The Better Towns Roadmap consortium has launched an interactive roadmap to help to ‘transform’ towns across the UK.  

The consortium is a collaboration between HLM Architects, Didobi and realestateworks, and says that the step-by-step roadmap should help towns realise their short and long-term goals.

Each town’s journey proceeds by successively creating a baseline, defining a mission, appraising options, creating an action plan and delivering outcomes

The #bettertowns consortium was created in 2020 to work with towns, both large and small. It brings a multi-disciplinary approach to re-purposing towns from the beginning of the journey through to the execution of a successful plan.

The #bettertowns consortium can bring additional insights, targeted research and intelligence through its partnership with the Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC), a collaboration of UK universities and a global leader in independent research. This partnership will be brought to bear on a case by case basis to support the creation or execution of a vision for your town.

The CDRC also contributes to our ‘open source’ virtual library to help raise the level of awareness and understanding of issue affecting towns and their communities throughout the UK.

'It creates clear links between a town’s vision, goals, and targeted outcomes, presenting customised outcomes that defy traditional "one-size-fits-all" approaches to regeneration, adaptation and change,' said a statement from the consortium.

It decided to create the roadmap because of a lack of 'effective collaboration' across the industry and to join up projects from their conception to delivery. The group thinks 'multidisciplinary, collaborative, data-driven approaches can transform any town’s prospects through a succession of deliverable projects linked by a unique vision'.

The #bettertowns roadmap facilitates the successful repurposing of towns where rigour, process and logic are applied at every stage.

Each town’s journey proceeds by successively creating a baseline, defining a mission, appraising options, creating an action plan and delivering outcomes. Each step is further unpacked on the #bettertowns website and is supported by an extensive virtual library and self-assessment questionnaires.

Olivia Paine, HLM Architects’ asset and workplace lead, said: 'Towns have faced increasing challenges over the years and the current pandemic has seen a shift in the pace of change and an increased necessity for well-informed, connected local authorities. We understand that every town has the potential to be unique and welcome the return of "localism" to the agenda. It is not about selling a generic product, it is about sharing knowledge and information to support towns achieving their desired outcomes.'

Brian Thompson, founding director of realestateworks, added: 'Every town is influenced by, but also shapes the economy of neighbouring towns and communities. We look beyond quick fixes and beyond simply the high street for only by doing so can sustainable, viable, and long-lasting strategies be defined.'