Transforming Newham's Custom House: Nurturing, De-stigmatising and Caring
A CRITICAL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BRIEF FOR CUSTOM HOUSE
Transforming Newham's Custom House: Nurturing, De-stigmatising and Caring
The Bartlett's Development Planning Unit, 2020 University College London
34 Tavistock Square Bloomsbury London WC1H 9EZ United Kingdom +44 20 7679 1111
Empathy Needle Team: Mengdi Liu, Natalia Meléndez Fuentes, Yujun Yue, Erick Lau Gastelo, Daniel Lewis Lallana, Mina Abdelmelek, Harsh Gupta
Supervision: Dr. Giorgio Talocci
Editors: Natalia Meléndez Fuentes and Daniel Lewis Lallana
Design and Layout: Natalia Meléndez Fuentes
Graphic contents: Mengdi Liu and Yujun Yue
All photos included in this brief were taken by the Empathy Needle Team.
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CONTENTS
0 8 A W O R D O N POSITIONALITY
1 0
OUR THEORETICAL BASIS: RICHARD SENNETT’S URBAN LINGUISTICS
1 2 H O W C U S T O M H O U S E ’ S VILLE A N D CITÉ T O O K DIFFERENT PATHS
1 6
TOWS ANALYSIS: LOOKING AT CUSTOM HOUSE’S UNBRIDGED VILLE A N D CITÉ A S A N OPPORTUNITY
1 8
CUSTOM HOUSE’S REGENERATION PLAN: OPPORTUNITIES TO B R I D G E VILLE A N D CITÉ 2 0 5 2
O UR STRATEGY: INTERVENTION 5: NURTURING, INCENTIVES & BENEFITS DE-STIGMATISING & CARING
5 8
2 8 TIMELINE INTERVENTION 1: CO-PRODUCTION GAME
6 0
3 2 FINAL REFLECTIONS
INTERVENTION 2: INTEGRATION
6 2
4 0 REFERENCES
INTERVENTION 3: COMMUNITY SPACES
4 4
INTERVENTION 4: AESTHETICS A W O R D O N
Empathy Needle is an interdisciplinary and multicultural group of designers temporarily based in London, United Kingdom. We look to craft an inclusive and empowering Daniel Lewis Lallana practice of participatory design—one Erick Lau Gastelo Social Researcher that is prevailingly driven by an Lawyer United Kingdom empathetic approach. Peru
Natalia Meléndez Fuentes Development Cooperation Spain
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 0 8 POSITIONALITY
Mina Abdelmelek Architect Yujun Yue Egypt Economist China
Mengdi Liu Architect Harsh Gupta China Civil Engineer India
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 0 9 OUR THEORETICAL BASIS: RICHARD
InIn his book Building and Dwelling: EthicsEt for the City, urban planner RRichardi Sennett puts linguistics at the sservicee of the urban through two FrenchFr words: ville and cité. Illustratively,Ill Sennett explains that ‘villev ’ stands for the overall city, its uurbanr environment, its socio-political cconditions,o and the projects behind tthese.h Conversely, ‘cité’ encompasses ttheh character of life, attachments to pplaces,l and how people aspire to live collectively (Sennett, 2019: 2).
In understanding these, one might assume that the ville should reflect the desires of the cité. However, they appear divorced across many neighborhoods and cities.
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 1 0 SENNETT’S URBAN LINGUISTICS
Learning from Sennett, the area of focus of this development brief, Newham’s Custom House, can serve to illustrate how the disparity between ville and cité can be looked at as an opportunity to bridge current gaps. At present, Custom House’s built environment is divorced from the aspirations of its residents. Thus, designs for the future—such as Newham Council’s Regeneration Plan —hold the potential for the ville to better accommodate the cité.
The Empathy Needle team has conceived a development strategy that provides a binding agent for Custom House’s ville and cité, allowing for coalescence between the two to be achieved.
