The Place Standard
Good Lives and Decent Societies workshop
14th May 2014
Rory Mitchell, NHS Health Scotland
Overview
“Wellbeing”
• A word on health and health inequalities
• The idea of a “Place Standard”
• A brief history of the project
• Our work so far
• Current challenges
What is health?
“a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”
World Health Organisation
(1948)
A brief history of the Place Standard
 Good Places, Better Health launched in 2008 as the Scottish
Government’s strategy on the environment and health (now being
taken forward by NHS Health Scotland)
 A new approach to the environment and health… an environment
not only free from physical, toxic, infectious and allergenic hazard,
but also:




Nurturing of positive health, wellbeing and resilience
Consistent with and promoting of healthy behaviour
Consistent with the development and maintenance of social capital
Consistent with greater equity in health
A brief history of the Place
Standard
Good Places, Better Health: recommendations of the
Evaluation Group:
“We wish to see a Scotland
where a Scottish
Neighbourhood Quality
Standard is used as
a standard for
neighbourhood asset
development.”
A brief history of the Place
Standard
Creating Places: a policy statement on architecture &
place in Scotland
“We will develop a Place
Standard
assessment tool, which
will….. address quality in
relation to places that
support healthy
and sustainable lifestyles.”
The Place Standard Project
A Place
Standard for
Scotland
Partners:
 Scottish Government (Architecture & Place)
 NHS Health Scotland
 Architecture & Design Scotland
What is a Place Standard?
“The Place Standard will articulate what makes
a good, sustainable place and support actions
and facilitate processes which deliver places of
the highest quality”
“The purpose of the Place Standard is to ensure
that all places in Scotland nurture the wellbeing
of the people within them”
Place Standard Objectives
 Support the delivery of high quality sustainable places and
promote wellbeing through design changes to environments.
 Improve the quality of both existing places and new places.
 Provide a framework for structured conversations, supporting
public and private sectors and communities to work together
to deliver high quality places.
 Maximise the contribution of place to reducing health
inequalities across Scotland
The story so far…
• Concepts shaping the place standard:
– Liveability
– Social sustainability
– Quality of life
– Wellbeing
“what is it like
to live here?”
• These concepts have been hugely helpful in:
– Facilitating a shared language amongst partners and in
stakeholder workshops
– Focussing discussion and shaping aims of our work
– Identifying and articulating outcomes
Social sustainability
Design for Social Sustainability – Social Life / Young Foundation 2011
People’s experience of a place
crime
walkability
local
services
community
gardens
social
capital
cars
active travel
density
greenspace
trust
public transport
housing
tenure
shops
maintenance
leisure
facilities
economic
investment
identity
perception
of safety
neighbourhood incivilities
paths
alcohol
outlets
Natural
spaces
lighting
physical
activity
neighbourhood
attractiveness
sense of
employment
opportunities
social
hubs
connections
local
stories
The Place Standard
– (some of) the challenges
• Creating something that can be used to shape ‘new’ places and
the evolution of ‘existing’ places
• Taking account of diversity of places – each has it’s own unique
context, community, challenges and opportunities
• Applying a core set of principles across different spatial scales
• Delivering something that will be used by: the private sector
(developers), the public sector (CPPs) and communities
• Integrating and adding to numerous other policies and guidance
relevant to creating places
Does a wellbeing lens help to
rethink our goals and priorities?
• The concept of wellbeing supports the shift in thinking
about the environment and health from ‘hazards’ to
places that create health
• The wellbeing focus in ‘Good Places Better Health’ has
helped broaden our understanding of the relationship
between the environment and health
• Highlighted common drivers and influences that affect
multiple outcomes  strengthened case for action
The Place Standard and Wellbeing
• The role of wellbeing in the project has evolved
organically. It has:
…influenced thinking in both the health and architecture
worlds
…helped align work across ‘silos’, providing a shared
language and understanding
…and helped maintain a focus on the experiences of
people and communities
• “the purpose of the Place Standard is to ensure that
all places in Scotland nurture the wellbeing of the
people within them”
Acknowledgements and References
Thanks to the Place Standard Project Team:
Johnny Cadell, Jamie Combe, Eric Dawson, Diarmaid Lawlor, Kathleen
Marshall, Megan MacPherson, Louise Rennick, Sandy Robinson
And to:
Sheila Beck
Key references:
– Good Places Better Health
(http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Health/Healthy-Living/Good-Places-BetterHealth )
– Creating Places (http://www.creatingplacesscotland.org/ )
– Design for Social Sustainability (http://www.social-life.co/publication/SocialSustainability/ )
Contact:
rory.mitchell@nhs.net