PS1

The theme: Levelling up

The theme of the year is ‘Levelling up.’ This is a response to the current UK government policy to reduce regional inequality in the UK. We will take a regional town identified as needing additional investment for it to offer the same level of opportunity as other parts of the country. This theme has been selected because it places the focus of the atelier on making more inclusive city spaces into a specific political and economic context and provides a frame for the choice of site. It also relates to a global discourse about the fundamental nature of inequality and the relationship to human rights and the climate emergency.

The site

The chosen site is in Burnley town centre and is focussed for 3& on specific buildings within a larger area. 5& are starting by exploring the planning of the town centre area, focussing on specific buildings for their projects and are working with L& to explore the same area initially, but who will then look at a larger scale to address the surrounding countryside.

The first part of the brief will explore the urban design and landscape architecture of Burnley at a larger scale and then in Phase 2 will focus on individual buildings within the town to investigate building reuse in the context of ‘levelling up’ Burnley.

Theoretical framework

We have selected a theoretical framework to enable a structured investigation of the ‘levelling-up’ theme in the context of the site of Burnley. This theoretical framework uses an analysis of the everyday local or community economy as a starting point for understanding what aspects of the town and its spaces and buildings and events might need to be invested in to be brought up to the same level as more advantaged parts of the UK. It is called ‘Take Back the Economy’ by Gibson Graham and will be discussed in the first weekly seminar.

PS2

PS2 built off the design methodologies developed, and knowledge gained in PS1, which would, this time, be applied twenty-two miles south at the Northern Manchester General Hospital (NMGH). Running in parallel to the Master of Architecture atelier, &rchitecture is the Design for Life (DFL) Agency. The Design for Life Agency, an interdisciplinary design-research consultancy, working collaboratively to create age inclusive cities, neighbourhoods, and homes, which is also led by Stefan White, Professor of Architecture and Dr Mark hammond. This creates the unique opportunity for &rchitecture students, in MArch1, to directly engage with live research projects as they develop. For the twenty-three students in &rchitecture this year that has meant designing four unique Healthy Aging Neighborhoods (HAN) at the Northern manchester General Hospital and twenty-three individual residential typologies that have responded, in real time, to DFL’s research. The brief asked the students to work in groups to develop a masterplan that responded to the site’s immediate opportunity and constraints, surrounding communities and seven innovative HAN design drivers as presented in this report.

The students then, individually, developed a residential typology that responded to the research project and workshopped their designs with Pozzoni architects and stakeholders of HAN. In the studio, over a ten-week period, students were able to respond to research developments and explore possibilities within their design. These developments and explorations have enabled DFL to expand understanding and future scope the possibilities of a healthy aging neighbourhood at the NMGH. It also enabled the students to work on a live project, engage and work with stakeholders and industry professionals whilst influencing best practice and the sustainable outcomes of the project.