Urban Design Team News

Many houses in Bradford have very small front gardens which have been covered in concrete. The aim of the Anchor Project who commissioned UDT was to create an exemplary front garden on a small piece of land to encourage more positive use of front gardens.

Peel Square lies in the Eldon conservation area within the grouping known as the Manningham Conservation Area.

The residents of Petrie Grove, the Croft Working Men’s Club and Thornbury Youth and Community Centre had pieces of land in the same area which had suffered from fly-tipping for many years.

The mature trees and all garden structures were lost when the building was extended and a new car park created.

Holmewood Nursery School was a newly built school, constructed on an exposed hill top with fenced off play areas but no other features.

St. Matthew’s school had an underused grass area and the school required a space where the children could use all five senses.

The client had a good size garden with beautiful mature trees but there were several problems including fly tipping, drug usage and other antisocial behaviour which disturbed the running of the children and family centre. The garden did not have any play provision and was overgrown with stinging nettles and shrubs which did not encourage people to want to use the garden positively.

This project, involved the entire range of services offered by the Community Urban Design team.

This project, involved the entire range of services offered by the Community Urban Design team.

The site pictured below on Hallcliffe in Baildon, was originally a derelict Church School playground and has now been transformed into a very attractive amenity for the local community by volunteer members of Hallcliffe Community Garden Ltd, a very enthusiastic and enterprising group.