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Residents, businesses and visitors are invited to a hands-on event to help shape the future of Derby’s city centre public spaces.

A new Public Realm Strategy is being drawn up to set out a vision for the city’s streets and public spaces, helping to improve how the city centre looks, feels, and functions for everyone.

The public will be asked to share their views on the ideas so far on Saturday 10 January, in an interactive consultation near Sainsbury’s in the Derbion in the city centre. This is being run by the University of Derby’s Civic team through its research and innovation space – S.H.E.D (Social Higher Education Depot) – and visitors can drop in any time between 9am and 7pm. 

There will be interactive display boards, and children can share their ideas and get involved too by building their creations from Lego bricks to add to a city centre map. 

Specialist urban design consultancy Planit is working on behalf of Derby City Council to develop the strategy, building on its success in working with cities and towns across the UK including Sheffield, Bradford, Manchester, Leeds and more.

There have been some significant regeneration developments in the city centre over recent years, in different locations. The Public Realm Strategy will consider the spaces between buildings, taking a city-wide view of how streets, spaces and places connect and support a vibrant, inclusive and safe city centre.

Following a process of analysis and collaborative engagement, the work so far has developed a deep understanding of the city’s current form, strengths, challenges, gaps, and opportunities for improving public spaces. This has helped to identify a series of potential thematic routes through the city, alongside primary locations for delivering catalyst projects.

Councillor Nadine Peatfield, Leader of Derby City Council and Cabinet Member for City Centre, Regeneration, Strategy and Policy, said: 

Through various regeneration projects, Derby’s city centre is changing and adapting to a city that’s fit for the future, and the Public Realm Strategy will give us the opportunity to think more carefully about how we want our public spaces to work together. 

We want to create a city centre that is vibrant, inclusive, safe, and reflects the character of Derby. Come along to the event on Saturday 10 January, look at what’s been done so far, share your ideas and get involved.  

Professor Rhiannon Jones, Head of Civic and Communities at the University of Derby, said:  

The Civic team at the University of Derby led a series of public consultation events, gathering feedback from a wide range of stakeholders from across Derby to help inform the development of a new Public Realm Strategy for the city. Insights from these sessions will be displayed at a special S.H.E.D installation in the Derbion this weekend. 

S.H.E.D is a dynamic research structure designed to spark engagement, inspire creativity, and foster meaningful dialogue, and we are looking forward to using this interactive space at Saturday’s event to showcase the insights and invite further discussion.

Nick James, Principal Urban Designer for PlanIt said: 

Informed by extensive public and community engagement, this exciting project marks a significant moment for the future of Derby’s city centre.

The Public Realm Strategy will offer a holistic vision for the city’s streets and public spaces, identifying initial catalyst projects to drive forward transformative change. Additionally, it will represent the unifying elements of the city centre to connect all emerging developments through high quality, functional, playful, and inclusive public realm.”

For more information on the event, visit Let’s Talk Derby.