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Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning 2003

Application form

This application form can either be completed by hand or electronically (pdf version) on the Planning homepage at www.scotland.gov.uk/planning . Please complete all four questions. The deadline is 12 September 2003. An acknowledgement letter will be sent to the person who has completed this form.

Please provide a name and contact details of the organisation responsible for this work. If partners were involved, identify the lead organisation, and then list the other partners/bodies who had a key role.

Name of key partners (if appropriate)

Please complete the form by providing a brief summary (in no more than the space provided) of the piece of work you have entered. You must also conclude, with a key reason, as to why you think this work merits an Award.

Please tick the key criteria which relate to this entry:

You must describe in your written submission (below) how the criteria which you have ticked relates to your project.

Description of project

1 Regeneration: Clyde bank re-built was established as an Urban Regeneration Company by West Dunbartonshire Council and Scottish Enterprise Dunbartonshire, to spearhead the physical, economic and social regeneration of Clydebank. The Clydebank Plan 2003-2008 is the business plan for the next five years which is based on a twenty year strategy for regeneration of the Town, targeting development on the brownfield sites on the riverfront and upgrading the Town Centre commercial core. The Plan brings together a series of proposals for public sector interventions which involve; site assembly and decontamination; site access and service - provision; new business space, retail and housing developments; and new and innovative approaches to public realm which will integrate the new riverside areas to the older commercial and residential areas in the Town.

2 Partnership: The process of developing the regeneration strategy has been based on a partnership approach involving the public agencies in the Town, the voluntary sector, local residents and workers, and the local business community. All are represented on the Board of the Company and all have been involved in a consultative programme following the 'Place Check' approach discussed in the Scottish Executive's policy document, Designing Places.

3 Professional Knowledge: The urban Planners, Llewellyn Davies were originally commissioned to develop the Framework for Development which identified the opportunities and challenges in the redevelopment of 450 acres of riverside land, most of which was heavily contaminated, in mixed ownership and suffering from poor access and visibility. This was subsequently refined and developed to produce a Design Guide for Clydebank which was coordinated by Page and Park Architects, working with officers from the Planning and Roads department, and which formed the basis of a number of community workshops. The Guide has now been submitted to West Dun bartonshire Council for consideration as Supplementary Planning Guidance. We have also produced an independent retail strategy as part of the strategic assessment of Clydebank's future requirements and this has also been submitted for status within the local planning system.

4 Community interest: The Design Guide and the detailed briefs for design consultants working on our projects (public space and streetscape improvements; provision of new business facilities; provision of a setting for the listed buildings around the Town Hall to create a Civic Quarter; the restoration of the 'A' listed Titan Crane; and the upgrading of the transport interchange) were all the subject of a series of community workshops, site visits, seminars and learning visits. The consultation process is ongoing and the Clydebank Design Forum, which consists of local residents, workers and business people, meets regularly to assess progress against the Plan and to suggest improvements to content and process.

Timescale (over which the project has developed)

Llewellyn Davies' Development Framework was completed in 2001 and the Clydebank Task Force was established to drive forward the development of a delivery vehicle. A project Director was appointed in June 2002 and the Company, Clydebank re-built Ltd was formed in November 2002 with the powers to undertake development and to enter in to joint venture agreements with the private and public sectors where required. Page and Park Architects were appointed at that time and the final draft of the Design Guide for Clydebank was agreed in September 2003.

The process has involved;

• Several workshops with Development Control, Local Plan team and Roads Officers
• A three day Community Workshop series involving local residents, workers and businesses
• Two meetings of the Clydebank Design Forum - a subset of the membership of the Community Workshop event - which received updates from Page and Park Architect on development of the Guide and contributed to further development
• Submission of the Design Guide to the Council in September 2003 for inclusion as Supplementary Planning Guidance

Context (the problem which had to be addressed)

Physical Context: Following the demise of the UIE/Kvaerner shipyards, Clydebank has a riverside stretching 5km from Yoker to Erskine. There are almost 450 acres of frontage, almost half of which is derelict and contaminated with poor access and little infrastructure.

