From the archive: Participation in the future   

‘Participation is not about the perfectibility of human beings, but about the improvement of social institutions’  

Community participation can be transformational, not just for the projects and developments they influence, but also for the citizens involved in the process. It is well known that community participation can lead to better outcomes that meet the needs and desires of the local community. Participation where people feel that their voices are heard and their impact on the process is made tangible is one of our most valuable avenues to tackling apathy and low levels of public trust in planning and our democratic process more broadly.  

The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) has long argued for greater community participation within the planning system. In 1999, the TCPA conducted an inquiry into the future of planning, which argued that planning was a mechanism through which society could achieve change for the better. To achieve this, the TCPA argued for greater community participation in planning so that decisions are made openly, transparently and honestly.  

‘The fundamental questions are: who decides what is better, and how are those decisions made?’ 

Warburton argues that too often attempts at participation are sterile, formulaic, and afford the community little opportunity for real influence. She notes that in many instances, participants feel that decisions are made behind closed doors and pay little regard to what they say. Good participation provides real opportunities for influence throughout the project and/or development, with any decisions made being communicated, explained, and open to challenge and debate.  

‘Participation is not just a box in the flow chart’ – Drew Mackie at the TCPA Inquiry into the Future of Planning.  

Embedding community participation into planning and wider decision-making processes at a local and national level needs to be more than a check box. Warburton argues that delivering a truly participatory process requires up-skilling, capacity-building, and resources for the professionals as well as the community participants involved.  

Our planning and local government structures are undergoing a significant period of reform; these reforms could be used to put communities back at the centre of the decision-making process for planning system and beyond.  

Link to the article: TCPA Journal No 5 May Page .27 - Town & Country Planning Association 

The TCPA's work on community participation and social justice: www.tcpa.org.uk/areas-of-work/community-participation-and-social-justice/