Greening Neighbourhood Plans: Integrating green infrastructure into community-led planning

城乡规划协会（TCPA）和学术界现在都声称，绿色基础设施（GI）应被视为“关键”，并被纳入空间规划系统（TCPA & WT，2012; Roe & Mell，2013）。关键挑战之一是确定适当的实施规模（Gilchrist等人，2016）。各个组成部分是在社区范围内实施的，其价值往往只在地方一级得到认可。这意味着，在邻里规模的景观管理是至关重要的，以维持和加强地理标志网络。在英国，地理信息系统将被纳入国家规划政策框架和地方规划政策的规划交付中，目的是使微观尺度能够制定针对具体情况的措施，以规划可持续和繁荣的社区（DCLG，2011年）。文献中的一个重要知识缺口是如何实施小规模GI规划。展示现有的邻里计划解决地理信息系统的方式将开发可用于支持邻里计划发展的技术。在缺乏国家政府详细指导的情况下，规划指导的作用变得尤为重要。至关重要的是，TCPA正在推动将地理信息纳入英国规划结构/工具，并确定迫切需要以社区规划为重点的地理信息指导。研究目的和目标研究如何透过邻里规划程序维持及加强地理信息系统，以确定此规模是否能达到策略性规划目标。建立地理信息系统在社区规划过程中的当前定位，并以此来制定概念框架;2.确定专家对机会和挑战的看法，有效地将地理信息系统纳入邻里规划;3.开发创新的方法，可以捕捉地理信息系统在邻里尺度上的价值，并在更大的空间尺度上传播所获得的好处。制定符合决策者、规划从业人员和当地社区需求的指导原则和建议，鼓励在邻里范围内维持和加强地理信息系统，并在更大的空间范围内扩大其影响。案头研究对文献进行全面审查，以收集关于将地理信息系统整合到邻里规划中的现有知识。这也将有助于建立一个邻里计划数据库，评估地理标志在何处和如何使用，以及在何处可以确定使用地理标志的障碍。行动研究学生将在不同的实施和完成阶段嵌入不同的邻里规划项目（作为论文的案例研究）。学生将参与三个邻里规划项目（案例研究）。这将包括焦点小组，访谈和政策/发展分析的使用。学生将制定一个政策/实践框架，以帮助讨论和沟通有关地理标志纳入邻里计划。它还将创造创新的方法，以协助社区论坛证明地理信息系统的价值，并整合其未来的计划。最后阶段将试验这些技术。3.专家访谈候选人将与当地规划官员、社区论坛和专业人士进行深入讨论，以生成规划、社区参与和环境知识的证据基础，这些证据基础可用于将地理标志纳入社区规划过程。公众访问及调查确保在邻里规划中加入地理标志的建议方案可予接受。

The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) and the academic community both now assert that Green Infrastructure (GI) should be recognised as 'critical' and be integrated into spatial planning systems (TCPA & WT, 2012; Roe & Mell, 2013). One of the key challenges is identifying the appropriate scale for implementation (Gilchrist et al., 2016). Individual components are implemented at a neighbourhood scale, with the value placed on these often only recognised at the very local level. This means that landscape management at the neighbourhood scale is critical to sustaining and strengthening the GI network. There is, however, no accepted mechanism for capturing the local-level knowledge of GI, which is vitally important if the value of GI to local communities are to be established.In the UK, GI is to be embedded in planning delivery in the National Planning Policy Framework and local planning policies, with the intention that the microscale can develop context-specific measures to plan sustainable and prosperous communities (DCLG, 2011). A significant knowledge gap in the literature is how small-scale GI planning can be implemented. Demonstrating the way in which existing neighbourhood plans address GI will develop techniques that can be used to support neighbourhood plan development.In the absence of detailed direction from national government, the role of planning guidance becomes particularly important. Critically, the TCPA are driving the integration of GI into UK planning structures/instruments and have identified a pressing need for GI guidance focussing on neighbourhood planning. Research Aims and ObjectivesAim: Examine how GI can be sustained and enhanced through the neighbourhood planning process to determine whether this scale can meet strategic planning aims.Research objectives:1. Establish the current positioning of GI in the neighbourhood planning process and use this to develop a conceptual framing;2. Identify expert perspectives on the opportunities and challenges to effective GI integration into neighbourhood planning;3. Develop innovative methodologies that can capture the value of GI at neighbourhood scales and communicate the benefits experienced at larger spatial scales.4. Develop guiding principles and recommendations that align with the needs of decision-makers, planning practitioners and local communities, which encourage GI to be sustained and enhanced at neighbourhood scales and that its influence is extended at larger spatial scales.Research Approach1. Desk StudyA comprehensive review of the literature to assemble existing knowledge on the integration of GI integration in neighbourhood plans. This will also help establish a database of neighbourhood plans assessing and where and how GI is used and where barriers to its use can be identified.2. Action ResearchThe student will be embedded in different neighbourhood planning projects (acting as casestudies for the thesis) at different phases of implementation and completion. The student will engage with three neighbourhood planning projects (case studies). This will include the use of focus groups, interviews, and policy/development analysis.The student will develop a policy/practice framework to aid the discussion and communication regarding the inclusion of GI in neighbourhood plans. It will also create innovative methodologies to assist neighbourhood forums to evidence the value of GI and integrate it future plans. The final phase will trial these techniques. 3. Expert InterviewsThe candidate will engage in an in-depth set of discussions with local planning officers, neighbourhood forums and professions to generate an evidence base of planning, community engagement and environmental knowledge that can be used to frame inclusion of GI in the neighbourhood planning process.4. Public interviews and surveysTo ensure that the proposed options for the inclusion of GI in neighbourhood plans are acceptable.