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 1 1 HOW CUSTOM HOUSE’S VILLE AND CITÉ TOOK DIFFERENT PATHS
A regenerating dockland area located Other changes that followed the between London’s Canning Town and ExCel were the building of many Beckton, Custom House originally hotels and the construction of developed in the 1880s as a residential Westfield Stratford City—UK’s 4th accompaniment to the Royal Docks largest shopping centre (Ibid.). In this (Hidden London, 2017). Its present vein, the 1990s-2012 regeneration of physiognomy was consolidated during surrounding areas accelerated the the post-war period, when housing aforementioned public space was predominantly replaced by privatization in Custom House (Lane, council flats (Ibid.). Over time, 2019). Custom House became deprived; a situation perpetuated by mono- At present, Custom House is close to tenure and poor-quality housing three DLR stations and the Emirates (Macartney, 2003: 1). These conditions Air Line Cable Car. In addition, the have been preserved by increasingly Crossrail is envisioned to reach the commodified public spaces, which area by 2021 (ExCel London, 2020). Its have created barriers to mobility and proximity to the increasingly-busy social interaction. London City Airport further increases its valorisation. Despite its Further dividing ville and cité, the connectivity to the city, Custom new millennium saw drastic changes, House appears detached, with an such as the construction of the ExCel infrastructure and public service Center. Located north of the Royal provision that are inflexible and Victoria Dock, the ExCel was London’s lacking in organization. largest regeneration project since Canary Wharf (ExCel London, 2020).
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 1 2 NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 1 3 With regards to its social fabric, the latest Custom House census (2011) registered a population of 13,411, showing a rich national and linguistic diversity—see the pie charts below. Its diversity notwithstanding, the insufficient potential utilization of the area has hindered the formation of a strong sense of community among residents. That is, Custom House’s cité seems widely underrepresented and underserved by the built environment.
Country of Origin, Custom House (Census 2011)
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 1 4 Linguistic Characteristics, Custom House (Census 2011)
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 1 5 TOWS ANALYSIS: LOOKING AT CUSTOM HOUSE’S UNBRIDGED VILLE AND CITÉ AS AN OPPORTUNITY
Standing for Threats, Opportunities, Weaknesses and Strengths, a TOWS matrix allows an analysis of external conditions (threats and opportunities), in contrast to internal factors (weaknesses and strengths). Our TOWS matrix on the side is a product of field visits, desk research and analysis, to identify how to bridge Custom House’s ville to its cité, making them coalesce.
The TOWS matrix on the side shows how our strategy aspires to make the most of opportunities, diminish threats, overcome weaknesses and exploit all strengths of Custom House.
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 1 6 Matching external and internal factors, our TOWS has enabled us to:
Strengths & Opportunities (SO): How can we use Custom House’s strengths to take advantage of the opportunities posed by the Regeneration Plan?
Strengths & Threats (ST): How can we leverage Custom House’s strengths to avoid tangible and potential threats, such as increased commodification or gentrification?
Weaknesses & Opportunities (WO): How can we complement the opportunities posed by the Regeneration Plan to overcome the weaknesses currently affecting Custom House?
Weaknesses & Threats (WT): How can we minimize weaknesses and mitigate threats?
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 1 7 CUSTOM HOUSE’S REGENERATION PLAN: OPPORTUNITIES TO BRIDGE VILLE AND CITÉ
Newham Council’s Regeneration Plan As to how this development brief for the broader area of Canning Town relates to the Regeneration Plan, our and Custom House envisions a proposal is aligned to Newham complex intervention. The Plan has Council’s objectives to a certain identified and accounted for the degree. Nonetheless, our vision for needs of the community through Custom House directs its attention to consultation and participation. Its more psycho-emotional elements—in most relevant components are: Sennett’s terms, its cité. Not only do we consider that the people must be 1.Building new homes, with a focus central to the Regeneration, but the on social and affordable housing— Plan in itself must be at the service of ensuring residents their right to the community. remain or return; 2.Enhancing the area’s commercial potential; 3.Improving the area’s integration through infrastructure and road connections, with Freemasons Road as the commercial centre (Newham Council, 2019); 4.Developing an environmentally- friendly and sustainable neighborhood.
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 1 8 NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 1 9 OUR STRATEGY: NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING
Our vision: " Putting Custom House’s Regeneration Plan at the service of the
local community by nurturing, de-stigmatisation and caring about its people and places."
Our Principles: Our Design guidelines:
Nurturing local identities: To leverage the Regeneration Plan to Acknowledging the value of ‘living protect local identities; to conceive a heritage’ (Poulios, 2014) for peoples tailored co-production mechanism and places to thrive, this strategy that visibilizes minority communities will enhance Custom House’s local and voices; and to decentralize character, through community community activity from Freemasons engagement, cohesion and Road, creating other focuses of collective self-esteem. attraction.
De-stigmatizing from the inside To enhance the area's uniqueness and out: Recognizing the challenges of strengths to attract outsiders, Custom House, this strategy without incurring in local intends to reinvigorate the image displacement; to reduce criminality of Custom House by working on its through increased public spaces and neglected public spaces and urban interaction; to act upon the area's life. potential to serve the current and future population.
Developing an aesthetics of care: To capitalize on the Regeneration Borrowing from the feminist Plan to provide better services, spaces concept of ‘ethics of care’ and infrastructure for the present (Brannelly, 2018), all aesthetics community; to use quality design to endeavors of this strategy will refurbish unused, unfriendly or attend to the current, latent and hostile spaces; and to approach potential networks of care and aesthetics as a way to enhance the interpersonal relationships within sense of safety and care for Custom House. disadvantaged groups.
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 2 0 NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 2 1 Our three principles—Nurturing local Game, puts residents at the centre of identities, De-stigmatizing from the our practice at all times. The second inside out, and Developing intervention, Integration, works on aesthetics of care—reflect our shift the aspects that constitute the from the Regeneration Plan. Based on negative image of Custom House, five interventions—Co-production such as its low social cohesion or Game, Integration, Community insecurity. Our third intervention, Spaces, Aesthetics and Incentives and Community Spaces, seeks to Benefits—, our strategy is aimed to encourage community building and service Custom House’s residents, participation; nurturing local with their active participation at all identities and fostering urban life. The stages. Our interventions act in an fourth intervention proposed in this interrelated manner to address brief, Aesthetics, operates in the physical, social, political, economic, realm of self-esteem and community legal and psycho-emotional pride, further underscoring our de- shortcomings in Custom House’s stigmatising, nurturing and caring exclusionary focus on its ville. purposes. Finally, our fifth intervention, Incentives and Benefits, All five interventions carry equal strives to legally protect the social importance: the order followed in this fabric and identity of the area. brief merely denotes logical order in implementation, not hierarchy (See Our first three interventions our timeline in Section 5). As shown in complement the Regeneration Plan; the map (next page), they operate in a whereas our fourth and fifth decentralising fashion along an interventions go further by paying a Integration Route and complementary closer look at Custom House’s cité. places, promoting different areas as Nonetheless, at no point does this hubs of social interaction. Moreover, development brief opposes the its decentralising pattern is intended efforts of the Plan; it either to reach nearby areas, influencing and complements or delves further. connecting Custom House to its Together, our interventions envision a surroundings. more balanced social improvement, that reaches all corners of Custom Our first intervention, community House, one that is at the service of its participation via a Co-production people. Game
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 2 2
Private sector*: Encompassing local business such as hotels or shops and external investors. Disadvantaged groups**: Encompassing single-parent families, low-income families, the unemployed, migrants, refugees and homeless, among others.
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 2 3 INTERVENTION MAP
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 2 4 NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 2 5 INTERVENTION
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 2 6 LOCATIONS
NURTURING, DE-STIGMATISING AND CARING P A G E 2 7 INTERVENTION 1: CO-PRODUCTION GAME
Designer Ryo Yamazaki designed the Sumida card game for community engagement and co-production. When communities play this game, they invent a space to discuss alternatives to current issues and have fun (Yamazaki, 2015). Very much in line with Sennett, Yamazaki claims that, in building cities, we have forgotten to build communities—or to nurture our cités. For our purposes, the game would act as a ‘periodic consensus’ (Lévy, 2007), played over time to consider common needs and aspirations.
Drawing from Yamazaki’s ideas, Empathy Needle has made a germinal adaptation of the Japanese method to Custom House. It complements current Regeneration Hub activities. This intervention is rooted in the fact that abstract game maps are easier to read by those not familiar with maps.
As originally carried out by Yamazaki, we recommend that the game is designed by working closely with the community to produce a game that everyone can enjoy and engage with (Studio L, 2015). We strongly recommend children to be included in the design stage. recommend
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 2 8 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 2 9 Basic game instructions to be ‘Inspiration’, produced by Council conceived, modified, tailored, and workers, technicians and appropriated to local needs. It can be community members. These would used for community play, to conceive provide different real-world different games, to address design solutions to local challenges. challenges through co-production, and so on. The game includes a set of ‘Strategy’ cards help players cards divided into: discover opportunities through sustainable design thinking ‘Issues’, agreed by the community. concepts. These cards display local physical or socio-economic issues and Our co-production game is intended challenge players into looking for to be played by as many and as varied their own tailored solutions. community members as possible.
Tackled principles
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 3 0 An excellent method for co- Challenges: production and community building, games have the power to link Depending on how it is designed, generations, identities and the game might become quickly dimensions. We encourage the game outdated. to be played in locations other than the Regeneration Hub, so as to attract Cards language should avoid too- different people from those who are technical or exclusionary concepts already involved. Output data would for non-design professionals. be later analyzed to inform subsequent interventions. Time consuming for both the community and the Council.
Proposed locations:
Stakeholders:
NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 3 1 INTERVENTION 2: INTEGRATION
In a previous analysis, team member Liu (2020) devised a study describing the correlation between low street integration and high levels of crime in Custom House. ‘Street integration’ measures the amount of street-to- street transitions needed for a street segment to reach all other segments in the network. This gives clues of the complexity of reaching a certain street and, thus, how concurred one street is (Ratti, 2004). From an ‘eyes- on-the-street’ perspective (Jacobs, 1972), the less travelled an area, the more chances for crime to happen there.
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 3 2 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 3 3 These insights led us to produce an some of the hidden vicious cycles and Integration Route that targets the processes that are present. This areas where changes would be felt the intervention aspires to address these most. This Route gives a rationale for to provide a more welcoming the placement of our interventions. environment. The Integration intervention is essential to lay the foundation of our This intervention consists of two sub- de-stigmatising intent. Observing the interventions: Kept-in-check Parking urban conditions of Custom House and Revisited Street Lighting. has enabled us to better understand some
Tackled principles
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 3 4 Challenges:
Resistance from the ExCel Center Residents may feel alienated by the of housing development investors new lighting atmosphere if they are to collaborate. not properly included in the design process.
Legal boundaries to develop Revisited lights should enhance underground parking in future local identities, not feed into the housing developments. privatized image sold by lights at ExCel Centre.
Stakeholders:
NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 3 5 INTERVENTION 2.1: KEPT-IN-CHECK PARKING
Although most residential roads in Once this collaboration has made Custom House are permit holders more parking available, the area must only, many cars are parked in ensure it does not attract parking unsuitable places, including anew. In this line, future housing pavements. The high levels of developments should ensure informal parking has led to visually sufficient parking lots within the impaired public spaces, disjointed building for owners/renters, and for walking access, and an unpleasant other residents with no parking space pedestrian experience. available to them. Furthermore, the Council should ensure compliance Aiming to better pedestrianise, with the parking restrictions already Empathy Needle proposes a in place, and delineate clearer parking collaboration with the nearby Excel bays to allow for unobstructed Centre parking to offer subsidies for pavements. local residents and businesses. This action could shift the parking density away from Custom House, to more appropriate zones.
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 3 6 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 3 7 INTERVENTION 2.1: REVISIT STREET LIGHTING
Enhancing Custom House’s aesthetics With this, we propose the installation has the potential to redefine and of an illuminated monument—co- project its identity for both residents designed by the community and and visitors. As our principle goes, in Council. It would be visible from the “nurturing local identities”, Custom ExCel station and provide an inviting House should visually reflect the feature to Custom House. Moreover, values of the community. Preliminary this monument can potentially build research with residents of Custom on the local identities of the area, as House (Lallana, 2020) has suggested well as de-stigmatise its unwelcoming that the neighborhood’s visual aspects night-time appearance. create a degree of separation from London. In turn, residents want to Our intervention also intends to link feel that they are part of the city’s the lighting style from the station and modernisation and not left behind. Excel area into Freemasons Road and along our Integration Route. One way to realise this connection is Complementing this are the through urban lighting. Lighting has a installation of under wall mural direct impact on the mood of a place lighting in façades and the at night and can be used to craft the replacement of some overhead street identity of a place (Bille, 2015). lamps with tree illumination. Through Although the ‘London Lighting Plan’ lighting, our intervention would describes the lux requirements for the create a sense of continuity across different kinds of roads (City of regenerated areas. London, 2018), we use standardised differences to create areas of lighting that break away from the aesthetic norm.
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 3 8 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 3 9 INTERVENTION 3: COMMUNITY SPACES
At the heart of community spaces, is parks or community gardens in the fostering of social cohesion and untapped areas. Through these community encounters. By building spaces, residents could access on their sense of community and alternative social activities, enriching belonging, residents would naturally urban life—which in turn has the strengthen Custom House’s cité, and potential to de-stigmatise while provide better inputs to how it can nurturing local identities. coalesce with the regenerated ville. Ultimately, these spaces would Operating within the realm of our increase social inclusion which is three principles, this intervention essential for enhancing the conceives the development participation and recognition of community spaces such as pocket disadvantaged groups in Custom parks House
Tackled principles
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 4 0 House. In addition, these spaces disadvantaged groups—through the would improve the aesthetics of the aforementioned Co-production Game. area, offering additional resting spaces and pleasant environments. Challenges:
By offering togetherness and a Consensus over representative convivial environment, these spaces depictions. would contribute towards the development of an aesthetics of care. Locational legal challenges for Moreover, developing community murals or street arts. spaces increases senses of safety and security. Provision of maintenance costs for urban furniture and plants. Our strategy proposes that the design and usages allocated to untapped Avoiding vandalism on art pieces spaces is carried out by the and furniture. community—with special attention to
Stakeholders:
NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 4 1 Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 4 2 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 4 3 INTERVENTION 4: AESTHETICS
The experience of a place is directly Sennett’s cité, with the community’s linked to the way in which we see it, aspirations and desires being and it is this experience which springboarded by the built influences our uses of such spaces environment. and the way they make us feel (Lynch, 1960). In line with our principle of With this, different aesthetic ‘developing an aesthetics of care’, we interventions coalesce in our plan to believe in a type of design that fosters fulfill our three principles. Bringing interpersonal relations and networks life and character to streets and of care. Ultimately, by combining public spaces, Custom House is aesthetics of care and higher levels of aesthetically de-stigmatized from the integration in Custom House, we inside out. Via the Co-production aspire to bring to the surface Game, the area starts to nurture its Sennett's local
Tackled principles
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 4 4 local identities and reflects these on Challenges: the built environment. Last, by acknowledging and surfacing the Consensus over representative systems of care of the community, depictions. Custom House buttresses networks of care and strengthens them through Legal challenges to where to do co-design, art-making and murals or street arts. refurbished spaces. Provision of maintenance costs for This intervention consists of three urban furniture and plants. sub-interventions: murals and street art, urban furniture and urban plants Avoiding vandalism, such as graffiti, and green infrastructure. on art pieces and furniture.
