Mapping for Change

The UK is experiencing a housing crisis. Unprecedented demand and soaring prices have seen housing waiting lists multiply. This is felt particularly sharply in London, where more than 380,000 people are currently on the council house waiting list, and the average house price is over £500,000. Given these conditions, London boroughs have substantial housing targets to meet in the next few decades.

In the context of regeneration and building new homes, it is widely recognised that community consultation and involvement must play a key role throughout planning and development. Genuine community engagement is more cost-effective, and grants easier long-term management and commercial viability for projects.

Mapping for Change (MfC) have developed a consultation mechanism that facilitates open and transparent dialogue between all the stakeholders involved in any regeneration or development project, which combines ICT technologies with more traditional face-to-face engagement. Our experience is that mapping is a powerful way to build engagement within and achieve changes for communities. Visually representing information can help to draw new links and ideas, as well as build consensus. By using both digital and paper-based maps, residents, irrespective of their digital literacy, are able to participate in decision making processes.

Our Role

In early 2015, Southwark Council commissioned Mapping for Change to build an online Community Map to aid and support the work of the Council, in its pledge to build 11,000 new homes over the next thirty years.

We designed and built an interactive mapping platform to fulfil this requirement. Southwark New Homes will enable residents to help the Council identify where new homes should be built, comment on proposed sites, and participate in the decision-making processes throughout the programme.