Stantec report outlines ways to challenge negative perceptions of new towns

Highlights:

• Exclusive YouGov data shows only a quarter (25 percent) of British people find the idea of moving to a new town appealing. Access to healthcare, shops, restaurants and public transport are most likely to convince people to move.
• British people support the principle of new towns (net +21 percent) but oppose them if built nearby (net -34 percent).
• Stantec’s analysis identifies ‘quality and longevity’, ‘positive environmental impact’, and ‘community wellbeing’ as the major factors likely to change negative perceptions. The report sets out clear recommendations for delivering new towns that will thrive.
• UK-wide mapping of the data shows the most positive sentiment comes from urban areas with poor housing affordability, such as London, Manchester, Oxford, and Cambridge. 

Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, has released a comprehensive new report revealing how the development industry can change negative perceptions of new towns and successfully bring forward the new communities of the future.

New Towns: Creating Communities, Building Trust has been launched today at a private industry event, in which chair of the New Towns Taskforce, Sir Michael Lyons, gave a keynote address. The report includes new national polling from YouGov and sets out the challenging state of public perceptions of new towns. It shows the need to go further to demonstrate the potentially transformative benefits of these new communities. The report offers 12 key recommendations that establish how to rebuild the trust of the public and deliver new towns that will meet the needs of people across the country.

Headline MRP (Multilevel Regression and Post-stratification) analysis mapping public perception across 349 British local authorities suggests that only a quarter (25 percent) of Britons find the idea of moving to a new town appealing. Most positivity around moving is clustered around areas with high housing demand or poorer affordability, predominantly within London but also across Manchester, Leicester, Birmingham, Oxford, and Cambridge.

Characteristics of an attractive new town

The report also identifies which characteristics are most likely to draw people to a new town. Healthcare, amenities, connectivity, local safety, and affordability of bills are aspects that scored highly across all respondents. Analysis of the data shows that across all demographics, there is a consistent view of the top three most important things to focus on when planning and designing a new town: quality and longevity, positive environmental impact, and community wellbeing.

Stantec is an organisation deeply involved in the planning, design, and delivery of new communities, including work on Brabazon in Bristol, Waverley in South Yorkshire, Alconbury Weald in Cambridgeshire, Barking Riverside in London, and Otterpool Park in Kent. Drawing from Stantec’s experience and review of the YouGov data, it sets out 12 recommendations for the development industry. These include ways to inspire true identity and pride in new communities, how to set up the right delivery models, and how to embed resilience and longevity through innovative, adaptable design.

“The findings in this report should give pause to our industry, but the solutions are clear and give reasons to hope that this next generation of new towns could be truly transformational for people across the country,” said Brian Yates, UK & Ireland managing director, Stantec. “This will only be the case if our sector can demonstrate that we are listening to what people want and need from new development, that our visions can be ambitious, and that we deliver what we promise. 

Rising to meet the moment

Yates continued: “Stantec sees firsthand the enthusiasm and expertise of a sector ready to meet this challenge and drive solutions. Now is the moment for us all to grasp the immense opportunity in front of us. Access to safe, secure housing and being part of a thriving community helps life outcomes, from health and wellbeing to education and economic attainment. These won’t just be construction projects; they are a chance to improve the lives of tens of thousands of people.”   

Find out more about Stantec in the UK and Ireland and its holistic range of interdisciplinary services.

About Stantec

Stantec empowers clients, people, and communities to rise to the world’s greatest challenges at a time when the world faces more unprecedented concerns than ever before.   

​We are a global leader in sustainable engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting. ​Our professionals deliver the expertise, technology, and innovation communities need to manage aging infrastructure, demographic and population changes, the energy transition, and more. ​

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Media Contact
Calum Metcalfe
Stantec Media Relations
Ph: 01612 458904
calum.metcalfe@stantec.com