A new social venture from the University of Bristol is aiming to do just that, transforming public consultation from static plans and paperwork into immersive, creative collaboration.
Future Places Toolkit uses virtual and augmented reality to help communities actively co-design the places they live, work, and socialise in.
Developed in partnership with Digital Catapult via the MyWorld programme, the innovative spinout has now been fully incorporated with £40,000 investment from ImpactU to accelerate its growth.
It is the result of a long-standing collaboration between Paul Clarke, Professor of Performance and Creative Technologies at the University of Bristol, alongside co-founders Jessica Warren, Dr Duncan Speakman, and Jack Norris, Director of Zubr, a leading Bristol-based augmented and VR studio.
Professor Clarke, Co-Director of the Centre for Creative Technologies, said: “We are thrilled to have launched Future Places Toolkit at a time when communities are increasingly asking to play a more active role in shaping the places they live and work. By combining creative technologies with meaningful public engagement, we hope to make place-based planning more collaborative and inclusive.”
Traditional planning and redevelopment processes are often criticised for feeling distant, technical, and hard to influence. Future Places Toolkit flips that model, inviting people of all ages and backgrounds to explore ideas together in real time. Using guided conversations, live virtual reality sketching and smartphone-based augmented reality, participants can watch their ideas appear instantly as 3D visualisations layered onto the world around them – similar to the technology behind games like Pokémon Go.
The approach has already been tested in major regeneration projects. The team has worked alongside Bristol City Council’s Temple Quarter redevelopment programme, where the University of Bristol’s new Enterprise Campus opens this September, as well as projects in Birmingham and Caerphilly, collaborating with architects, planners, and community organisations.
Their work is gaining recognition. A recent public consultation on the Caerphilly Town 2035 Placemaking Plan, delivered with Stride Treglown and Cowshed Communications, was shortlisted for a Pineapple Award for Community Engagement. The team has also contributed to the ‘Transforming Filwood Broadway’ high street plan in Knowle West and is currently running augmented reality engagement as part of the South Bristol Liveable Neighbourhoods consultation.
Robin Halpenny, Research Commercialisation Manager at the University, said: “It’s inspiring to see support for these ventures coming from across the University, and I feel lucky to work alongside passionate people who are setting out to improve the world around them.”
As cities across the UK grapple with housing, infrastructure and climate challenges, Future Places Toolkit is positioning itself at the forefront of a more inclusive, participatory model of place-making, one where communities don’t just respond to plans, but help create them.
Find out more about Future Places Toolkit in a recent video: