Children and young people are too often excluded from public space. Whether this be under the auspices of child protection, or whether it be to avoid what some consider nuisance of children playing outdoors or young people hanging out on the streets. The result is a drastic reduction in their movements since at least the 1970s, heavily suggesting that town planning is failing children.

The Royal Town Planning Institute recently released ‘Child Friendly Planning In the UK: A Review‘, authored by Dr Jenny Wood of I-SPHERE and A Place in Childhood, and Dinah Bornat of ZCD Architects. The report examines planning policy and legislation at a national level across all four UK nations to assess the extent to which each country covers children’s human rights.

Child-focused policy and legislation on children is relatively strong in Scotland, with a focus on human rights and well-being. Yet, cross-over between these initiatives and planning seems limited…

Continue reading at I-Sphere’s blog

The authors

Dr Jenny Wood, Research Associate at I-SPHERE. Her research has focused on homelessness policy, severe and multiple disadvantage, interventions to assist people facing homelessness, inclusive urban planning, and children’s human rights. Find her latest publications and contact details here.

Dinah Bornat, Director of ZDC Architects & RSA Fellow. She has worked as a leading architect for more than 20 years. She combines this with research, advisory work and occasional teaching.

📚Read Dr Wood & Dinah Bornat’s full report on Child Friendly Planning in the UK📚

Since you are here…

Do you think your research could help inform policies in Scotland? Do you have a complex policy question and need expert input?

📩 Get in touch with SPRE. We can help you build relationships with policymakers and scholars across Scotland.