This project flows from the macro (masterplan scale) to the micro (individual residents) to explore the act of amelioration in the existing high-density neighbourhood of Sincil Bank, Lincoln. The exploration of re-imagining the existing place-making strategies in the area were vital in rethinking the masterplan. A central hub acting as an area of life and activity is enveloped by renovated residencies with shared and personalised outdoor space.
The housing was unsuitable and un-social for the residents currently in the area and, community groups were striving to make a difference however, the spaces for these changes lacked. Housing was re-thought and personal to each individual household, courtyards were opened up to the back for activities such as gardening, playing and relaxing (all suited specifically to Sincil Bank) and private terraces opened up at different levels. Roads were ordered in a hierarchy to limit parking and create safer, greener streets.
Residents are empowered through the opportunity to micro-manage their own housing blocks and courtyards and to work closely with the community groups in the area. This creates higher aspirations to want to protect and preserve Sincil Bank, something that has been missing.
A house exchange programme is in place which enables residents to stay within Sincil Bank as their household circumstances change. A 5-yearly census-like questionnaire will determine the needs of individual households. This creates a stronger sense of place in which families can grow bigger and smaller without the worry and stress of finding somewhere new.
This has been a project that has had the residents of Sincil Bank at the forefront of the design from start-to-finish with a phase 2 plan to move into public-participative design for the central hub.
