular and sustainable gentle density which people will support and the market can deliver then please do get in touch.