Udal Projects

Projects and programmes UDAL aims to foster debate and exchange across the spectrum of built environment disciplines, developing collaboration and promoting teamwork. UDAL works closely with partner organisations and we are constantly developing our programme to support the needs of our members and associated bodies. UDAL’s successes include:
•	Establishing the annual Urban Design Week, a national series of events about making places. The week, run by UDAL member organisations in collaboration with community and amenity organisations, celebrates and promotes the best urban design

•	Developing the Placecheck method, now widely used as a means of empowering communities to engage in design and regeneration processes

•	Securing £5 million government funding for public realm improvements conceived by the 10 Placecheck pilot projects

•	Producing influential urban design publications, including Designing Streets for People, Returning Roads to Residents, Urban Design Guidance, Better Places for Business and Liquid Assets

Towns under the microscope

The towns under the microscope series of initiatives and reports have been undertaken to provide practical ways of dealing with the everyday issues that affect our daily lives. UDAL has therefore produced the following reports.

A practical guide to improving your street

An investigation into the way we plan, design, manage and maintain our streets

Making the most of our Urban Watercourses

A report to inspire developers, design professionals and local authorities into producing innovative industrial environments of the highest quality.

Placecheck is a method of assessing the qualities of a place, developed by UDAL with the support of English Partnerships and the DETR/DTLR. Placecheck shows what improvements are needed in an area and focuses people on working together to achieve them. It is a unique and effective way to empower local residents to make a difference to their local environment. Based on a system of questions and answers, Placecheck is a simple and powerful tool to identify the positive and negative qualities of a place, and can be easily used by both professionals and local residents. It also provides thorough guidance on how to involve local people, politicians and professionals.

To obtain a copy please email Amanda Claremont at info@udal.org.uk