Distinctive Futures

Distinctive Futures A scoping study to identify how a distinctive Rural Capitals approach can be developed in Yorkshire and Humber

Oakham - Market Place

October 2009

Report prepared by Bauman Lyons Architects and Design Leeds for Yorkshire Forward Rural Capitals programme

Distinctive Futures

We know that what matters in a building or town is not its outward shape, its physical geometry alone, but the events that happen there.

Christopher Alexander, The Timeless Way of Building

Contents Preface

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Executive Summary Why was the study commissioned?

The context Current challenges to rural capitals in Yorkshire and Humber Current opportunities for rural communities in Yorkshire and Humber The methodology used in carrying out this research The case for distinctiveness The principles of distinctiveness Developing themed distinctiveness Implications for rural capitals in Yorkshire and Humber Conclusions and recommendations

6 6 6 6 7 7 7 8 8 8 9

Chapter 1: What Is Distinctiveness?

Rural capitals are distinct from cities Local distinctiveness defined Themed distinctiveness defined ‘Core’ and ‘dynamic’ elements of distinctiveness Core elements of distinctiveness Dynamic elements of distinctiveness Designated distinctiveness

13 14 14 14 15 15 17 19

Chapter 2: Methodology Scope of the research Data collection Priority towns Stakeholder interviews Think Tank Delivery mechanisms External initiatives

21 22 25 25 25 25 26 26

Chapter 3: Key Issues Themed distinctiveness is multilayered Themed distinctiveness is a by-product of other drivers Themed distinctiveness has benefits and drawbacks Benefits Potential drawbacks Role of the entrepreneur The edge condition as a fertile ground for distinctiveness

29 31 33 35 35 36 39 40

Chapter 4: Developing Themed Distinctiveness Fundamental principles of distinctiveness Five stages of delivery for themed distinctiveness Four roles for stakeholders in delivery of themed distinctiveness Tools for initiating themed distinctiveness

43 44 44 47 51

Chapter 5: Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire Overview of related Yorkshire Forward initiatives Regional case studies Potential for themed distinctiveness in Yorkshire and Humber Conclusions and recommendations

57 58 59 61 62

Appendix Appendix Appendix Appendix Appendix

67 85 89 93 97

1: 2: 3: 4: 5:

Themed Distinctiveness Unpacked Designated Distinctiveness Delivery Models Other Approaches to Distinctive Place Making Bibliography Think Tank Participants

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Preface The rural capitals in Yorkshire and the Humber play a key role as drivers of the rural economy. Yorkshire Forward has recognised their importance by supporting rural capitals, firstly through the Market Towns Initiative (MTI) and then through the Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programmes. Over the next five years, we will continue to support rural capitals through the RMT programme and in addition are developing two new strands of activity: Enterprising Rural Capitals, to develop high quality business space in some towns, and Low Carbon Rural Capitals, a programme to pilot low carbon development in key rural centres. As new challenges face our rural capitals, we want to understand more about how distinctiveness of these places can be developed to benefit their economies and communities. This study has been commissioned to help inform what makes a place distinctive and how this can be supported.

Rhona Pringle

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Executive Summary Why was the study commissioned?

This study was commissioned by Yorkshire Forward as part of its Rural Capitals programme which aims to support the development of sustainable rural towns in Yorkshire and the Humber and to ensure that the region’s rural capitals are vibrant places where people want to live, work, invest and visit.

The Rural Capitals programme builds on the achievements of the successful Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme which, through a long-term, capacity building approach built around local Town Teams, has done much to stimulate the regeneration of the region’s market towns. It focuses even more closely on creating the conditions for enterprise and economic growth in the region’s rural communities.

The research brief was to explore the emerging concept of ‘distinctiveness’ as a driver for economic growth and resilience, and to consider whether and how a ‘distinctive town’ approach might be promoted in the region.

The study reflects the brief requirement for scoping of the issues rather than an in-depth enquiry into all the aspects of themed distinctiveness. The report is underpinned by the breadth of research that it was possible to undertake in the study period.

Bauman Lyons Architects, in partnership with Design Leeds (Leeds Metropolitan University), were appointed to carry out the study. The ensuing report is targeted at policy makers and decision takers, but will also be of relevance to community stakeholders in rural capitals across the region.

Forward, 2007; • Assessing the Economic Performance of Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and the Humber, Yorkshire Forward, 2007; • Low Carbon Rural Capitals Scoping Study, Yorkshire Forward, 2008; • Rural Business Space Study, Yorkshire Forward, 2008.

It takes place in the context of the recent launch of ‘Welcome to Yorkshire’, a three year £30 million tourism campaign launched in April 2009, and the ambitious regional targets for a 5% annual growth in visitor spend (set out in the Visitor Economy Strategy, 2008-2013). The region’s rural capitals will play an important role in reaching that target.

Current challenges to rural capitals in Yorkshire and Humber The study has taken place in a period when rural communities are faced with a number of interrelated problems including: • The possible effects of the current recession, which is likely to impact negatively on the rural parts of the region as much as, or possibly more so, than on its cities and urban centres; • Emerging findings from Yorkshire Forward’s Tourism Futures study (currently underway), which indicate a shift in visitor patterns with less people visiting rural areas in favour of visiting the region’s cities; • The challenge of developing sustainable tourism strategies which benefit local economies without impacting on local services or the quality of the historic and natural environment;

The study forms part of Yorkshire Forward’s ongoing programme of research into Yorkshire and Humber’s rural areas and has benefited from access to a range of existing material, in particular:

• The need for rural capitals to address the challenge of climate change and carbon reduction (in line with the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Change Adaptation Strategy), even though dependence on car transport is likely to continue in rural areas;

• Market Towns of the Future, Yorkshire

• The continued loss of young people

The context

6 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

from rural areas and increasingly aging population many of whom prefer the countryside as their place of retirement; • Recent trends in immigration patterns which have begun to change traditionally culturally homogenous rural communities, with so far unknown social and economic impacts.

modified by the findings of the preceding one.

• Stage 1: Scoping of a long-list of ‘distinctive towns’ in the UK and internationally; • Stage 2: Interrogation of distinctive town approaches and development of case studies; • Stage 3: Exemplar town study visits;

Current opportunities for rural communities in Yorkshire and Humber The long-term investment made by Yorkshire Forward in understanding rural issues has created an extensive knowledge base which will inform all future rural development strategies.

Opportunities exist in: • Increased awareness of the synergy and interdependency of urban centres and rural capitals;

• Stage 4: A ‘Think Tank’ bringing together wide ranging expertise of academic and in-depth regional knowledge and understanding of Yorkshire Forward; • Stage 5: Follow up research and stakeholder interviews to investigate the ‘drivers’ of distinctiveness for a small number of the case studies; • Stage 6: Development of a taxonomy/ matrix of distinctiveness;

• Enhanced capacity and confidence at local levels (through Town Teams, local strategic partnerships, local area agreements, etc.);

• Stage 7: Consideration of roles that different stakeholders may take in developing a ‘distinctive towns’ approach;

• A growing awareness, amongst rural communities, of the benefits to their economies of exploiting quality local produce, niche markets and innovation;

• Stage 8: Consideration of a toolkit to facilitate self-evaluation, together with a range of interventions which may enhance or create distinctiveness.

• A growing appreciation of ‘quality of life’ and its relation with personal happiness;

The case for distinctiveness

• The distinctive offer of market towns in contrast to the cities and the homogenising effects of global brands; • The opportunities offered by constantly improving communication technologies and the growth of ‘trans-local’ networks.

These allow global knowledge and experience to inform local issues and strategies, thus reducing reliance on geographic location for entrepreneurial and business development.

The methodology used in carrying out this research We devised a number of broadly sequential stages of research, which allowed for each successive stage to be

At an early stage of this study we arrived at the conclusion that very many rural capitals can lay just claim to being ‘distinctive’. Our efforts increasingly focused on those aspects of distinctiveness which single one place out from its peers and which give it both social and economic advantage and potential for resilience.

We termed this ‘themed distinctiveness’ and it is on this that the study focuses, concluding with a set of flexible proposals, as yet at an early stage of development, which may assist the region and its rural capitals to identify and grow those characteristics capable of performing a transformational role.

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Distinctive Futures-Executive Summary

The principles of distinctiveness

• Stage 5: Exiting the initiative.

The study has established fundamental principles about themed distinctiveness that should inform early decisions regarding embarking on a new initiative:

All stages require partnership working to sustain the initiative: regional development agencies, local authorities, tourism boards, local strategic partnerships, Town Teams, community groups, private sector, voluntary sector and individuals, all have a part to play.

• Distinctiveness consists of ‘core’ and ‘dynamic’ elements that can change at different rates but are interrelated.

• Distinctiveness is multilayered. It is important for all stakeholders to have a good understanding of each place.

• Distinctiveness is not just about grand gestures. It is about doing small things well, (good signage, use of appropriate materials, appropriate levels of maintenance).

• Individuals and community networks are essential drivers of themed distinctiveness.

• Themed distinctiveness was rarely a goal in its own right; it is mostly a byproduct of other drivers.

• Key threats to distinctiveness are inappropriate marketing, tourism and economic initiatives, incompatible politically driven timescales, burn out, lack of access to appropriate funding and investment, and loss of local support due to the effects of growth stimulated by success of the initiative.

• Themed distinctiveness can have an undesirable effect of monoculture, gentrification and conflicts with residents’ needs and priorities.

• The gestation of themed distinctiveness can be long and fragile.

Developing themed distinctiveness The study identifies five broad stages of developing themed distinctiveness: • Stage 1: Identifying the pioneers and ideas; • Stage 2: Mapping local distinctiveness; • Stage 3: Developing local distinctiveness; • Stage 4: Adoption of the initiative;

8 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

The study identifies four roles that all stakeholders may play throughout all stages of the themed distinctiveness initiative. These are: • Protector; • Catalyst; • Enabler; • Innovative investor.

The study identified a host of existing designated distinctiveness initiatives such as Cittaslow and Transformation Towns, as well as models for mapping local distinctiveness such as the ABC approach to local distinctiveness developed by Common Ground.

We have, however, also identified that some additional tools will need to be developed to assess the strength of a new themed distinctiveness initiative and to assess the capacity of a rural capital to further develop such an initiative.

Implications for rural capitals in Yorkshire and Humber The study includes an evaluation of four existing rural capitals: Richmond, Ilkley, Marsden and Slaithwaite in Yorkshire and Humber. We have highlighted ways in which their already distinctive characteristics could be enhanced.

The evaluation leads us to make a strong case for supporting the implementation of themed distinctiveness in the region.

We have, however, highlighted that such initiatives would require long gestation periods, a bottom up approach and a variety of new tools and mechanisms.

Yorkshire Forward would have an important role to play, along with other stakeholders, particularly in the early stages of gestation and growth of the

themed distinctiveness initiative. In doing so, it would be building on the success of the Renaissance Market Towns programme, through which some of the measures we are advocating have already been successfully trialled, and would maximise the benefits of its investments in rural capitals thus far.

Conclusions and recommendations The study concludes with five key recommendations which are summarised here.

The recommendations are grouped under two headings to distinguish between more immediate, practical measures to stimulate or pilot themed distinctiveness and longer term measures which are needed to create a climate in which distinctiveness can be further developed and protected.

Piloting themed distinctiveness Recommendation 1: Disseminating best practice This study highlights the relative shortage of information and understanding regarding the definition and value of distinctiveness. Having invested in commissioning of this study Yorkshire Forward can maximise the benefits of the information now gathered to inform other agencies and local initiatives about the existing distinctiveness designations as well as exemplars of how a distinctive offer has benefited other rural capitals.

Recommendation 2: Running a pilot scheme Running a pilot scheme will allow Yorkshire Forward to identify, at an early stage, individuals or towns with ideas of distinctiveness. This can be achieved by: • Developing an enterprising place, undertaking a pilot scheme that includes pitching, mentoring and small start up funding; • Working closely with the town team or community partnership to identify potential entrepreneurs and themed distinctiveness ideas;

• Signposting interested parties to existing distinctiveness audits, encouraging towns to consider their distinctive offer; • Providing access to research and development grants whilst accepting the potential risk of failure; • Seeding a new project. (Where ideas exist but there is no automatic champion to take a lead, public agencies can themselves seed a project for the community to take forward and develop as themed distinctiveness.)