Stakeholders:
NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 4 5 INTERVENTION 4.1: MURALS AND STREET ART
Murals and street art have the The community would co-design and potential to connect participants in co-produce art pieces. For instance, the decision-making, design and local artists can be entrusted with production stages. Moreover, both artistic projects, local youth might the process and the outcome of art want to produce something, or the making can develop a lasting process of art-making might be aesthetics of care. conceived as periodic, community- bonding opportunities leading to The rationale behind this ephemeral pieces that represent the intervention, other than its diverse identities and demographics therapeutic, identity and self-esteem- of Custom House. based impact, stems from conclusions we could draw from our previous Our strategy chooses to remain very analysis of the area, in which several flexible on what murals and street art residents declared not to feel would depict, as these are something identified with or represented by the that the community itself—not us— big mural of “Custom House” at the would experience every day. bottom of the stairs leading up to ExCel Centre (Lewis-Lallana, 2020).
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 4 6 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 4 7 INTERVENTION 4.2: URBAN FURNITURE
Nurturing its local identity, urban Hello Lampost responsible for furniture at Custom House can look creating smart, interactive urban into innovative materials and designs furniture. The furniture can retell to characterize its identity within stories about the local area and London. In addition to being provide a nod to Custom House’s functional to public spaces—adding heritage in a playable way. It also has resting areas, information or care—, the potential to outline our we support the Regeneration Plan by Integration Route as an urban building on sustainability. For engagement tool for both community instance, designs could collect members and visitors (Post, 2020). rainwater to be recycled, use low- Presently, the Regeneration Hub consumption LED or solar-powered provides a tangible connection lighting (Bravo, 2019), or include between Regeneration and plants or moss. These would integrate community. Yet, once the Hub is green into public space and fight inevitably dismantled these kinds of pollution (Hitti, 2018). urban implants could create some lasting legacy. We would also like to propose a collaboration with the organisation Hello
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 4 8 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 4 9 INTERVENTION 4.3: URBAN PLANTS AND GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
Urban aesthetics have the potential to This intervention operates within the provide a sense of care or realm of ‘de-stigmatizing from the responsibility to a place. This falls inside-out’. For the case of Custom under the broader theory of House, we have identified multiple Environmental Design for Crime spaces which can benefit from urban Prevention (Crowe and Fennelly, plants and green infrastructure. 2013). In Custom House, deterioration Furthermore, these are not only suggests that the area has a large beautification and crime prevention tolerance for anti-social behaviour. strategies but also connect the area Developing an aesthetics of care to the green vision for London and through greenery and maintenance, biophilic design (Keller et al, 2011). our strategy can help tackle identified With this, we propose the installation public disorder issues such as of urban plants and modular green littering, fly-tipping or vandalism shelters assembled over parking (Mattern, 2018). spaces or bike storages.
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 5 0 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 5 1 INTERVENTION 5: INCENTIVES AND BENEFITS
The Regeneration of Custom House community can remain in Custom may be a driver of gentrification and House or to relocate at ease. In the displacement for residents and local long-run, these measures would businesses. In this context, the local strengthen the social fabric and government should play a significant nurture the integration between role protecting the socio-cultural residents and Regeneration outcomes. identity of the area, and monitoring that the social cost of Regeneration is For the effectiveness of these not borne by those less able to measures, legal support and adequate relocate (Kennedy & Leonard, 2001: 4). channels of information are required. This intervention consists of two sub- In this regard, we have considered a interventions: incentives for local set of regulatory measures consisting businesses and housing benefits for of rent incentives and housing lone-parent families. benefits to ensure that the community
Tackled principles
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 5 2 Challenges:
This measure is resource-intensive. The area might not be exploited at Also, identifying beneficiaries its full potential due to the low might be expensive and time- resources held by local businesses consuming. versus major foreign corporations. Our strategy is a trade-off between Setting an accurate timeframe for equity and efficiency. incentives is difficult. Moreover, once they have been effective, Providing specific benefits to some stakeholders might be reluctant to residents might create new layers remove them. of inequality and animosity.
