We engaged Stockport communities to inform the design of a park on the roof of the new Stockport Transport Interchange. Stockport Council wanted a town centre park with a real identity which benefits everyone.
Objectives were to:
- Tell Stockport communities about the plans for the park.
- Engage and excite communities in the conversation about the park.
- Gain feedback on the proposals which reflect voices across all demographics including those who are typically seldom heard.
- Summarise feedback to inform a design brief for the park.
Our work included four stages:
- Understanding the local community.
We assessed the local demographic profile and identified key priority groups for engagement. This included identifying seldom heard groups. We defined relevant approaches for engaging different groups.
- Start the conversation.
We engaged selected priority groups through interactive in-person and online sessions. This included: focus groups with older residents, disabled people and ethnically diverse people; art tutorials for families; and workshops with primary school children and college students. We also built a website for capturing feedback.
- Events programme.
We continued the conversation with the wider community through a series of pop-ups and other events in key locations across Stockport.
- Engagement feedback.
Our report highlighted feedback from the community engagement. This informed a design brief for the park.
Following this, we were asked to further engage Stockport communities to inform the naming of the park. Stockport Council wanted a shortlist of names reflecting the park’s identity and one that benefits all Stockport communities.
Our key role was to engage seven different communities through interactive in-person workshops. This included groups of older residents, disabled people, young mothers, ethnically diverse people, young girls, a male support group and members of ‘Culture Stockport’.
Our report highlighted feedback from the community engagement. This informed the list of ten names for the park, of which, Stockport Council shortlisted three. These were then put to a public vote.
“Forever Consulting assisted in delivering a complex engagement exercise regarding the proposal of a new park in Stockport city centre. Their knowledge and expertise helped in identifying key stakeholders that were overlooked in the initial consultation process and came up with engaging and creative ways to bring them into the conversation. They were responsive and quick to identify solutions to any issues that arose. They were a pleasure to work with and a crucial support in the delivery of this project.”
Isabel Lezcano, Landscape Architect working on the design brief for the park, Optimised Environments Ltd