Economic context: Clydebank's economic performance relative to the UK and Scotland shows an economy with significant issues to overcome and resolve. Unemployment is sitting at 7% (April 2003), more than twice the Scottish rate at 4%

In terms of economic activity rates, 37% of males and 27% of females in Clydebank work full time. The Scottish figures are 43% and 24% respectively.

Business Base: VAT registered businesses in West Dunbartonshire increased faster than in Scotland and UK between 1995 - 2000. However there are still significantly fewer per head of population. Three year VAT survival rates are slightly better than for Scotland.

• VAT registered business increased by 7% to 1,300 from 1995-00.
• There were 14 such businesses per 1,000 population in West Dunbartonshire, compared to 23 in Scotland and 29 in Great Britain
• Three year survival rate of 66% is moderately better than the Scottish average of 64%. These levels, however are still well below the UK

Demand for office premises is concentrated in smaller units in Clydebank. Such premises are in short supply and the report commissioned by Clydebank Re-built to examine the business space demand in the area, suggests there is scope for office development of approximately 50,000 sq. ft per annum, built out on the basis of 25,000 sq ft units. The study also recommends that starter accommodation for new businesses is extremely low and that supported accommodation should be encouraged to provide space for new start-ups.

Action taken

The Clydebank Plan 2003-2008 with its associated strategic documents (Design Guide, Public Realm and Signage Guidelines, Business Space Strategy and Retail Strategy) has been agreed by the Clydebank re-built Board and submitted to funders for funding support. Year One capital funding has been agreed for projects included as priority in the Plan:

Public Realm Advanced Works: the first phase of remodelling of the public realm, signage, artworks and lighting has been agreed and European match funding has been awarded. Planning permission has been granted and a site start in January is anticipated.

Industrial Site at John Knox Street: site access, decontamination and service works for this site are fully funded and will go on site in November. This is the preparatory stage for new industrial units to be built on the is key site on the road in to Clydebank

Clydebank Business Park: The upgrade and new signage proposals are the first phase in the comprehensive redevelopment of the existing business park to ensure the sustainability of existing jobs and the provision of better facilities to attract new investment.

Results achieved

Community Buy-in: Clydebank is not just a series of deprived communities. It has many residents in work, many people who work in the Town but live elsewhere and many businesses who invest in the commercial health of the Town. We have tried to access all of these groups to ensure our plans reflect their aspirations as well as their needs.

Public Sector Buy-in: Scottish Enterprise Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire Council have prioritised Clydebank as a key area for development and have agreed the plans which have been produced through consultation with officers and members.

Private Sector Buy-in: We have established two focus groups with local businesses and the Chamber of Commerce: one for construction; and one for retail, leisure and tourism. The private sector also participates on the Design Forum and through the Board of Clydebank re-built.

Funding: A total of 2m from European funding has been generated in the first year as a result of the match funding provided by the public sector for the projects outlined above. This first year of development has been agreed on the basis of the framework for development, outlined in the Clydebank Plan. A further 36m is being sought from the public sector to complete the transformation of Clydebank which will, in turn encourage over 1 65m of private sector investment by the year 2010.

Conclusion - Why does this piece of work merit an Award?

We believe that an award is merited because Clydebank re-built has created a process which is producing development plans for the Town which have the support of local residents, local workers and local businesses, local planners and Council officers - everyone who is involved in the change process,. The documents outlined, taken with the Community Plan and the Housing and Educations Strategies for the area, provide a framework for comprehensive and sustainable redeveIopment of the Town's riverside, its commercial centre and its many brownfield sites.

Year One is funded and underway. The plans are being adopted as Supplementary Planning Guidance and the funding for the five year strategy is on its way.

Learning visits, seminars, workshops and conferences ensure that the Community will not lose interest and will help to lobby decision makers, inside and outside Clydebank, to make the Clydebank Plan a workable reality.

Date
11 September 2003

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