The Connected City: Introduction

"Ideas about how cities can be made to work have progressed in recent years. We know the importance of creating partnerships between sectors, of professions working together, of planning for sustainable development, and of applying the art of urban design.

But the results in our cities, towns and villages are so far disappointing. Too often the common ground between people is lost in the fog of conflicting interests; plans are prepared with scant regard for resources and mechanisms; and places are designed with little thought as to how people actually live.

The Connected City explains not only why, but also how our efforts must be refocussed. The key, it argues, is systematically to connect both a city’s fabric and the people who shape it, through a process that can be the basis for neighbourhood action as well as city-wide strategies. The Connected City’s new approach also lays the foundation for a network which aims to make available the extensive, but largely untapped, local and world-wide experience.

We need to integrate the different levels of planning (national, regional, local and neighbourhood) and to expand its scope. Planning must encompass not only land use, transport and environmental planning but also economic regeneration and housing, under the new umbrella of sustainability. Above all we need to reorganise the neighbourhood plan as the basic building block. How else is the person on the street to get involved? Sustainable development depends on the levels of public participation we have not seen before.

The local Government Association, the representative body for nearly 500 local authorities (covering 50 million people) throughout England and Wales, is committed to finding new ways of making cities and towns work. We welcome the inspiration of The Connected City and hope it makes the impact it deserves."

Nicky Gavron
Chair of the Planning Committee
Local Government Association