Stakeholders:
NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 5 3 INTERVENTION 5.1: INCENTIVES FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES
In order to cause as little disruption attraction should be co-decided by as possible to business during and the local authority, private after Regeneration, we propose the developers, local business and the implementation of rent incentives for community. Rent benefits in those local businesses. These legal areas would help to integrate them provisions would ensure the into neighborhood activities. competitiveness of local business vis- à-vis incoming commerce. Also, rent Empathy Needle wants to achieve an incentives would foster their active inclusive economic development of participation in Custom House’s Custom House guided by local growth. participants. External investment is important and desirable, but our Moreover, the strategy contributes to strategy aspires to retain and protect decentralising Freemasons Road as local businesses (and residents) from the almost-only focus of economic the disruption caused by the entrance activity in Custom House. The of big companies in the area. determination of new centers of attraction
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 5 4 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 5 5 INTERVENTION 5.2: HOUSING BENEFITS FOR LONE- PARENT FAMILIES
According to Newham Info (2016), encourage further housing benefits— 22.6% of children living in Custom with a special focus on lone-parent House belong to low-income families, families—in future housing of which 15% are lone-parent families. developments and current rentals. Moreover, in Newham, 52% of This will help them remain in Custom children are living in poverty (after House after Regeneration and invest housing costs) (Ibid.), which is the in education instead, breaking the second highest rate in London. This poverty loop. This strategy can be sets housing as one of the main combined with education programs in drivers of poverty in Custom House. the Newham Borough. With this, we want to contribute to reducing the Existing policies, like affordable rent area’s inequalities, nurturing the local and shared ownership, might alleviate identities of disadvantaged groups. this situation. We would like to encourage
Proposed locations:
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 5 6 NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING & CARING P A G E 5 7 INTERVENTIONS TIMELINE
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 5 8 NURTURING,NURTURING, DE-ESTIGMATISING DE-ESTIGMATISING & &CARING CARING P A G EP A5 9G E 5 9 REFLECTIONS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CONCLUSIVE REMARKS
The synergy that our three principles attractiveness to visitors. In the spirit and five interventions creates is the of developing an aesthetics of care for following. First, the Co-production Custom House, aesthetic Game would visibilise the interventions would be implemented. community’s voices. Not only would These would serve the area’s this be used for design, but it would interpersonal relationships and be regularly repeated to ensure networks of care. To top this off, periodic consensus (Lévy, 2007) incentives and benefits would be between stakeholders. Local identities implemented to ensure that the nurtured, the community would lead current local community is able to the subsequent four interventions. In remain in the area, driving its de- this manner, community spaces would stigmatisation, nurturing and caring. vitalize the neighborhood, offering an image of increased conviviality. The As can be inferred from their synergic Integration intervention would interaction, our three principles buttress the benefits of community operate in a triad to bring the desires, spaces by fostering further aspirations and livability of Custom encounters, decreasing chances of House to the fore. A deeper and criminality and enhancing urban closer look into the cité—i.e., the cohesion along our Integration Route. psycho-emotional elements of a place As these interventions are executed, and its peoples—leads to more the area would be progressively de- reliable predictions on the effects of stigmatised; boosting residents’ self- regenerations plans, for this esteem and increasing its contributes more accurate insights on attractiveness contributes
TRANSFORMING NEWHAM'S CUSTOM HOUSE P A G E 6 0 how local communities relate to their of the urban renewal started with the spaces. That is, an empathetic regeneration of the Royal Docks (e.g. approach to the urban is the stepping displacement), and maximize the stone to minimize mismatches opportunities that will inevitably between ville and cité. By approaching come with the reform: better quality Custom House from a place of of life, rent and property-value empathy, our five interventions aspire control and appreciation of local to circumvent the undesirable effects characters. the
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EMPATHY NEEDLE Transforming Newham's Custom House: Nurturing, De-stigmatising and Caring A Critical Design Development Brief for Custom House
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