Between January and June 2022, Street Space worked alongside Newham Council to create a pioneering engagement approach to involve local people in the Beckton Parks Masterplan. With a huge space (36 hectares!), high levels of interest from local residents and heightened tensions around the recent closure of Newham City Farm Site - we devised a sensitive and open approach that focused on listening to a wide range of thoughts, feelings and ambitions - from a wide range of people with different perspectives.

Following a month of consulting with local groups to inform our approach we launched an extensive 5 month listening exercise that combined an interactive online map and survey, pop-ups both inside and outside of the parks (imagine a free and moving hot chocolate bar!), events in collaboration with local groups (think yoga, collage workshops, martial arts, nature walks, litter picks and watercolour workshops), interviews with members of the community and even a field trip to inspirational places across London. We also hired Faith, a local young person, paid as part of our team! 

To celebrate the ideas of local people we hosted a spring fete in collaboration with local groups to test ideas for the future LIVE within the park. Groups were supported to deliver their ideas amongst their community and together learn about what works well for the future. Ideas included a pop-up picnic, live music, martial arts, yoga and a forest school. The event was captured using a balloon mapping tool created by a local youth group.



We complied everything we’d learnt in a ‘Playbook for the Future of Beckton Parks’ - a resource created and used by the community, council and future architects as a starting point from which designs and further engagement can emerge. The book was published publicly (following a period of feedback and editing) alongside a public exhibition within the parks and local libraries for everyone to see, celebrate and share.

Our involvement in this project provides the first step towards the creation of the Beckton Parks Masterplan, a vision for 36 hectares of green space between the wards of Beckton and Custom House - including Beckton District Park, New Beckton park, Beckton Corridor, Newham City Farm Site and King George V Park.

This project was completed whilst working as Head of Engagement at Street Space alongside Phillippa Banister, Rufus Shakespeare and Mo Langmuir. It was commissioned by Newham Council. You can download the Playbook for the Future of Beckton Parks here.