Abstract
There is a long history of engaging citizens in planning processes, and the intention to involve them actively in planning is a common objective. However, the reality of doing so is rather fraught and much empirical work suggests poor results. Partly in response an increasingly sophisticated toolkit of methods has emerged, and, in recent years, the deployment of various creative and digital technologies has enhanced this toolkit. We report here on case study research that deployed participatory film-making to augment a process of neighbourhood planning. We conclude that such a technology can elicit issues that might be missed in traditional planning processes; provoke key actors to include more citizens in the process by highlighting existing absences in the knowledge base; and, finally, provoke greater deliberation on issues by providing spaces for reflection and debate. We note, however, that while participants in film-making were positive about the experience, such creative methods were side-lined as established forms of technical–rational planning reasserted themselves.
Highlights
There is a long history of engaging citizens in planning processes, and the intention to involve them actively in planning is a common objective
The use of participatory video (PV) in neighbourhood planning (NP) can open up planning processes to a more inclusive, deeper set of narratives as others have shown (Bhimani et al, 2013; Frohlich et al, 2012; Green et al, 2015; Sandercock, 2010)
Film-making is a creative practice that can, as other explorations of creative engagements for citizen engagement show, enhance participation, in part through the generation of stories that can be subsequently debated and elaborated by citizens. Such creative methods can provoke the imaginations of participants and encourage them to communicate issues in more animated and interesting ways that capture emotion and lived experience
Summary
Berwick-upon-Tweed is a coastal town in Northumberland, England with a population of around 12,000. The Town Council was one of over 1700 local groups that by September 2018 had sought to take advantage of powers introduced through the 2011 Localism Act in England to make a statutory land use plan for their area (http://neighbourhoodplanner.org.uk/). In doing so, they formed a steering group of 14 residents, town councillors, business-owners, and workers to take forward the plan. The lead author’s involvement began through discussions with planning officers and the NP Chairperson They felt that digital methods might reach publics that may otherwise not engage in such processes. Researcher engagement in the process lasted six months and was developed through subsequent participant observation of the plan-making process
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