The project: Haring Woods was commissioned by Peterborough City Council to develop and manage Perception Peterborough, a dynamic and creative visioning project to develop innovative approaches to the challenges and opportunities facing Peterborough. It was initiated by Arts Council England, East, Peterborough City Council and the primary local and regional and cultural development agencies.
The RSA's new initiative, Citizen Power is now building on the process and outcomes of Perception Peterborough.
The idea: The Perception Peterborough process developed new ideas which could be implemented to develop Peterborough's future growth and help the city achieve the status of UK Environment Capital. Current perceptions of Peterborough were investigated, such as what did local people consider to be under-used assets or undiscovered talent in the city. These perceptions were used to inform the creative process and create new ideas for Peterborough's growth. The creative process aimed to hold up a mirror up to the city and its people, and to see through others’ eyes the assets and challenges available to the city, while motivating individuals and agencies to recognise their place in the big picture.
Perception Peterborough developed a series of workshops which brough together over 50 international participants
(Images: Matt Huynh and Proboscis)
The work: The creative workshops took place over 4 days in September 2008. Haring Woods brought together a total of 50 key local representatives and international creative thinkers with over 10 different nationalities to develop innovative ideas and approaches to the challenges and opportunities facing Peterborough and its future growth. Within the overarching theme of the Environment, the process focused on three related themes: Growth and development of the built environment; Social cohesion within a climate of migration and Green infrastructure and environmental technologies.
The Perception Peterborough visioning process: 4 days of intensive workshops attended by a range of international, regional and local participants.
Artist studio Proboscis was commissioned to work in partnership with Haring Woods to facilitate the creative workshops and to gather and present the perceptions from a range of local people to those participating in the workshops.
The short film below provides three different persectives of Peterborough from bike, bus and kayak and was made by Proboscis to inform those attending the seminar of the urban and surrounding landsacpe >>
"Perception Peterborough has enabled all of us who have participated to think freely, to think without barriers and to think creatively about our city as it is, but more importantly, what it could really be."
Gillian Beasley, Chief Executive, Peterborough City Council
The results: Following the workshops, Haring Woods produced a launch event in October 2008 celebrating the initiative and the creative visioning process and prsenting the 6 key workshop outcomes which can be downloaded in the following publication:
Download Perception Peterborough book >> (2MB PDF)
"Peterborough now has some new points of reference, a new way of thinking about the city, and fresh and concerted effort involving a range of partners that have got to know each other for the first time."
Andrea Stark, Executive Director, Arts Council England, East
Over 100 people attended the event including representatives from the public, private and voluntary sectors from the city, senior and regional policy-makers, national think-tanks, media and cultural organisations. The event took place on 22nd October 2008 in a disused retail warehouse in the heart of Peterborough's forthcoming zero carbon development.
Perception Peterborough event, 22 October 2008.
Ideas and documentation from the creative visioning processes were exhibited for attendees to view which supported the key note speeches from Gillian Beasley, Chief Executive, Peterborough City Council; Steve Compton, Chief Executive, Opportunity Peterborough; Andrea Stark, Executive Director, Arts Council England, East; Dr. Benjamin Barber, International political theorist; and Jan-Gustav Strandenaes, International Environment Expert.
Haring Woods' consultants Benjamin Barber and Jan-Gustav Strandenaes were both pivotal participants, both during the visioning process and at the event, introducing international opportunities to promote Perception Peterborough as an important new model of best practice. Through Ben’s profile, the project received significant national press which can be read at the bottom of this page >>
Haring Woods completed a final report documenting the complete process and advising on delivery models to implement the outcomes. In 2009 Haring Woods were asked to further develop a feasibility study for Peterborough to showcase its progress and best practice examples of urban development at the United Nations World Urban Forum in Rio de Janerio, Brazil in March 2010.
"The real result of the workshops was an energized citizenry, a city re-imagining itself in terms of its assets and aspirations, a city able to see itself in all of its potential connectivity with a world it might help to shape and lead. In a word, the result was an emerging common vision produced by creative housing developers, thoughtful town councillors, inspired cultural officers and a broad range of concerned regional stakeholder" Benjamin Barber, HWA Senior Consultant and Perception Peterborough workshop leader
PERCEPTION PETERBOROUGH PRESS
US political theorist Benjamin Barber discusses how relevant his international vision for democracy is to the future of Peterborough in the Guardian, 8 October 2008 >> (2 MB PDF)
Interview with Benjamin Barber on how the Perception Peterborough process with HWA has helped to assess Peterborough's future challenges and opportunities in Regeneration & Renewal, 7 November 2008 >> (981 KB PDF)
Benjamin Barber discusses his involvement in Perception Peterborough and Steve Compton, Chief Executive of Opportunity Peterborough explains how the city set about developing a brighter, bolder outlook through Perception Peterborough in New Start, 7 November 2008 >> (4.4 MB PDF)
Perception Peterborough developed a series of workshops which brough together over 50 international participants
