Visiting the Land of Scots

My wife Philippa and I travelled up to Edinburgh last Tuesday evening to attend a number of events in Scotland on behalf of RTPI members. We have a great affection for Edinburgh and my maternal grandfather was a Mossman, a border Scot! Our youngest daughter, Alex, attended university there so we visited regularly buying up most of what IKEA Edinburgh had to offer (then having to shift it down south when she left)! Ian Rankin and his detective stories of Inspector Rebus show the dark side of this great city but for us, the sun is almost always shining and for this visit it was crisp and bright - Scotland at its best.

We started at the RTPI in Scotland Office run by the enthusiastic and able Director, Veronica Burbridge and her team of Annette, James and Charles. RTPI Head of Research, Jenny Crawford is based at the office too along with Research Assistant Kendra Gracie, who also supports the Commonwealth Association of Planners Secretary General Cliff Hague. They are a smashing bunch and made us feel extremely welcome.

Our first engagement was meeting with officers of the Edinburgh Planning Department, Damian, David and Dorothy (the 3 Ds!) who took us on a walking tour to show us conservation and development schemes around Princes Street (as seen in the picture courtesy of City of Edinburgh Council), the main shopping street overlooking Edinburgh Castle and the Castle Gardens. The area is suffering temporarily because of the introduction of a new tramline from Leith on the waterfront, through the city centre and out to the airport in the west just short of the M8 to Glasgow. However, once complete, the tram will reinforce a spine of communications linking residential areas with employment, culture and education in a safe and attractive form of public transport – what a great initiative.

The design challenges of a World Heritage Site and the motor car has resulted in some good schemes notably St Andrew Square (an award winner the next day) onto which the new Harvey Nichols store fronts. There was much honesty in reviewing schemes and certainly some of the careful mixtures of new and refurbished development proposed will transform Princes Street and give it the design reputation it deserves as the “High Street” of Scotland. This new vision for the city centre, known as the “string of pearls” vision, will rejuvenate the area and see the street divided into distinctive blocks (the so-called pearls – as shown in the attached illustration courtesy of Jonathan Guthrie/Project Edinburgh). I could see why most planners working in Edinburgh either had been there or intended to remain there, for some time. It is a beautiful city with many opportunities for even more good planning. As someone whose career has been throughout the country, albeit in some attractive places, I admire those who give their lives to one place and can see the results of their hard work realised. All power to your elbow Edinburgh City Planning Department!

After lunch I addressed the Scottish Young Planners Conference alongside Simon Pallant espousing the benefits of Planning Aid and Nicola Hay from the Environment Department of the Scottish Government explaining their approach to Place Making and sustainable development, in particular Eco-Towns. The Young Planners are a lively bunch and under the able chairing of Prof. Trevor Davies, ex. Planning Cabinet member of Edinburgh Council, there was a healthy dialogue and exchange of views.

I also remained on the stage to participate in a discussion with David Harding promoting the value of public art and Alistair McIntosh demonstrating people power in planning using the example of the Isle of Eigg, a Hebridean island located off the West Highlands of Scotland acquired by the community through a public world wide appeal. These two sideways looks at the world of planning were both refreshing and humbling; two great men giving up their lives to their chosen causes and enriching the lives of planners by their commitment.

A dinner later that evening with Veronica, the current and ex. Scottish RTPI Convenors John Esslemont and Roger Kelly, representatives from the government and the Inspectorate and Cliff Hague, led to robust discussion on the role of the RTPI and Scottish planning practice. I came away impressed by the ‘planning village’ in Scotland with enormous strengths and close co-operation between central and local government, and between public and private practice.

Thursday commenced with a visit to Heriot Watt University ably led by Prof. Alan Prior where I met students and lecturers from one of the best UK Planning Schools. The students were a lively and confident bunch whose main concern was the availability of jobs once they completed their courses later in the year. (My article for Planning this month seeks to address the issue of the job market in a recession.) On the positive side I drew attention to new planning jobs in social infrastructure – health, education, care – in utilities, the emerging climate change industry and education/research. However the fall out up and down the planning and development supply chain is having a deleterious effect on the traditional planning jobs in local and central government and its agencies as well as in consultancies. The RTPI is now more flexible regarding APC eligible experience and I believe that a combination of voluntary work such as in Planning Aid and earning enough from non planning work could also see some graduates through and beyond the recession and into chartered membership.

(picture courtesy of Tendai Mutasa)

I was delighted to attend another superb planning awards ceremony, this time addressing the Scottish Planning Awards. This encompassed the Patrick Geddes Awards to students, the Designing Places Awards and the Scottish Quality in Planning Awards. The Scottish National Party Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, Stewart Stevenson, an ex. banker, made great play of how he was more popular as a Planning Minister than as a banker!! Both he and the Chair of the main judging panel, the Deputy Editor of the Glasgow Herald Joan Burnie demonstrated great faith in the planning system, although I drew attention to the business value of planning to newspaper profits! The overall winner was a delightful rural regeneration scheme on Lerwick Waterfront in the Shetland Isles. It was a very Scottish solution with good eco and community credentials as well as some sympathetic designs, a worthy winner.

My presentation included reference to Scotland punching above its weight in championing planning and I also thanked Jim Mackinnon, the able Chief Planner, for the influence he applies in sustaining planning interests.

Philippa and I came away pleased that we Sassenachs were allowed across the border to address Scottish Planners. We look forward to our next visit.