Recommendation 3: Mapping local distinctiveness This stage can happen as part of a specific pilot scheme; it is also a process which can be initiated by a town at any time. The audits could be achieved in three ways: • Utilisation of existing tools, such as Common Ground’s ABC guide, to facilitate self-audits of local distinctiveness; • Development of a self-mapping tool in the form of spider diagrams, as suggested in Chapter 4 of this report, to map the existing strength of distinctiveness as well as the capacity of the rural capitals to develop a themed distinctiveness initiative; • Creation of a regional map of existing and planned distinctiveness themes and initiatives. This could be undertaken rapidly and at low cost. Regional mapping of this kind would inform other strategic policies such as tourism and facilitate knowledge exchange within and between regions.

Developing a climate for distinctiveness Recommendation 4: Protecting local distinctiveness There are many reasons why it may be necessary for the town and public bodies to take steps to protect existing or emerging distinctiveness. Changing economics and cultural habits are contributing to the erosion of the local retail offer, causing the decline of country pubs and facilities such as the post office 9

Distinctive Futures-Executive Summary

and affecting the availability of local transport. Too often the quality of the built fabric does not reflect or add to local distinctiveness.

Regional agencies, local authorities and individuals, through the choices they make, can significantly reduce this erosion through a range of measures many of which are good for the economy and for social wellbeing in addition to benefiting distinctiveness.

Short and medium term protective measures can include: • Incorporating local retail plans in Local Development Frameworks; • Supporting ‘shop local’ initiatives and campaigns which promote local produce; • Aligning regional and local regeneration priorities and tourism and destination management strategies.

Longer-term protective measures may include initiatives such as the introduction of tax credits to encourage the production of local food and produce and the reformation of public sector procurement policies to encourage local supply chains. Such innovations may require national policy changes and new fiscal systems. It is more sustainable to protect distinctiveness than to lose it and have to restore it.

Recommendation 5: Developing local distinctiveness The study highlighted the fragility of initiatives based on distinctiveness.

Any number of events can undermine the process - burn out, lack of business support, lack of seed funding, lack of capacity to accommodate successful growth, lack of wider support or lack of a suitable policy context into which the initiative can fit.

The study recommends a range of enabling activities including: developing an exit strategy and succession planning for entrepreneur-led initiatives; supporting social networks and giving value to voluntary work; remodelling of major public realm areas to reduce the impact of traffic; coordination of 10 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

other initiatives, especially tourism and marketing; enabling opportunities for promotion in which each town’s needs are considered on an individual basis.

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12 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Chapter 1

What is Distinctiveness?

The Famous Writers Mural painted by Peter Dodd at Barter Books Alnwick, Northumberland

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Distinctive Futures-Chapter 1. What is Distinctiveness

What Is Distinctiveness?

“In ‘ley’ and ‘ham’ and ‘hill’ and ‘ton’ Many Old English place names run.

But ‘beck’ and ‘kirk’ and ‘by’ of course, Arrive in Yorkshire from ‘Old Norse’.”

(Wright, 2000) Rural capitals are distinct from cities Currently 75% of all world populations live in cities. This figure is projected to grow to 90% by 2050 and so will the demand for the alternative life style that rural capitals will offer (Burdett & Sudjic, 2007).

The offer is very attractive: the chance to be a member of small and recognisable community, the chance to live within a natural landscape, the chance to feel safe and have good balance of work and leisure. It also brings the chance to contribute civically and to feel the effects of this; such efforts can be lost in the city.

Cities and rural capitals are interdependent and some existing distinctive towns are already capitalising on the economic strength that this interdependence can offer. In Yorkshire and Humber alone the attraction of working in a major city such as Hull or Leeds and living in a close by market town such as Beverly or Knaresborough is well established and appears to be a powerful attractor of the professional, academic and managerial sectors.

Furthermore, distinctiveness can also arise from a combination of many different elements such as proximity of the countryside, sense of community, good schools, strong social networks, safety, that collectively amount to a ‘quality of life’ offer.

Many who can afford it have already chosen the combination of working in a city and living in a rural capital. Many others have left busy city lives for the quality of life offered by rural capitals.

Local distinctiveness defined Distinctiveness is the quality of being individual. Paradoxically the increased cultural uniformity, brought about by the dominance of western values and

14 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

globalisation, has increased awareness of the value of uniqueness. One such benefit is economic advantage.

Local distinctiveness is a combination of elements that endure and those that evolve and change. A locality must be open to change, permeable to new people, ideas, buildings, industries and new climate conditions, if it is to be resilient.

Such change may enrich or deplete. Mass production, fashion, increased mobility, growth of retail chains, forceful promotion of corporate identity have brought us uniform shop fronts, uniform products and uniform experiences. Intensive farming has, in some places, created a bland, unfriendly countryside.

In pursuit of economic competitiveness, methods have been developed such as surveying, data gathering and mapping, designed to systematically compare and numerically evaluate. The information so gathered informs policy making but is in danger of leaving out the very things that make us love a place.

Themed distinctiveness defined In this study, themed distinctiveness is understood as a characteristic that is constructed within local distinctiveness but which becomes a dominant element of local identity. We identified a rich taxonomy of themed distinctiveness at the outset of the study: alternative technology and self sufficiency in Machynlleth, Book Town and Literature Festival in Hay-onWye, weddings in Gretna Green, water sports in Rutland, Cittaslow in Ludlow, traditional commerce in the market town of Sansepolcro, a Food Town in Castle Douglas, a Transition Town in Totnes, and an Artist Town in Fowey.

Themed distinctiveness has the power to transform the economy of a place and give it a new lease of life. It can generate civic pride and civic engagement. It can put a small town on a national and international map, encouraging newcomers to settle and tourists to visit.

Themed distinctiveness initiatives are often devised to gain economic benefits either through the creation of new

economies or through increasing tourism attractions. There is a danger in such initiatives that decisions are made which are based on over-simplified, abstracted understanding of a place and that this is turned into strategies and policy statements that could be about ‘anyplace’.

We have come across a number of such initiatives in our study, where simplification and homogeneity may have contributed to the failure of the initiative.

In an essay ‘Losing your Place’, Sue Clifford and Angela King warn that: ‘Locality needs to be defined with detail rather than abstraction. The bigger the scale the more reduced the sensitivity and the easier it becomes to steamroller strategies for the ‘greater good’ which prescribe the same solutions to subtly different circumstances encouraging convergence and homogeneity thereby missing the whole point... Attempts should not be made to reduce local distinctiveness to an essence. It is a compound thing and a messy one as well as being dynamic hence its elusiveness’.

(Clifford & King, 1993)

When we try to develop ‘themed distinctiveness’ initiatives, we often change scale. At a larger scale we can understand patterns in a different way but risk inattention to people and the details.

Substitution of abstract words begins to desensitise - the public for people, sites for streets or fields, environment for places, natural resources for woods and clear streams. These abstractions disengage us from reality, and give professionals a mandate to act without care for the detail.

In biology the ecotone is an area where two ecosystems overlap which supports a variety of species that is often richer than the habitats it buffers. Similarly, in all settlements, there may be many distinctive elements contributing to the sense of place, but the most distinct feature would be the one that occurs where many elements overlap. Hence, the inherent difficulty in unpacking the nature of distinctiveness. Unless the initiative is rooted in a deep understanding of the place and its people and builds on the potential of existing identity and capacity, it may be very difficult, if not impossible, to successfully induce ‘themed distinctiveness’.

‘Core’ and ‘dynamic’ elements of distinctiveness A great variety of elements and many permutations of these elements constitute distinctiveness of a place. To facilitate our understanding of these complexities we have devised two classifications: the ‘core elements of distinctiveness’ and ‘dynamic elements of distinctiveness’. (See Figure 3.)

Core elements of distinctiveness are the physical features of the town and hinterland and the character of the built fabric of the settlement. These slow changing elements form the foundations of uniqueness.

Dynamic elements of distinctiveness relate to human enterprise and the people themselves. These elements create change, allow places to be reinterpreted and modified and have the capacity, unlike the former two elements, to reinvent distinctiveness.

Below we examine each of the four elements of local distinctiveness.

Core elements of distinctiveness Physical features of the town and hinterland The topography of a rural town and the natural resources of its hinterland are closely integrated into the identity of the rural capitals and hinterland underpin the reasons for the settlement being established in the first place: be it for the fertile agricultural land, availability of other natural resources, the defensive advantage offered by topography and the accessibility of transport links such as roads, rivers, canals and, since the 19th century, the railways.

Topography defines the character of the settlement with its hills and valleys, woods and heaths, openness or enclosure, with the water that runs through the settlement be it stream, river, or a brook, with the character of its local plants and with the building materials available from its geology.

The hinterland has historically sustained rural capitals and in turn, the rural capitals have served the needs of the 15

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 1. What is Distinctiveness

countryside, largely through the market place function of buying and selling, but also by serving the domestic needs of its residents and providing a social hub for all of the hinterland.

The interdependence between the hinterland and the rural capital is a source of resilience but also of weakness, as the strength of that connection is not constant, neither in place nor in time.

The greatest decline in rural capitals can be traced in history to changes in agriculture, as in the last quarter of the 19th century when cheap imported grain undermined the cereal growers in the east and south of England.

Likewise, where the existence of a rural capital was dependent mainly on manufacturing or mining, the fate of these rural towns was closely linked to the fortunes of such industries. Marsden and Slaithwaite in West Yorkshire suffered from decline of textile industries, and the Dearne Valley towns of Goldthorpe and Thurnscoe in South Yorkshire suffered from the rapid decline of coal mining industry in 1980’s. Most rural capitals in the north of Yorkshire suffered loss of income from livestock and from tourism when foot and mouth disease savaged the countryside in 2001.

Distinctiveness of the rural capital cannot be separated from the setting of its hinterland.

Built fabric of the settlement Before the industrial revolution came to create new manufacturing centres, nearly all the towns of England had grown up from early settlements or were founded as towns. Most of these foundations had been laid in the middle ages.

Many towns therefore have distinctive character developed through centuries of building, rebuilding, extending, renovating and converting. They have tight, organic street and squares patterns, with mixed-use dense streets defined by vernacular architecture, built with local materials.

Most of the built fabric, the so-called everyday architecture, is similar in many towns. In contrast, the major 16 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

public buildings, such as town halls and mechanics institutes, were built as an expression of civic pride. The buildings of worship, such as cathedrals and churches, and the homes of the rich and the powerful, such as castles and noblemen’s great homes, all are unique to each place.

The fabric of the built environment carries memories of historic alterations, of decay and of the idiosyncrasies of successive owners and of the influence of particular trades. For example, Seahouses, in Northumberland, is characterised by courtyards, sheltered from the sea wind, which were built for collective net repairing, all of which contribute to the authenticity and uniqueness of place.

Rural capitals were built on a human scale that allowed visual connections to the surrounding countryside; the uniqueness of this relationship constitutes a further level of distinctiveness.

These qualities are cherished and hold timeless attraction because of the authenticity that only the passage of time can reveal. The value of the authenticity has been recognised with the Town and Country Planning Act 1947, which introduced the concept of preserving heritage and protecting historic rural capitals from inappropriate development.

The distinctiveness of the built fabric creates local identity and has a strong tourism value but it also conflicts with modern demands. Growth of car use has turned traditional market squares in rural town centres into car parks. Changing shopping habits and trends for retail chains has forced large supermarkets to be developed on the edges of conservation areas, outside of the town centres, causing local shops to close. Changes in governance have left many civic buildings without a purpose.

All of these factors undermine the distinctiveness of rural capitals and many attempts are now being made to arrest this erosion and restore the convivial nature of market towns. These initiatives are wide ranging and include finding new uses for listed buildings, introducing pedestrian priority to high streets and

reinvention of the market place through specialist and farmers markets.

Although the built heritage is under siege, it forms the backbone of distinctiveness.

All the towns we have studied in this research were distinct in this way. The ones which have no such heritage, the new rural capitals constructed mainly to support a single industry such as coal mining towns, have proved themselves highly vulnerable. They do not have the resilience founded on the timeless appeal of a rich history, traditions and customs that are held within the historic built fabric. Although such historic fabric cannot guarantee sustainability it helps to attract new generations of people who choose to live there

Dynamic elements of distinctiveness People “The suppression of the Gaelic and Welsh languages must be a loss to us all. In Welsh there are at least 40 words for rain.”

(Clifford & King, 1993)

The residents of each town are the keepers of its distinctiveness. They are the ones most familiar with the history of the place and most interested in its future. They are also the carriers of the distinctive cultural traditions be it language, dialect, colloquialism, names, skills, recipes, musical traditions, arts and crafts, local products or myths and stories.

People who live and work in a place, and others who care about its future, are also most likely to be motivated to find enterprising solutions to contemporary problems, to implement them and reap the rewards. They are often motivated by considerations of the benefits to the community and of quality of life.

It is the openness of the local community that governs their ability to adapt to new circumstances. In addition, their entrepreneurial skills determine whether advantage is likely to be taken of new opportunities. It is the civic pride of local people in their distinctive identity that provides the ultimate security against homogenisation.

The establishment of events in distinctive towns such as festivals, community activities, exhibitions or even local association meetings, provides an opportunity for stakeholders to ‘perform’ their sense of belonging. In turn this helps to foster and strengthen the social and entrepreneurial capital, while reinforcing a sense of identity.

Human Enterprise “While homogenising forces have been at work so have enriching ones. Our cultures have hardly ever been static. In our context, a dynamic culture has been a permeable culture, an open work. The many peoples who have settled in Britain over the ages, and in the last few decades, have brought ideas, foods, music, festivals, languages, cultural differentiation which far from diluting the already rich mix has added new dynamism, and new layers of particularity to different places.”

(Clifford & King, 1993)

All of the activities undertaken in a place contribute to the uniqueness of experience but some of those activities have an overriding impact and become the vital ingredient of distinctiveness. These enterprising activities can be industrial, retail, or cultural. All have the power to contribute to local distinctiveness and all are vulnerable to changes in the wider society. In our study, successful examples of ‘themed distinctiveness’ have been drawn from each of these areas: Trading activity was one of the fundamental reasons for the existence of most rural capitals. The great majority of rural capitals were market places designed for exchange of goods between the people of the hinterland and of the town. Although towns may hold other employment opportunities, the relationship between the town and the countryside was very intimate: “No matter what a man’s trade or profession’ wrote George Sturt of mid-nineteenth century Farnham, ‘linen-draper, or saddler, or baker, or laywer,or banker, he found it worthwhile to watch the harvest, and to know a great deal about cattle and sheep, and more than a great deal about hops”.

(Brown, 1986)

The identification with agriculture was more than nominal. Labourers from towns 17

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 1. What is Distinctiveness

would take work in the fields at peak times. This relationship has been retained until this day in European countries such as Italy, France and Spain, and in many other countries in the world.

In England the connection has been largely lost (although recent emergence of farmers’ markets and increased interest in local customs may be early signs of the connection being recovered) and with it an important relationship between rural towns and their hinterland.

Industry and production. Traditional trades, agriculture and specialist services for the local population have been key sources of employment in rural capitals.

The towns created by the industrial revolution, created ready markets for country produce. In return, industry could offer an improved standard of living to the people of market towns through the supply of cheap mass produced domestic goods, though in so doing it undermined the traditional economies. Old crafts, trades and industries went into decline and in many instances only traces of these remain.

Nevertheless new industries can also be the source of new distinctiveness in old market towns. The second hand book industry put Hay-on-Wye on an international map; the Centre for Alternative Technologies has done the same for Machynlleth. The economies of market towns continue to be dynamic and to reflect developments in the wider economy. Each new industry brings with it new identity but the historic traces remain visible. In some instances, the old skills are becoming the source of new distinctiveness, such as the new school of lace making in Sansepolcro, Italy, where their value is being rediscovered.

Retailing has always been an essential activity and is as prone to historic trends as is the nature of employment. It is the considerable independent retail sector that is one of the most distinguishing factors separating rural capitals from cities and yet this is the sector which public policy manages least well to protect. (The displacement of local retail by supermarkets and chains is well documented, as is the lack of suitable 18 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

premises for new forms of retail.) All approaches to themed distinctiveness that we have studied include elements of local food, local produce and local businesses but these are the elements rather than the main focus of distinctiveness.

It is important to note that currently local food is an increasing focus of many tourism initiatives due to the new health awareness and concerns regarding food miles. Local food is likely to hold less tourism and economic value in terms of a distinctive offer as all regions start laying claim to such uniqueness. The local food offer can only have lasting value when it is totally integrated with the culture of the place over centuries, as it is in many European countries: Tuscan dishes can be found on every menu in Tuscany and Venetian recipes dominate menus in Venice. In England the regional food traditions are not as strong as in some other European countries. Although undoubtedly food does form part of the regional distinctiveness, as for example in Yorkshire rhubarb, parkin, cheeses and Yorkshire Pudding, these traditions may not be sufficiently strong for a themed distinctiveness initiative. Food related distinctiveness is further undermined by multinational companies such as Heineken who acquired Newcastle Brown and now brew it away from the place of its origin.

Cultural activities undertaken in the rural capitals are one of the greatest source of distinctiveness and the most common subject of themed and induced distinctiveness.

The town crier in Chester, the race course in Uttoxeter, the Moonraker Festival in Slaithwaite, the literature festivals in Ilkley, Durham, Buxton, Chester (and many others), the modern art gallery in St. Ives, the oyster festival in Whitstable, the festival of light in Northumberland, the festival of Rivers in York, the Romantic Road of Cheltenham, the duck races in Helmsley, the scarecrow festival in Kettlewell, and numerous other music, art, folk, food and dance festivals are almost always locally conceived and sustained.

Most of the time these cultural activities

are relatively small scale enriching the quality of life of a town’s residents and of the hinterland, representing just a small element of the uniqueness of place. More specialised events, such as Rothbury Traditional Music Festival, can attract visitors from the region and further afield, in some cases the success and uniqueness of the event is so great that they attract national or even international visitors.

Over time the town’s identity may become synonymous with that activity. Such is the case with Hay-on-Wye Book Town and Hay Literature Festival.

Transition Town movement is supported

by Transition Network, which was set up in 2007. It aims to support community-led responses to peak oil and climate change.

Fairtrade Town Fairtrade status is open to any town, city, zone, village, borough or island that has made a commitment to supporting Fairtrade and using products with the Fairtrade mark. It supports Fairtrade in demanding a trade system that puts people, not profit, at the heart of the transaction.

Book Towns

Designated distinctiveness In most instances the ‘themed distinctiveness’ has grown organically over time. However, in recent years, a number of international movements have emerged that network like-minded towns; they offer rural towns a ‘readymade’ brand of distinctiveness. These ‘designated’ distinctiveness themes are driven by local people largely motivated by the changing nature of society and a desire to create models of more sustainable neighbourhoods and happier communities. Our study has examined a number of them including:

Book Towns are small rural towns or villages in which second-hand and antiquarian bookshops are concentrated.

They offer an exemplar model of sustainable rural development and tourism. (See Appendix 2 for further details.)

Cittaslow Cittaslow is defined as a ‘network of towns where quality of life is important’.

Cittaslow is Italian for ‘slow city’ or ‘slow town’. A Cittaslow town signs up to working towards a set of goals that aim to improve quality of life. There are national Cittaslow networks in Italy, England, Wales, Germany, Norway, Poland and Portugal.

Slow Food Movement Slow Food UK is a catalyst for a positive and lasting change for people who seek food that is good, clean and fair. It is a national association which represents the UK in the worldwide food movement. Slow Food is not a geographical designation but open and accessible to all local groups (‘convivia’).

Transition Towns ‘Tackling Peak Oil Together’ – the 19

20 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Chapter 2

Methodology

Second hand books for sale at Hay-on-Wye Hay-on-Wye, Powys

21

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 2. Methodology

Scope of the research The starting point for the research was an initial scoping exercise which identified a long-list of ‘distinctive towns’ in the UK, along with a small number of international examples. The choice of towns was informed by the need to: • Establish a broad understanding of distinctiveness in its many forms; • Consider how far the concept of themed distinctiveness may be consistently or usefully applied; • Develop an initial ‘taxonomy’ of distinctiveness; • Understand how distinctiveness has developed over time, identifying the main or common ‘drivers’; • Determine how far a themed distinctiveness approach might be fostered or enhanced through external intervention.

Not all of the selected study towns would be described as ‘rural capitals’, nevertheless they were all considered to have significant relevance to the study and potential synergy with rural capitals in the Yorkshire and Humber region.

Desktop research was conducted into twenty-three towns, to varying degrees of depth. Figure 1 illustrates the geographic spread. Figure 2 highlights aspects of distinctiveness examined in each town and specifies the different levels of research accorded in each case.

22 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Figure 1 - Case Studies

Key Priority Study Full Study Mini Study 23

Figure 2 - Case Study Taxonomy

Key

04

No of stakeholders interviewed

Town

Lead characteristics

Key

Alnwick

Heritage, garden, food festival.

(Made in Northumberland branding)

Full + site visit + stakeholders

10

Bakewell

Transformational town, agricultural market

Mini + site visit

0

Blackdown Hills

Creative industries cluster

Full + site visit + stakeholders

7

Bolnore Village

New commuter village (developer led)

Mini

0

Bournville

Heritage village, commuter town, local management trust.

Full + site visit + stakeholders

5

Campillo de Ranas (Spain)

Gay weddings

Initial scoping only

0

Castle Douglas

Food town, retail distinctiveness, part of FAB cluster

Full

0

Emscher Park (Germany)

Outdoor/sports, clustering

Initial scoping only

0

Fowey

Sailing, author, literary festival

Full

2

Gretna Green

Weddings

Mini

0

New Earswick

Hartriggoaks retirement community, local management trust

Mini + site visit

0

Hayle

Innovation and engineering, nature (the Towans)

Full

0

Hay-on-Wye

Book Town, literary festival

Full + site visit + stakeholders

7

Kirkudbright

Artists, harbour, fishing, part of FAB cluster

Mini

0

Ludlow

Cittaslow, Food Town

Full

0

Machynlleth

Heritage, arts, alternative technology

Full + site visit + stakeholders

0

Melton Mowbray

Pork pies, stilton, agricultural market

Mini + site visit

1

Rutland Water (Oakham, Uppingham, Stamford)

Outdoor leisure, watersports, bird reserve, fishing, clustering with 3 historic market towns

Full + site visit + stakeholders

9

Sansepolcro (Italy)

Art, nature, retail distinctiveness, crafts

Mini + site visit

0

St Ives

Iconic cultural venue, artists, harbour, weddings

Initial scoping only

0

Totnes, Devon

Transition Town

Full

0

Whitstable

Art Biennale & Oysters

Mini

0

Wigtown

Book Town, part of FAB cluster

Mini

0

Town

Priority Study

Town

Full Study

Town

Mini Study

24 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Data collection

and Melton Mowbray.

A template was devised to enable the researchers to capture key information for each town. The template was based on the key questions raised in the initial brief for the project, namely:

The value of such site visits was the gathering of information that cannot be ascertained remotely. A flexible brief was developed to underpin each site visit the emphasis being to:

• How the themed distinctive town idea was conceived and developed;

• Observe the manifestations of ‘themed distinctiveness’ in each town;

• The original aims and objectives of the approach, whether they were achieved and how have they been modified;

• Identify any gaps between the themed distinctiveness and what is on the ground;

• The structures/organisations/ individuals that led, developed, managed and implemented this approach;

• Note any characteristics which are equally or more evident than the supposed distinctiveness theme.

• The extent to which the community was engaged in the approach (private, public, voluntary sector and residents); • Whether any dedicated structures were adopted to deliver the approach; • What research was undertaken in developing the approach; • How the implementation of this approach works - who does what, how it is resourced, how wider community buy in is achieved, how it is promoted; • The financial resources needed and where these came from; • How the success of the approach is measured; whether the approach has been evaluated – if so the lessons learned; • Whether the approach has been replicated elsewhere; • Whether any official designation been given to the town.

Additional documentation was gathered during the site visits including tourism brochures and maps, and photographs of key sites and signage.

Stakeholder interviews Wherever possible arrangements were made in advance to meet with local stakeholders. Efforts were also made to engage with local people during the visits with a view to testing informally how far they were aware of and engaged with the distinctiveness themes. A total of forty-three informal interviews were conducted; interviewees ranged from local shopkeepers, elected members, and bed and breakfast hosts to tourism officers, market stallholders, social entrepreneurs, festival volunteers and arts administrators.

The interviews were not tightly scripted but focused on the same key questions raised in the initial brief (set out above).

Think Tank Priority towns At an early stage Alnwick, Hay-on-Wye, Machynlleth and a cluster of market towns around Rutland Water were identified as priorities for a formal site visit.

Taking advantage of the planned study visits or other personal travel plans, members of the study team also made four informal (added-value) visits to Sansepolcro (Italy), Bournville, Bakewell,

During the course of the initial scoping of the study towns, a half-day ‘Think Tank’ was held which brought together 16 participants. These included all members of the project team together with academic and cross-departmental expertise from Leeds Metropolitan University and Yorkshire Forward.

The Think Tank was particularly useful in the identification of key strengths

25

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 2. Methodology

and weaknesses associated with distinctiveness and offering a critique of possible delivery mechanisms. From the key points made by the Think Tank a number of themes emerged which were carefully considered in order to develop a resilient distinctive towns approach.

Delivery mechanisms One of the key issues that the scoping study was intended to unpick was that of delivery, to determine whether a ‘distinctive towns approach’ might be adopted in Yorkshire and Humber. In each case study, efforts were made to: • Clarify the different roles played by individuals, community, business, and the public sector; • Identify how and when distinctiveness was financed (from private, charitable, Lottery, government, European or other funding sources).

To assist this, three distinctiveness projects were selected for more detailed treatment to clarify the history or ‘story’ of distinctiveness and to consider some of the drivers or delivery mechanisms underlying its development. They were: • Machynlleth’s Centre of Alternative Technology; • Hay-on-Wye’s Book Town and literary festival; • Alnwick and Northumberland Tourism’s sub-regional ‘Made in Northumberland’ initiative.

During the course of the research Rutland Water was also included as a case study.

(See Appendix 1.)

External initiatives A survey of existing distinctive towns ‘designations’ (Cittaslow, Slow Food, Book Towns, Transition Towns, Fair Trade Town, etc.) was undertaken alongside the case studies to learn from their approaches to evaluation, development and branding. (See Appendix 2) Alternative approaches to successful ‘place making’, were also examined.

26 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

These included: the Countryside Agency’s Market Towns Healthcheck, One North East’s Market Towns Welcome initiative, CABE’s Spaceshaper programme, Common Grounds’ ABC Learning to Read Your Locality, Partners for England’s Place Making Charter, the LODIS approach to distinctiveness strategies, and Urbed’s New Life for Smaller Towns - a Handbook for Action. (See Appendix 3 and bibliography.)

27

28 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Chapter 3

Key Issues

Signage at Machynlleth for Dyfi Eco Park Machynlleth, Powys

29

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

Key Issues “It should be perfectly possible to reinforce the medievalness of York, the Thomas Hardy connections in Dorset, but often you are left with a stage set, a marketing idea of a ‘tourist destination’, a kind of deadness, one dimensional and unsatisfying. If we leave no room for peeling paint, time before and since, access to the life of the place now, we present a picture which is dishonest and unreal. Local distinctiveness is not necessarily about beauty, but it must be about truth”.

(Clifford & King, 1993) Key issues have emerged from our research that are fundamental to the understanding of the nature of ‘themed distinctiveness’. They are described in some detail in this chapter because distinctiveness is complex and is best understood through detailed analysis of 3 exemplars: • Alnwick; • Hay-on-Wye; • Machynlleth.

Exemplar 1: Alnwick, we found a beautiful historic town referred to as ‘the most picturesque market town of Northumberland and the best place to live in Britain’ (Country Life, October 2002). It is located on the river Aln and is close to the east coast and a gateway to Northumberland.

In the heart of the town is the medieval fortress, one of the largest inhabited castles in England, which hosts many activities and was a key location for filming of Harry Potter, an event that significantly increased the number of visitors.

The Duchess of Northumberland, still living in the castle, imagined, ten years ago, a garden for families to enjoy and so began the restoration of a forgotten garden into the now world famous Alnwick Garden. Situated in the heart of the town, it already attracts up to 500,000 visitors a year even though, at the time of writing, it was still under development.

30 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

The town has one of the largest secondhand bookshops in England based on the swap system and referred to by the New Statesman as, ‘The British Library of second hand bookshops’. Mary Manley established Barter Books in 1991 in the Alnwick railway station after it closed. On the wall in the bookshop, artist Peter Dodd painted over 40 life size figures of famous writers. In the old ‘waiting room’ the coal fire is lit and visitors can read books and papers whilst eating bacon sandwiches made in the ‘railway café’.

For the last 30 years the town has hosted a festival of international folk music attended by some 40,000 visitors and, over the last four years, a week-long food festival has sprung up attended by an estimated 25,000 visitors. Both events have been organised and run by local Lions Club members, who are the driving force behind both events.

In 2006 Northumberland Tourism, in response to visitor surveys which showed that they were disappointed with the lack of good quality, local produced food and drink and the poor quality gift offering, launched a three year initiative, Made in Northumberland, with the specific aim of promoting the use of local produce in tourism business and trade.

Exemplar 2: In a similar vein, in Hayon-Wye, we found a place that also can claim many elements of distinctiveness.

Known locally as ‘The Hay’, or Y Gellie, a name derived from Norman origin meaning fenced enclosure, this unique town with its maze of narrow ancient streets borders the spectacular landscape of Brecon Beacons National Park and the Black Mountains. In Norman times it was divided into English Hay and Welsh Hay and this divide has left an imprint on other aspects of town life including its bilingual tradition.

Lying in the fertile Wye Valley, the major occupations in Hay have always been connected with farming, mainly of sheep, because of the hilly terrain. But alongside farming has been working in the wealthier houses, which have often been owned by English families. Many people locally, even

today, have more than one job, in spite of the prosperity brought in by tourism, wages are low.

The town has always held an important place in the region, being on the road to Brecon. It has a history of coaching inns and pubs, and the tradition of offering food and lodging to travellers continues with accommodation and cuisine being among the best on offer in Britain.

The surrounding countryside lends itself to walkers; local activity centres have facilities for abseiling, canoeing, cycling, pony trekking and rope climbing for the more energetic.

In 1961, Richard Booth, an Oxford Graduate, whose family had lived near Hay-on-Wye since 1903, started trade in the town. Richard considered the location ideal for international trade since the town is half way between Bristol and Birmingham, on the way to Ireland and sufficiently isolated to protect from domination of London. He was passionate about making a competitive countryside business. And so started the story of Hayon-Wye ‘Town of Books’ which 40 years on now has almost 40 bookshops employing around 100 staff.

The growth of the Book Town and the festival has attracted artists and crafts people to the town. A small artists’ cooperative, The Haymakers, has been flourishing since the 1980’s.

In 1988, spearheaded by another entrepreneur, Norman Florence, the first Hay Literary Festival took place, attended mainly by family and friends. Now in its 21st year, the Festival is branded ‘The Hay Festival of Wales’, it is sponsored by The Guardian newspaper, attracts major literary names and is attended by 80,000 visitors over ten days. It now operates a number of international ‘franchises’ including festivals in Alhambra and Segovia.

Exemplar 3: Machynlleth is a small market town, located on the transition point between the steep-sided Dyfi valley and the open countryside, which is now recognised as the unofficial UK ‘capital’

of sustainable development. Just as for Alnwick and Hay-on-Wye, the themed distinctiveness in Machynlleth has its roots in a passionate man with a vision.

A charismatic, entrepreneurial aristocrat, Gerald Morgan Grenville, founded the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) in 1973 on a disused Llwyngwern slate quarry, three miles out of Machynlleth.

Assisted by a handful of like-minded volunteers, the centre was initially an experiment in creating a self-sufficient community but as green politics took hold the centre was modified and popularised. Thirty years on CAT is one of central Wales’ leading visitor attractions.

It now has the status of a European demonstration ‘Ecosite’ and receives approximately 65,000 visitors per year.

During the last forty years Machynlleth and its hinterland established a ‘green’ image and development due to its reputation as a repository of knowledge and experience in the field of sustainable lifestyles and technologies. CAT led to the direct creation of a number of successful spin-off technology companies and the establishment of the award-winning Dyfi Eco Park at edge of the town; it offers a mix of office and industrial units constructed to high environmental standards and is host to a number of progressive green and innovative companies.

The Dyfi Valley Eco Partnership Regeneration Company was established in 1998 with an aim to promote CAT’s green philosophy to a wider area, something CAT had not consciously attempted previously. The partnership adds further to the ‘themed distinctiveness’ through promotion of concepts of ‘re-localisation’ including support for local food and sustainable tourism.

Themed distinctiveness is multilayered Our investigations revealed that successful distinctiveness is always multilayered. Many places have local distinctiveness but not all places have a characteristic that stands above all other distinctive features to become the central

31

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

identity of the place. When such overriding ‘theme of distinctiveness’ does emerge, it is most likely to be a result of a powerful combination of core distinctiveness, already embedded in the place, with an incoming catalyst, most often a charismatic, visionary entrepreneur.

The multiplicity of distinctive features does not guarantee that the new distinctiveness brand succeeds, but it does provide a possibility for new and related initiatives to follow and a more fertile ground for future catalysts.

Success of themed distinctiveness, by this we mean a lasting initiative that embeds itself in the identity of its population, builds heavily on all other aspects of local distinctiveness.

All three exemplar towns share common traits of core and dynamic types of distinctiveness: strong relationships to the hinterland, rich history, high quality of historic built fabric, distinct dialects, market squares, traditional local festivals, cultural festivals and increasingly a local food offer. We found repetition of these traits in other rural capitals we studied: Bakewell in Derbyshire is named after a cluster of thermal springs and wells that since the Saxon times gave the place its name. It services the hinterland of the beautiful Peak District National Park and has traditionally held the livestock market. It claims to be the oldest market town in the area and now hosts the Peak Literary Festival and Bakewell Arts Festival. It has, in recent years, reinforced its distinctive identity by reinterpreting traditional provision for the livestock market by integrating them into other town centre amenities, thus both preserving and updating its core identity.

Fowey in Cornwall, is a historic town stretching for a mile on a west bank at the mouth of river Fowley in a landscape designated as ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’. It is a natural harbour offering a range of visitor experiences from esplanade with views over a busy harbour to cliffs walks and has been distinctive in the past for its port location, china clay and farming. It is the second deepest and second busiest port in the region. Now

32 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

the town is most distinctive for sailing and its connection to literary figures such as Daphne Du Maurier, and Kenneth Graham (Wind in the Willows). The first association led to the formation of Fowey’s annual sailing regatta and the latter to the Daphne Du Maurier Festival of Arts and Literature, first run in 1997.

The Festival is seen as beneficial in attracting visitors to the area in May, a time when there are not many other visitors. The benefits of the Festival have been evaluated by various agencies at different times and, although the information is not consistent, it is generally accepted that the Festival has a positive effect on the town. The South West Tourism Daphne du Maurier Festival Evaluation Survey, carried out in 2004, indicated a combined total income from festival visitors, day visitors, residents and ticket sales at just under £1,000,000 - set against the Festival direct cost of £90,000. In 2004 payments to Cornishbased contractors and service providers to deliver the festival were recorded at £100,000.

Kirkcudbright, on the south west coast of Scotland, located on the Dee estuary where it meets Kirkcudbright Bay in Dumfries and Galloway region, is a working harbour town with a fishing fleet.

Attractions include its medieval street layout, ancient monuments such as the castle, museums, brightly coloured properties on the high street, a wildlife park, yacht club, marina and golf course.

Kirkcudbright has built on the distinct opportunity offered by a cluster of artists who chose to open studios in the 18th century properties on the high street, and especially on the connection with the Glasgow Boys, a group of Scottish landscape painters working at the turn of the 19th century.

The concept of ‘Artist Town’ has been promoted and the town now hosts major exhibitions, has many commercial art galleries and shops selling art related products. The distinctive offer is further enhanced with many events and festivals throughout the years, not all of which are related to the visual arts: the jazz and ‘wicker man’ festival are held just outside

of the town.

In each of these examples, the new elements of distinctiveness, or those that are so prominent as to brand the whole town, are inextricably connected and build on the foundations provided by the cluster of complex elements of distinctiveness.

One could argue that Richard Booth could have located his bookshop in any small town but it was his local roots in Hay-on-Wye and the isolation of the town that attracted and challenged him, thus linking and integrating his enterprise inextricably into the local distinctiveness.

The Hay Festival that followed added a further layer of distinct activity, building on the advantage offered by the Book Town themed status.

In Machynlleth, a disused site of a past industry, in itself part of the distinct history of the town, offered an opportunity for new experimental activity to grow new industry and new distinctiveness, reintegrating the town with its hinterland in a new way and building yet another layer of history and of uniqueness.

Although it is possible to identify time lines of events and, in many cases, the people who created those events, it is not possible to separate the success of the themed distinctiveness from the core qualities of the towns. The qualities that attracted the entrepreneurs to invest their ideas and efforts subsequently attracted newcomers to come and live and tourists to visit the town. Gerald Morgan Grenville could not have contributed to the creation of new economy in his valley if the local community was less open-minded to the possibility of change and welcomed his experimental activity.

Themed distinctiveness is a by-product of other drivers The overwhelming evidence from the research undertaken is that creating ‘themed distinctiveness’ is not the prime consideration of those who initiate the activities that retrospectively can be recognised as the seed of distinctiveness.

The distinctiveness of Gretna Green, the village in the south of Scotland now

famous as a wedding venue, is reputed to host one in six Scottish weddings each year. It has its roots in 1753 when Lord Hardwicke’s Marriage Act was passed in England, which stated that if both parties to a marriage were not at least 21 years old, then consent to the marriage had to be given by the parents. This act did not apply in Scotland where it was possible for boys to get married at 14 and girls at 12 years old with or without parental consent.

The English act has since been modified but, before the changes occurred, many elopers fled England and the first Scottish village they encountered was Gretna Green. The Old Blacksmith’s shop became, in popular folklore at least, the focal point of the marriage trade, a trade that survived and now brings in 5000 weddings to the village each year. It supports thirty hotels, five car companies and a host of restaurants and function rooms giving Gretna Green a completely unique identity.

Alnwick Music Festival was initiated 30 years ago by the Lions Club to raise money for charities and to help ‘unfortunate people’. The food festival that followed six years ago had the same aims.

Establishment of the Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth was motivated by the desire of a group of volunteers to challenge the resource hungry age and to explore the possibility of a self-sufficient community. The initial motivation was social but led to technological innovation that, in turn, led to the set up of commercial companies such as Dulas Ltd, specialising in renewable energy. Other companies such as ‘The Very Efficient Heating Company’ emerged contributing to the cluster effect, reinforced by the establishment of Dyfi Eco-Park, a small retail and business park built on reclaimed land developed by the Welsh Development Agency.

The area’s ‘themed distinctiveness’ was fully established with the arrival in 1997 of Ecodyfi, a local regeneration company whose expressed mission was ‘to foster sustainable community regeneration in the Dyfi valley’ through development of the green economy including sustainable 33

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

tourism, thus capitalising on the developments motivated by different, although related aims’.

Bournville located on the south side of Birmingham is described as a model village. Its creation was underpinned by the Quaker faith aiming to improve the lot of the poor, yet respectable working classes. In the process of redefining the balance of land ownership, experimenting with social engineering such as a ban on alcohol sales within the village and the application of arts and crafts architectural principles to the design of the village, great distinctiveness was achieved, as is the case with all other philanthropic settlements such as Saltaire in Yorkshire and Port Sunlight in Merseyside.

Research undertaken for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that 94% of Bournville residents were happy living there (Groves, 2003). Bournville is frequently cited as a model of best practice and acts as a consultant to other new developments.

The themed distinctiveness was initially generated by a new village clustered around a major employment centre (the Cadbury Factory), with strong architectural principles and an underlining social idealism. Whilst the factory is no longer a central source of employment, much of the ethos has been retained; Bournville is not promoted as a tourism destination by the Board of Trust which now acts as management agent for much of Bournville. Whilst many aspects of the Trust are managed on highly commercial lines, the whole is managed on a not-for-profit basis for the benefit of the community.

Ludlow in south Shropshire, the ‘perfect market town’, was in a state of a crisis and near bankruptcy in 2001 when the Town Council agreed to support an application to join the Cittaslow movement. Living in and managing a Cittaslow, or Slow City, requires an attitude of mind that is open to opportunities presented by modern approaches to communication, transportation, production and selling.

The aim of a Cittaslow is to encourage people to live and enjoy life at a human pace, and to provide an infrastructure that 34 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

helps people savour and enjoy life and what it has to offer.

There have already been some ‘wins’.

For instance, discussions with the Teme Leisure Trust and the District Council, and the involvement of the Food Festival and members of Slow Food Ludlow have led to the establishment of a Healthy Café at Ludlow’s Leisure Centre, which is stocking local produce and has removed the high salt, high sugar, and high fat snack foods that used to be on sale to people using the sport and fitness facilities. As a result of Cittaslow, the Town Council has a policy to replace light units that need renewing with equipment that reduces light pollution, and has changed over to a ‘green’ supplier of electricity. It is working with the County Council’s consultants on a lighting design for the town.

As the world becomes more globally connected, with international brands and values being marketed, the Cittaslow approach to life aims to respect the small realities of daily life and encourages people along a less frantic path. The Cittaslow approach involves living life at a human scale, respecting and supporting the environment and local traditions and preserving them for current and future generations to enjoy. Collective well being, not themed distinctiveness, is at the heart of the Cittaslow philosophy.

Themed distinctiveness can also be a by-product of necessary infrastructure interventions. Rutland Water, one of the largest water reservoirs in Europe, covering 1225 hectares was completed in 1977. A dramatic transformation of landscape to supply water to the East Midlands. Developed over many years the reservoir now has a 25-mile circular track for walking and cycling, and a natural reserve with bird’s hides. The reservoir is regarded as one of the finest fisheries in Europe. Water sports include sailing, water surfing and canoeing. Although the adjoining historic market towns of Oakham, Uppingham and Stamford, are successful in their own right, the reservoir has created a benefit of clustered identity to all three.

Further evidence of ‘by-product’

distinctiveness are demonstrated by the Emscher Park, a brownfield redevelopment on a massive scale in the Ruhr valley of north western Germany, which was once the heartland of Europe’s steel and coal industries. With the restructuring of these heavy industries over the past 30 years, derelict steel works and abandoned coal-mining operations spread throughout the northern Ruhr region, leaving a legacy of high unemployment, the scars of environmental contamination, and the haunting shadows of gigantic steel plants.

Faced with such widespread economic and environmental impacts, the State Government of North-Rhine Westphalia created a regional redevelopment approach (IBA-International Building Exhibition) at Emscher Park where mammoth steel plants, smoke stacks, and gas storage tanks littered the landscape.

IBA decided that to dismantle these immense iron and steel frameworks would incur immense costs.

IBA devised an ingenious re-use strategy that preserves these enormous relics as museum pieces of its industrial past and promotes them as centres of cultural activities, thus creating themed distinctiveness for the entire sub-region.

The term “industrial monument” captures the essence of the Emscher Landscape Park where concerts are staged against the backdrop of a former steel plant’s framework and people hike among the hills of reclaimed coal pilings. The twelve storey gasometer in Oberhausen no longer houses natural gas, but is the home for many unique cultural events: concerts, parties, plays, conventions, and meetings.

Themed distinctiveness has benefits and drawbacks Core distinctiveness can place constraints on growth and on change, and limit opportunities for the young.

Local distinctiveness can give rise to disagreements within the community that stifle progress. By contrast, themed distinctiveness offers opportunities to overcome some of the drawbacks of being distinct.

Themed initiatives can extend the appeal of the place beyond its own boundaries and beyond its own hinterland; it can attract interest on a regional, national and sometimes international scale. This can strengthen the local economy and create a joint vision that can unite the community. But to achieve such success requires a great deal of understanding from all stakeholders, commitment of many partners and a variety of support mechanisms. Most of all, new initiatives need time to develop. If any of these ingredients are cut short the initiative may fail.

Below we examine some of the key benefits and drawbacks of themed distinctiveness.

Benefits Economic benefits Themed distinctiveness, can, with time, bring economic benefits to the town and to the hinterland as a whole, but these are not easy to assess. Reliable quantitative data proved difficult to obtain for most of the towns or projects we have studied.

Nevertheless, we have found strong indications of multiple benefits from a themed distinctiveness approach, such as growth in jobs, significant income generation for the local economy, spinoffs in terms of growth of new business start-ups and increase in supporting amenities such as restaurants and visitor accommodation, as well as related benefits such as refurbishment and reuse of existing buildings and public spaces.

In Hay-on-Wye this was illustrated by the current estimates of up to 80,000 visitors to the festival, 500,000 visitors to the town annually, 40 bookshops opened in town over 40 year period, 100 retail jobs created and sustained by the Book Town initiative, a further 12 jobs for core festival staff and 120 employed during the festival – with an estimated £3million added to the local economy. There has been a significant growth of accommodation in the area.

Hay now has 17 restaurants and a range of arts and antiquarian businesses have opened.

In Machynlleth, CAT is the largest 35

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

enterprise in the region. A study of CAT in 2002 (Harper 2003) indicated that it brought in 5 million Euros per annum directly to the local economy through a combination of direct expenditure and visitor expenditure.

At the time it employed 120 (full-time equivalent) staff, all living locally and, using a conventional multiplier of 2.5 estimated that about 300 people were supported directly and indirectly, this in a total population of 12,000 people in the Dyfi Valley which is recognised as an area with high unemployment.

Employment numbers have continued to increase gradually since then. It is now staffed by approx. 150 permanent and seasonal staff and 12 volunteer internships all year round, and a further 60 temporary staff during the summer months.

Many other benefits to town and hinterland are perceived by local people followed from the developments of other parts of Macynlleth’s green business sector and from the promotion of the valley for sustainable tourism.

Social benefits Themed distinctiveness is not always economically driven. The international campaigns of Fairtrade Town, Cittaslow and Transition Towns are driven by the desire for a different economic model where quality of life and sustainable use of resources is one of the key indicators of social achievement and success.

The real benefits of these themes are the pioneering and testing of new forms of sustainable communities and rediscovery of some forgotten skills and values.

These initiatives also act as catalysts for development of new technologies and skills and are likely, in time, to develop a new green economy and a more just distribution of wealth.

On a direct level the social benefits are those that arise from all collective action and strong identity: civic engagement, strong social networks and civic pride. The openness of the community to explore new ideas is also a strong indicator community is ultimately sustainable and resilient.

36 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

This is evidenced in Ludlow where Cittaslow has not ‘delivered’ projects itself.

Instead, its function has so far been to encourage local people and organisations to work together to further projects in the town that help enhance the quality of life.

The organisational structure encourages resident participation, the successful model includes local people and local interest groups directly in the work of the Town Council, and taps into the expertise and opinions of a much wider range of local people than those prepared to stand for election. Participation in local democracy is increased, and the Cittaslow Goals provide a set of ambitions that local organisations find it easy to sign up to, and work towards.

In Dyfi people are attracted to the area by the recreational opportunities offered by the area and, from the CAT example, it appears some are prepared to offset lower earnings against quality of life factors.

In Alnwick, 40,000 people attend the music festival and most of the international musicians are hosted by the residents themselves creating a sense of collective hospitality and of international connections.

Potential drawbacks Monoculture Distinctiveness that relies on a single type of economic activity can lead to economic dependency as has happened, at different times in history, to the majority of traditional market towns, with the decline of their market function, and to the industrial rural capitals, with the decline of heavy industries.

For example in the eighteenth century, Harlow was a busy centre of the woollen trade. A hundred years later : “the factories are closed; the manufacture departed; the market decayed; the wool fair, which long survived, was at last discontinued; the rail came and robbed the town of its through traffic, and is now a clean little town...and little to distinguish it from an ordinary Essex Village, save that it is the capital of the Hundred, and has a neat little police station...”

(Brown, 1986)

Similarly, the decline of English seaside resorts, caused by changing social habits, is a powerful reminder of the importance of diversity. The danger is that adoption of themed strategies which lead to monoculture could undermine the true diversity of a town and render it vulnerable.

Dangers of inappropriate marketing and tourism strategies The current interest in themed distinctiveness reflects, in part, a welcome development of the destination management role from tourism marketing to ‘place making’. Culture, heritage and festivals are seen to be key markers of distinctiveness and an important means of developing the ‘visitor economy’.

The Yorkshire and Humber Visitor Economy Strategy 2008-2013 states : “Place is the way in which local authorities are engaged in the visitor economy through the emergence of their ‘place shaping’ agenda.

Local authorities’ investment in the visitor economy is primarily focused on their place shaping and public realm activities.”

Furthermore, the web page for Yorkshire Forward’s Major Event Strategy states: “Visitors and events have a positive impact on the economy, bringing in both major investments and individuals who spend here.

It showcases our cities and towns, can lead to new businesses (through enterprise and inward investment), improves business confidence, and contributes to a sense of shared community.”

(Source: www.yorkshire-forward.com/about/ our-policies/major-events. October 2009)

But distinctiveness destination tourism campaigns can be misleading. As Leeds Metropolitan University lecturer and Think Tank participant, Phil Long, observed: “Making claims that a ‘destination’ for visitors is distinctive or unique in some way has long been a feature of place marketing. However, there is recognition that such claims are at times tenuous and that many towns, cities and rural landscapes possess similar or comparable topographical and architectural features.”

(Source: unpublished Think Tank notes)

Commenting on regional advertising

campaigns, he adds; “[a] region’s attributes seem to be reduced to ‘fine dining’ (with an emphasis on local produce), high end shopping for the middle classes and countryside activities that without the strap lines could be mistaken for the Lake District, Scotland, Wales or Ireland, all of which also promote such features. Marketing agencies risk replacing what they may deem to be ‘negative’ perceptions with new simplifications and stereotypes of places centring on heritage, ‘excitement’, ‘dynamism’, shopping, and cultural experiences, thereby contributing to the erosion of the uniqueness of ‘their’ town, city or region.”

Those tourist strategies driven by largely economic outputs are, possibly mistakenly, aiming to win some share of national and international markets, ignoring in the process the possibility that local and regional markets may be worth more, especially in the context of reduced resources.

Marketing strategies need to be founded on a deep understanding of the place and of its sustainable future. This has been recognised as an issue: Partnership for England has recently established the concept of a ‘Place Making Charter’, a tool for the use of local authorities and their partners to help them to understand place making. Yorkshire Forward is now in the process of developing a regional Charter for Destination Management. If successful, such charters could assist in establishing greater understanding of local distinctiveness.

Incompatibility of timescales of distinctiveness and policy Policies and strategies at all levels, local, regional and national, tend to be no longer than five years. Most of them are conceived to achieve outputs in a shorter timescale; all of them are subject to political agendas and to changes in leadership brought about by the electoral cycle. The short-term investment goals of the public sector are at odds with the long timescales of developing true distinctiveness.

Economic development, for example, tends to be driven by high-level strategy. This often means a broad-brush intervention that tends to treat small towns, and 37

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

the small businesses upon which their tourism depends, as homogeneous.

Destination developers seek to influence small businesses by activities such as benchmarking, quality assurance programmes, training programmes for staff and managers and through ‘‘blanket’’ ICT initiatives leading to a lag effect during which perceptions of social benefits within the local community catch up with the economic benefits of being a tourist attraction.

Given their dependence upon political support and hence upon election timescales, as well as on the constant pressure to measure outputs, public authorities and public agencies are sometimes forced to resort to ‘quick fix’ solutions, where inadequate time is allowed for development.

Much effort is wasted in investing in unachievable goals and subsequent further waste is incurred in reinventing new initiatives.

The potential for unique delivery by tourism partnerships can be significantly limited by a single overarching goal.

Conflict with the needs and priorities of residents Our investigations have indicated that it is dangerous to adopt a distinctiveness strategy that is too focused on tourism and consumption. This can create conflicts with local residents who may feel that their daily lives have become dominated by negative side effects arising from the distinctiveness.

In Hay-on-Wye the success of Book Town designation and the international profile of the Festival attracted an influx of retirees into the town and pushed house prices up. It is therefore more difficult for young people to purchase housing in the area as there is no affordable housing being built. Furthermore, though employment opportunities have been created in Hay, they remain scarce and are mainly unskilled, seasonal, low paid and without career progression prospects.

Local services and the retail offer can also be affected. In Ludlow a general ‘gentrification effect’ means that some 38 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

people can no longer afford to shop locally.

An increase of incomers to the market towns of Rutland has been putting pressure on local services and changed local shopping habits; it has attracted the arrival of a national brand supermarket raising concerns that it will pose challenges to local independent shops.

More generally, the growth of second homes and holiday properties can change local demographics and, in doing so, dilutes or endangers local distinctiveness.

Risk of divided communities Not everybody within the community gets on board. For example, in Hay-on-Wye, Mark Westwood, Chair of the re-born Chamber of Commerce noted: ‘‘People do not always work well together. For example, only half of the booksellers belonged to their own association. They seem to be very individual people. This is true of other businesses as well.” ( Johns, 2002)

This may be attributed to the fact that economic effects of distinctiveness are either not recognised or, worse still, are perceived as damaging to the local economy. In a vitriolic media battle, in January 2009, shopkeepers in Hay reported falling sales, which they attributed to the dominance of the Festival, its out of town location and the rise of Internet book sales.

Resentment can also build up towards the authorities if they are seen as working ‘top down’ and not offering sufficient support.

During our visit to Alnwick, many of those interviewed felt they were not made aware of the ‘Made in Northumberland’ initiative and those who were felt that there was little substance to the campaign. Criticism was levelled at the authorities for taking credit for the efforts of the volunteers who run the food and the music festivals.

Sustainability Dynamic local distinctiveness, and especially themed distinctiveness which has developed as a tool for reviving the economy, is vulnerable to many threats.

The challenge is to ensure that it is sustainable. Distinctiveness ideas come and go for many reasons:

• Local opposition: During our study, the Daphne Du Maurier Festival in Fowey was criticised for its tenuous connections with the writer; the family was reported to be unhappy about the use of her name for promotion purposes.

• Change of policy: The Made in Northumberland initiative was discontinued after 3 years having failed to establish its brand. Funders withdrew support due to external changes to policy and the creation of a new regional food body.

• Change in technology: When too much dependence has been created in a rural capital on the source of themed distinctiveness, the town could also experience a setback when change occurs. When the Hay Festival was located outside of the town trade was reported to have fallen in the town itself as a result. Changes in technology have increased the popularity of Internet shopping and this is directly affecting the bookshops.

• Reliance on grants: Some of the most successful themed initiatives, such as CAT, rely heavily on volunteer support, pay low wages, and aspects of their business model, such as the education / visitor centre, rely heavily on public subsidy that may run out with changes of government, recession or other yet unforeseen events.

• Structural change and support: As projects grow, they need to be reinforced and supported by more formal legal structures, permanent staffing, and rigorous business planning to be sustained. Without this, the momentum, energy and drive to maintain a particular strand of distinctiveness can fade. A number of our case studies illustrated the dangers that volunteers grow weary, early pioneers sell up, key advocates get ill or retire, or that damaging petty politics, rivalries and jealousies cause community divisions.

• Problems arising from success of the theme: Finally there are sustainability issues arising, ironically, from over-

successful initiatives that can lead to gentrification, price increases, lack of capacity, seasonal variations, damage to the hinterland and alienation of those sectors of the community who are not directly involved with the themed distinctiveness project or activities.

Role of the entrepreneur “The majority of stories of themed distinctiveness start with an individual or small group of likeminded individuals. They are likely to be intelligent and charismatic risk takers; effective leaders and networkers who possess a strong set of moral, social and business ethics, exhibit a basic trader’s instinct, and are always prepared to learn.” ( Johns, 2002)

Our case studies highlighted entrepreneurs who drive their idea forward, supporting it with all the resources available to them be it their creativity, energy, time, money or skills.

They gathered support around them, negotiated dissent, found solutions to many problems, secured loyalty and voluntary help, and sometimes used their own colourful personalities to market their ideas. Their charisma carried the project through difficult periods and sustained the energy of others.

Such an entrepreneur is an essential figure and a starting point of all successful distinctiveness. They can be from any sector: a driven resident such as Richard Booth, the father of Hay-on-Wye Book Town, or Rob Hopkins, the father of Totnes Transition Town; wealthy land owners such as Duchess of Northumberland, the champion of Alnwick Gardens; a political figure such as Francesco Maroto, Mayor of Campillo de Ranas, a small town near Madrid renowned for hosting gay weddings, a policy instigated by him in 1993. They can be shopkeepers, business executives, local authority officers or local politicians, but they all need to be committed for the long term.

The entrepreneur, no matter how charismatic and skilful, will not get far without convincing others to support him, or better still adopt his ideas with equal long term commitment. The strong

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Distinctive Futures-Chapter 3. Key Issues

personal and business networks that exist in rural towns are well suited to the nurturing of a distinctive idea.

Public organisations can also be entrepreneurial, especially when delivering transformational distinctiveness necessitated by economic decline or shortage of natural resources.

Although such organisations involve many individuals they tend to be driven, as private initiatives are, by exceptional dedication and belief in the initiative.

In Emscher Park, the core team has not changed and the director has been in post for the last 15 years driving the initiative through many difficult times and changes in political landscape.

The edge condition as a fertile ground for distinctiveness It is worth noting that there appears to be a correlation between places that are located physically or culturally on the edge between two different conditions and that, this positioning gives rise to a strong tradition of entrepreneurial initiatives and of capacity for step change.

Many of the exceptionally successful distinctive towns share these characteristics: Hay-on-Wye is a border town between Wales and England and is still bilingual. It was physically divided in half for many centuries. Machynlleth sits where the mountains turn to valley, Gretna Green is the first village in Scotland from the English border, and Fowey, Totnes and Kirkcudbright are all located on estuaries; St Ives sits on the sea front, on the edge between nature and the man made.

Furthermore, the remoteness of some areas sometimes increases the strength of networks between settlements. For example, the Blackdown Hills lie in an upland area, consisting of several small villages spread across 330 square kilometres. Their isolation has led to the development of a strong identity where non-mainstream cultural activities and economic initiatives have been nurtured to create distinctiveness. Its ‘in-between’ rural spaces provide the ground on which

40 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

these take place (e.g. artistic events, heritage trails, food networks). This clustering effect thereby gives impetus to individual settlements within an emergent ‘umbrella’ identity.

It may well be that such conditions create a sense of identity and independence that nurture resilience and encourage innovation and openness by the community, the two ingredients needed for a successful themed distinctiveness to develop. At the very least, such places benefit from a diversity of trades and economic activity, and offer a mix of attractions to incomers and visitors alike, contributing to their resilience.

This is an important observation that needs further exploration but is outside of the remit of this study.

41

42 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Chapter 4

Developing Themed Distinctiveness

Oakham Castle Oakham, Rutland

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Distinctive Futures-Chapter 4. Developing Themed Distinctiveness

Developing Themed Distinctiveness “… the meaning of ‘local’ is changing. The images conjured up in the minds of economists and planners by the local have for years been those of twitching net curtains, crummy corner shops, small mindedness and parochial obsessions.

But that is quietly, and radically, changing.

‘Local’ is becoming to economics what organic has become to the food industry. It is beginning to represent greater connectedness, authenticity and, in a phrase, the truly modern way to do business.”

(Simms, 2002)

The brief for our study included an initial appraisal of whether it would be possible to develop a distinctive towns approach in the region. On the basis of this scoping study or broad conclusion is that yes, a regional strategy to promote the growth of themed distinctiveness might be possible.

Some preliminary ideas are set out in this chapter intended to stimulate further thoughts and responses both from local communities and from the public agencies who might be involved.

Fundamental principles of distinctiveness The research we have undertaken revealed that there are four processes through which themed distinctiveness can emerge: • Enterprising individuals can drive forward a personal vision, as shown

by Richard Booth and Norman Florence in Hay-on-Wye, Richard Hill in Alnwick, Gerard Morgan-Grenville in Machynlleth, George Cadbury in Bournville, Rob Hoskins in Totnes and Francisco Maroto in Campillo de Ranas (Spain).

• A catalytic infrastructure can be delivered by the public sector in response to a need. A good exemplar of this is Rutland Water, created in response to water needs of the region but developed by Anglian Water as a leisure and resource for the area.

The Emscher Park in the Ruhr valley

44 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

of north-western Germany was redeveloped on a massive scale after the collapse of heavy industries into a 200km park providing a distinctive destination that created a new identity for seventeen adjacent local authorities.

• Towns can adopt an existing designated distinctiveness such as Transition Towns (created in Totnes but now adopted by many others), Cittaslow (created in Italy but now adopted by Ludlow and other European towns) and Book Town (created by Hay-on-Wye and taken up by others).

• Themed distinctiveness initiatives can be developed by regeneration companies, local authorities or tourism boards to create higher profiles and attract economic growth. The Daphne Du Maurier Festival in Fowey and the Made in Northumberland initiative are such examples.

Five stages of delivery for themed distinctiveness Our study of other towns indicates that there would be five stages to developing themed distinctiveness in Yorkshire and Humber. The distillation down to five stages is, inevitably, a gross simplification of a complex, iterative and organic process. Individual projects will vary; home-grown themed projects are likely to follow a different sequence than those which adopt an existing designation system such as Cittaslow. However, where the ownership of the themed distinctiveness rests with a public body from the outset, these stages are likely to be broadly applicable. Each case is likely to be unique so the proposed model is illustrative only. The stages are: • Stage 1: Identifying the pioneers and ideas; • Stage 2: Mapping local distinctiveness; • Stage 3: Developing local distinctiveness; • Stage 4: Adoption of the initiative; • Stage 5: Exiting the initiative.

Not only has our research highlighted that these stages are common to many existing themed distinctiveness initiatives, we have also identified that they could form the building blocks of a distinctiveness strategy. These ideas for a structured approach to developing themed distinctiveness are at a very early stage.

Nevertheless, we have begun to identify tools that may be used, who should be involved and what their roles may be.

Below, we explore in detail the activities in each stage.

match the expectations to the available resources for enabling the process.

Stage 1: Identifying the pioneers and evaluation of ideas

Another possible benefit arising from this stage is that many projects may flourish, even if not officially supported, encouraged by the validation of their significance provided by the process itself.

There is no reason why local people cannot forge ahead with their own distinctiveness projects and ideas. However, if the development of distinctiveness is to be assisted by public sector bodies then a formal process would be needed to evaluate the ideas put forward and ensure that the projects have real substance.

Is there a sufficiently distinctive theme which might be taken forward? Are there individuals or organisations within the local community who are willing to champion the cause? Is there likely to be wider support?

This stage would be applicable whether it applied to new or existing initiatives or whether the proposal was to join one of the existing designated networks such as Book Town or Slow Food.

We have considered a number of methods for implementing Stage 1. On balance we would favour a pilot scheme or a community challenge competition to encourage more ideas to come forward.

Entrepreneurs, businesses and community organisations would have the opportunity to pitch to a panel of decision makers made up of key stakeholders including members of the community.

Such methods would ensure equal opportunities for all, encourage an element of competition, which is often the catalyst for the best ideas, and help to avoid duplication of themed distinctiveness within the region, whilst also facilitating possible clustering.

It would also allow management of expectations within the community and

One of the key side-benefits of this proposed approach is that it would lead to the establishment of stakeholder partnerships that would support further stages of a themed distinctiveness initiative. In Yorkshire and Humber the Town Teams may form the natural project champions in some places. But it would be wrong to limit potential involvement to Town Teams or assume that they have to be involved at this stage.

Once the decision is made to support some of the ideas another assessment may be carried out to establish what kind of support is needed and from which stakeholder.

An ‘incubator package of support’ could then be jointly developed, if required, by all the stakeholders pulling together existing training, marketing and seed funding streams to nurture the ideas through the initial stages.

It is worth noting that, since most themed initiatives were originally driven by the shear energy and vision of one individual and their willing assistants, the support package maybe very light touch and consist of ‘opening doors’ rather than substantial involvement in the actual project. It is in fact advisable for the ownership of the project to stay with its authors and to grow organically as the project grows.

In almost all cases the initiative, if successfully incubated, may require the establishment of informal or semi-formal committees or community groups, possibly affiliated to local and regional governance structures. This structure may usefully evolve from the original stakeholder panel set up to evaluate proposals for projects.

However it is also at this stage that many initiatives may fizzle out. The exceptional individuals who drove their ideas through

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many difficulties are the visible role models but nobody has yet kept a record of how many exceptional ideas could have emerged from the community itself if given the right type of support at the right time.

Stage 2: Mapping distinctiveness Detailed understanding of a place should be the prerequisite of any proposed distinctiveness strategy. Mapping of all that is considered distinct should be undertaken by the community itself, enabled by either the regional development agency, the local authority or a local partnership.

Distinctive towns may benefit from external facilitation to identify ‘hidden’ or forgotten narratives and traditions.

As part of the facilitation towns may gain greater understanding of existing models such as Book Town, Cittaslow and Transition Towns and access to information already available from other reports. In the case of Yorkshire and Humber these would include the Market Towns of the Future, Low Carbon Rural Capitals and the emerging Great Destinations Charter, all of which would impact on the shaping of distinctiveness strategies.

Following the ‘self-mapping’ process, the local community may also carry out an audit of the strength of its distinctiveness offer and of the capacity of the hinterland, the town itself and its community to develop themed distinctiveness.

A possible structure for the mapping of distinctiveness is suggested in Figures 3 and 4 and is described later in this chapter. The mapping would have many side benefits: inclusion of all sectors of the community in the process; collective learning; increased knowledge of the town; and a heightened sense of identity leading to greater civic engagement.

The material collected would be invaluable in informing tourism information and there could be many spin-offs from the mapping that local organisations and individuals may wish to take forward such as interpretation trails, community publications or maps. The outcomes from the mapping process should not be

46 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

pre-guessed or predetermined. There may be many other possibilities that cannot be foreseen in advance.

The greatest by-product of the self mapping of distinctiveness is that it would reveal the appetite, potential and the capacity within the rural capital for developing a theme of distinctiveness, including whether there would be any interest in or benefit from adopting one of the existing distinctiveness designations (Cittaslow, etc.).

A critical aspect of mapping would be to reveal the individual entrepreneurs and activists, encouraging people to come forward with ideas they might have been nurturing.

The main goal of this stage should be to focus on the greatest resource of any community - the capacity of the community itself. It would ensure that the mapping and initial assessment of existing and potential initiatives is driven by local people.

Stage 3: Developing local distinctiveness This is the turning point at which a distinctive idea becomes a distinctiveness project.

It is at this stage that the rural capital may register their membership of existing designation networks (Cittaslow, etc.). It is also at this stage that the early successes of the initiative are likely to be marketed, possibly for the first time and that new possibilities of growth that were hitherto not considered will be emerging.

The stakeholder group may grow and new partners may wish to join forces or to develop related projects. It is also possible that at this stage the initiative will elect to join a regional, national or international network of similar initiatives and thus become a part of something bigger.

This stage is all about growth and may require formation of legal company structures. This may be commercial, charitable, or social enterprise, possibly accompanied by various levels of seed funding and development funding to support business planning, financial modelling, action research and the development of prototypes.

The very process of applying for external funding for rural development can provide a catalyst by which key actors in localities further interrogate distinctiveness for themselves and develop a more robust business model. However, in all instances, it is important for the sake of buy-in that there is transparency over the benefits to the individuals involved in such developments.

On the other hand some of the original drive may be lost due to the amount of administration required; the original entrepreneurs may wish to pass the reins to others or make a decision to appoint staff to take on day-to-day delivery.

Stage 4: Adoption of the Initiative It is at this stage that the success of the initiative, possibly after several years of development, will (unless it has already joined existing designated network) reach the stage when it is adopted into policy. This acknowledgement by local government, sub-regional and regional agencies confirms its importance and value as a distinct driver of tourism, regeneration, or economic development.

This stage is often problematic especially when the success of the initiative rests with the original entrepreneur and their supporters. The adoption of the project can be seen as the public sector either taking over or taking credit for years of voluntary work and private finance.

It does not need to be so. The public sector can bring great value to sustaining the project and fulfilling its full capacity.

Adoption in policy terms does not and should not equate to public subsidy, though for certain initiatives their long term viability may be strengthened at this point through further strategic investment. Shared equity ownership or asset transfers are good examples of public sector partnerships.

Stage 5: Exiting of the initiative Exiting of the themed distinctiveness may be required since distinctiveness is subject to changes in social and economic trends or technologies and what is distinct today may not be so tomorrow. Likewise new trends may appear that will render

the theme meaningless. The original entrepreneurs may leave or move on to new ideas and the initiative may flounder without them.

It is also possible that the theme would become so successful that it would begin to create other unforeseen problems.

All of these issues will need to be assessed on a case by case basis. An exit strategy is likely to be needed for the stakeholders involved.

This exit strategy may take the form of sensitive measures to facilitate the evolution of distinctiveness so that stakeholders are engaged in maintaining it according to changing circumstances (e.g. economic, environmental, demographic).

Four roles for stakeholders in delivery of themed distinctiveness All stages require partnership working to sustain the strategy. Regional development agencies, local authorities, tourism boards, local strategic partnerships, Town Teams, community groups, private sector, voluntary sector and individuals, all have a part to play.

We will refer to them collectively as the stakeholders. We have identified four types of roles that are likely to be required by the stakeholders throughout all stages of delivering themed distinctiveness initiative: • Protector; • Catalyst; • Enabler; • Innovative investor.

Each stakeholder may need to play a variety of roles depending on the nature of the proposal, the capacity of the town and the stage to which the project has developed.

Protector Once the nature of distinctiveness has been mapped, the information would need to be analysed, understood and developed, but may also need to be protected. The need for protection applies to environmental, social and economic 47

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 4. Developing Themed Distinctiveness

aspects of rural towns.

Catalyst

It is not possible to draw up a comprehensive list but some of the ideas of protection required are listed below:

Catalytic activity is most needed at the initial stages of themed distinctiveness but it can also help in the later stages by opening up new possibilities. Catalysts can be spontaneous, induced, or an unexpected side effect of some other action or policy. The role of acting as a catalyst or as inducer of it can rest with any of the stakeholders. Some of the catalytic actions required are suggested below:

• Protect distinctiveness by encouraging the quirky, the idiosyncratic and the unusual even if it does not appear to have economic or historic value; • Publish the mapping of distinctiveness and integrate this document into planning documents to help protect physical distinctiveness; • Protect the town from inappropriate developments, especially those such as supermarkets, that may weaken the distinctiveness of the local economy or threaten traditional relationships between towns and the hinterland (livestock markets, local produce); • Discourage adoption of existing designations to avoid internal competition and over saturation within the region or sub-region; • Prioritise projects that motivate, educate, consult and involve as many local people as possible; • Anticipate and plan for the problems that a distinctive approach may cause; • Protect against loss of services such as post offices, banks and schools; • Protect the project champion and volunteers from burn out; • Protect civic engagement by recognising the value of the contribution made by the volunteers. Consider setting up Time Banks; • Protect initiatives from conflicting policies by working towards their integration; • Ensure an environmentally and socially sustainable approach to distinctiveness; • Get the ‘product’ right before branding and promotion; • Ensure that there are benefits to local people in terms of jobs, quality of life, and development of the local skills base.

48 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

• Initiate and support the mapping of local distinctiveness using existing tools such as the ABC guide produced by Common Ground; • Establish a culture of innovation and creativity- this means that failure needs to be an acceptable risk; • Seek out and support entrepreneurs and local enthusiasts at an early stage.

Entrepreneurs are essential drivers of distinctiveness, particularly in its formative stages. Motives may vary though most are driven by a very personal passion or vision. Such people have frequently sustained the project through charismatic leadership and sheer determination, putting in unquantifiable and unsocial hours over a long period. They have often resourced the early stages of development with personal cash and in kind support to get and keep things going.

Public sector and community based organisations such as Town Teams can encourage entrepreneurs to come forward through ‘talent scout’ searches with possible events such as competitions, or ‘Dragon’s Den’ style pitches. They need to be recognised within the community, within the public sector, and especially among young people and be encouraged to develop their skills utilising some of the existing tools and programmes offered by Bizz-Fizz and The Princes Trust.

More experimental projects, pilot projects and prototyping should be considered as catalysts to encourage local initiatives, such as the introduction of ‘shop local’ cards to stimulate local trade.

Where themed distinctiveness is a

methodology for regeneration of a declining economy or future proofing unsustainable rural capitals, the public sector can act as a catalyst to stimulating new initiatives through setting up special regeneration partnerships.

Enabler Throughout the entire life of a themed distinctiveness project stakeholders will need to use their different remits, skills, networks, budgets, capacities and all other resources to enable each other to drive and grow the initiative. The public sector in particular is well placed to enable private sector and community led initiatives to flourish.

Enabling can be provided in different forms by a variety of providers but there needs to be careful judgment about the right enabling at the right time. Enabling can include: • Developing a flexible and supportive model for evaluating the potential of distinctiveness; • Setting up an institutional arena for the development and management of distinctiveness (Chester Local Distinctive Partnership model); • Identifying ways of supporting emerging entrepreneurs and community champions and nurture their ideas; • Introducing rural capitals to the existing designated themes models and enable self-assessment where systems are in place; • Enabling distinctiveness projects to grow in size and adopt appropriate legal and governance structures, yet ensure they retain grass roots and community control; • Growing the capacity of Town Teams and other community organisations involved in delivery of themed distinctiveness through specially programmes such as Common Purpose, networking opportunities and study trips.

Enabling activities can also include tailor-made support for initiatives that depend upon informal systems such

as personal networks, knowing the customers, providing informal information or access to local produce and services.

Small organisations may be better served by approaches that do not depend upon formal systems such as business plans or training needs analysis but could benefit from mentoring at the early stages.

The Princes Trust and Bizz-Fizz have developed such support services.

Local authorities can review standing orders and procurement methods to reduce unnecessary waste of effort and to secure greater involvement of locally based businesses in contributing to the delivery of distinctiveness. (Totnes Transition Town group was not supported by the regional development agency in setting up a directory of green suppliers on the grounds that this undermined equal opportunities principles.)

Enabling may also be achieved by unlocking, though negotiations or Compulsory Purchase Orders, key assets of land and buildings that are often blighted by inactive landowners to the detriment of the place.

The potential to exploit distinctiveness as a driver for social and economic growth, particularly through tourism, is increasingly recognised by institutions and policy makers. Great care, however, needs to be taken not to homogenise or dilute the essence of distinctiveness by ironing out the quirky, individualistic, messy, and unregulated. Regional development agencies are well placed to enable all partners in initiatives such as ‘Great Destinations - A Charter for Destination Management (Draft)’ (Yorkshire Forward) to consider a bottom–up approach in order to secure true distinctiveness.

Innovative Investor “As Stuart and I have never been any good at getting grants, (please, someone, tell us your secret), we’ve financed various projects ourselves, as and when we could. The first and ongoing project is restoring the superb station building itself.” Mary Manley, Founder Barter Book Shop, Alnwick (Source: Study visit interview.)

Distinctiveness needs, and can benefit

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from, different types of financing at different times of its development. The Centre for Alternative Technologies in Machynlleth, for example, has benefited at various stages of development from individual personal donations, charitable funding, Lottery funding, and European funding, as well as, increasingly, from commercial income. There is a level of serendipity involved. Some of these funds have only been accessible due to the levels of deprivation in rural Wales and would not have been available to a similar project in a different area.

Finance will be essential at all stages of implementation and all stakeholders will need to contribute in different ways.

Ideally finance should be diverse and innovative to reflect the nature of distinctiveness itself. Fitting themed distinctiveness into existing funding systems, and especially the outputs required, is a sure way of normalising the unusual.

‘Incentive funding’ can contribute to diversity. In creating a new sustainable community in Kronsberg (Hannover, Germany), the delivery agency introduced a host of small subsidies from 1995 to stimulate a diversity of responses from developers. These included: subsidies for terrace construction to encourage high density family housing; building plots at below market price to stabilise owner occupation; subsidies for builders participating in low waste building sites; and funding for communal composting.

These were some of the creative ways funding was used to engineer the desired distinctiveness.

Below we suggest some ideas of how innovative approach to finance could enhance themed distinctiveness: • Ensure that ‘risk funding’ or ‘seed funding’ is available in the very early catalyst stages to encourage diversity of initiatives that could lead to a distinctiveness theme developing; • Signpost community champions to existing alternative or match funding streams; • Set up alternative funding systems such 50 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

as micro finance where they do not exist locally to facilitate initiatives too new to secure loans from traditional sources; • Lobby the Government to introduce policies that can secure distinctiveness, for example, giving local authorities the right to veto any major retail development, as they do in France, or to veto themed or chain restaurants as some towns do in the USA; • Lobby the Government for tax credits to encourage the production of local, organic food; • Extend rate relief to more small stores in towns where the local economy has been in decline, including pubs, community pharmacies and post offices.

Innovative investment needs to remain flexible to changing needs. For example, the recent agreement to allow 100% funding support for projects within the Rural Development Programme, which used to be capped at 50%, was a welcome response to the economic slowdown. Other actions could be considered: • Unnecessary administrative and bureaucratic requirements could be removed from funding application processes, simplifing evaluation and accountability procedures particularly at the early stages of the projects. Local community chests, some of the Local Enterprise Growth Initiative and Lottery funding streams such as ‘Awards for All’ provide good models.

• ‘Single Pot’ funding could be used to create a capitals specific investment fund to stimulate and sustain organic growth of themed distinctiveness initiatives.

• Support could be given to projects that do not rely on money but recognise other forms of exchange such as bartering. The Barter Book Shop in Alnwick, for example, was initially set up on a principle of book swaps.

• ‘Angel Investor’ networks could be created to encourage private investment in initiatives that have the potential to enhance distinctiveness themes.

• Local towns could be assisted to overcome lack of infrastructure to support the growth of public transport, road/rail connections, parking and hotel bed spaces, which will otherwise prevent the growth of themed distinctiveness.

Tools for initiating themed distinctiveness There is an arsenal of tool kits, evaluation models, health checks, mapping strategies, consultation techniques, quality designation and methodologies that can be used to facilitate setting up of themed distinctiveness.

Each of the five stages in the development of themed distinctiveness requires tools to assist in evaluating the capacity for distinctiveness, the strength of the idea and to ensure support from the wider community. The tool kits are most beneficial in the early stages of preparation: the mapping stage and the catalyst stage, with the exception of designated distinctiveness initiatives which already have ‘charters’ and ‘methodologies’ that guide them throughout the life of the themed concept.

We have identified a selection of tried and tested models and tools set up by other authorities and organisations that can inform the process of testing and supporting the development of themed distinctiveness initiatives. These are summarised in Appendix 2.

But we have not identified any existing tools for assessing the potential and the capacity of a rural capital for a themed distinctiveness regeneration strategy.

We have therefore considered a proposal for how such tools could be developed out of existing methodologies to ensure a bottom up approach and sustainability of the idea from the outset.

Mapping of local distinctiveness using existing tools Before deciding on a themed distinctiveness approach, local distinctiveness mapping should be carried out, involving the local community.

Common Ground, a charity that claims to have invented the concept of local distinctiveness in 1983 and which campaigns and collaborates in celebrating and promoting variegation in our surroundings, have published ‘ABC - How to read your locality’, a guide on how to gather the information and how to use ABC to set local agendas. ABC could be utilised by Town Teams and communities to get to know the nature of their distinctiveness. The process itself may have the benefit of enhancing sense of identity and civic engagement.

Evaluating the strength of local distinctiveness As all places have some elements of local distinctiveness, and themed distinctiveness requires a strong element of unique distinctiveness and many assets to develop it successfully, the evaluation of the potential for themed distinctiveness needs to follow, utilising the mapped information.

Figure 3 shows a spider diagram method of evaluation. A simple questionnaire would need to be developed for the stakeholders to complete and to fill in the spider diagram. This could include data drawn from the regional visitor survey.

Other aspects of the questionnaire could be modelled on those already developed through the Market Town Initiative’s Health Check and Cittaslow entry criteria.

(See Appendices 2 and 3.)

To evaluate the strength of local Distinctiveness the questions associated with the diagram would need to cover each of the key elements that contribute to local distinctiveness such as interaction between hinterland and rural capital, built heritage and cultural activities, etc..

Evaluating the capacity for themed distinctiveness A second set of questions will allow another spider diagram (see Figure 4) to be completed to indicate the capacity of the rural capital to accommodate the proposed themed distinctiveness initiative. This second set of questions will address issues such as availability of stakeholders and partners, tourism capacity, hinterland capacity, related 51

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 4. Developing Themed Distinctiveness

benefits, and availability of seed funding, etc..

The spider diagram, when filled in, will give an indication of the areas of greatest strength and of the weaknesses and an indication of the type of themed distinctiveness that would be appropriate.

For instance, a town that scores highly in all wedges is likely to be a good candidate for a bottom up initiative whereas low scores will indicate that top down transformational themes maybe more appropriate.

The spider diagrams are a crude method and they will not provide sufficient evidence to justify definitive action. They are, however, a valuable tool for getting to grips with the assets and the liabilities, the potential and the constraints, and for initiating discussion and galvanising common vision between all stakeholders.

Template for detailed audits Distinctiveness does not have to be allied to tourism but for those that are, sophisticated auditing tools are being developed which allow more detailed investigation by the rural capitals such as those developed by Miller Research UK for Market Towns Welcome, a project funded by Northumberland Tourism, Northumberland Strategic Partnership and One North East to assist each town to develop its own tourism destination plan.

The risk of a strategy that seeks for all rural towns to become tourism destinations is, paradoxically, to devalue their distinctiveness; such strategies are likely to claim special attributes that are likely to be common to all such as heritage, access to countryside, local food and cultural events.

The use of ABC mapping and the spider diagrams evaluation proposed in this study would be invaluable in identifying the few rural capitals that have potential for a sustainable theme to be developed before such complex audit procedures are undertaken.

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Figure 3

Evaluating the strength of themed distinctiveness

Key: Line indicates potential scores from questionnaire.

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Diagram description This tool would facilitate self-assessment by the community of the strength of the proposed themed distinctiveness initiative. The spider diagram would be completed by plotting the results of a questionnaire, as yet to be developed.

The diagram is an indicator of the strengths and weaknesses of distinctiveness and could be used as a guide for deciding whether a themed distinctiveness initiative might succeed in the rural capital.

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Diagram description This tool would facilitate self-assessment by the community itself of its capacity for themed distinctiveness initiatives.

The spider diagram would be completed by plotting the results of a questionnaire, as yet to be developed.

54 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

The results could facilitate decisions on whether there is sufficient capacity within the rural capital to develop a themed distinctiveness initiative.

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56 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Chapter 5

Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber

Street in Machynlleth Machynlleth, Powys

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Distinctive Futures-Chapter 5. Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber

Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber “Richmond has been named “Great Town of the Year 2009” at a prestigious awards ceremony.

The town held off competition from fellow finalists Chichester and Stirling to scoop the top national prize.

The awards are run by the Academy of Urbanism, made up of UK academics and town planners. Richmond won following a rigorous assessment process, based on its character, governance, commercial viability and sustainability.

Councillor Melva Steckles, Leader of Richmondshire District Council, said: “Everyone in Richmondshire should feel rightly proud of this accolade. There are so many special places throughout the district, and it’s excellent to see Richmond acknowledged by this prestigious award’.”

(Source: www.richmond.org, 28th November 2008) Many of the rural capitals in the region have the ingredients needed for the development of themed distinctiveness: existing local distinctiveness, economic capacity, the structured support system of increasingly collaborative public agencies and local authorities, social networks and the individual entrepreneurs that can drive such an initiative.

Below we set out the Yorkshire Forward initiatives that form foundations for delivery of potential themed initiatives, analyse three case studies of rural capitals where such initiatives could apply. We also evaluate the potential for themed distinctiveness in Yorkshire and Humber and offer conclusions and recommendations for the way forward.

Overview of related Yorkshire Forward initiatives Rural Capitals Programme The Rural Capitals Programme forms a major part of Yorkshire Forward’s Rural Renaissance policy product range. It

58 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

contributes directly to the overriding aim of the agency’s rural policy product range of ‘building a modern rural economy based on enterprise, competitiveness and the region’s unique assets’. The Rural Capitals programme builds on the successes of the earlier Renaissance Market Towns (RMT) programme. It will develop stronger, more diverse and resilient economies in the region’s rural capitals by delivering RMT projects that fit with the towns’ long term Visions and Strategic Development Frameworks (SDFs). It will do this by developing high quality business space, by piloting approaches to Lower Carbon Rural Capitals and by providing support to develop capacity across the region for long term sustainability of the region’s rural capitals.

The Rural Capitals development programme therefore forms an essential element of Yorkshire Forward’s strategic response to the specific challenges and issues facing the region’s rural communities. For example, providing access to expertise and knowledge to enable successful economic projects to be delivered through the RMT programme and the Enterprising Rural Capitals programme will help create conditions for sustaining and creating jobs in the rural capitals. It will also develop the plans for the Low Carbon Rural Capitals pilot programme that aims to create jobs as part of the ‘green New Deal’, ensuring that new jobs in the low carbon sector are supported. The Government’s response to the report of the Rural Advocate: ‘England’s rural areas: steps to release their economic potential’, issued in February 2009, recognises that Government focus should be on the provision of support structures and leadership to enable local economies to contribute effectively to sustainable economic growth. This programme aims to provide the support structure and leadership to enable the region’s rural capitals to strengthen their contribution to a strong and sustainable regional economy.

Continuing the RMT programme Yorkshire Forward will continue to support delivery of the RMT programme,

supporting projects that deliver direct economic outputs; it will continue to support a delegated fund for small-scale projects. Such projects will have been identified in the local RMT Masterplans and Strategic Development Frameworks and must be supported by their local Town Teams.

Enterprising Rural Capitals This programme aims to develop a network of high quality business space in some of the region’s rural capitals. A report produced in 2009 for Yorkshire Forward (King Sturge, 2009) into rural business space identified a number of towns where demand and regeneration need for business space were significant.

Work is underway to develop the model to deliver this, which will aim to engage private sector partners to deliver and manage the business space facilities.

Low Carbon Rural Capitals (LCRC) This programme aims to pilot approaches to lower carbon settlements and economies in rural capitals. A scoping study was undertaken for Yorkshire Forward in 2008 by Arup to determine whether any of regions’ rural capitals could sustain a pilot programme to trial new approaches to lower carbon settlements. Projects that could be supported would either be entirely new and untested, or untested in a rural setting. A shortlist of nine settlements was identified and, following further discussions with local authority partners, a further shortlist of four settlements/ groups of settlements was produced.

A more detailed study to investigate implementation plan options for these settlements is currently underway.

Regional Rural Capitals Development programme This programme will develop research, capacity and skills support for partners on issues relating to development and delivery of the Rural Capitals programme.

This will include seminars, study tours, support for accessing Yorkshire Forward’s panel of expertise and access to research on rural capitals.

Regional case studies We have evaluated four towns in Yorkshire and Humber, two of them clustered, to test their potential for themed distinctiveness, they were Richmond, Ilkley and Marsden and Slaithwaite.

The selection was based on evidence that the towns already have a mixture of core and dynamic elements of distinctiveness.

We collated desktop research on these three towns using the template developed for our case studies. In doing so we focused on those elements identified in Figures 3 and 4 as supporting the case for a themed distinctiveness initiative.

Richmond, North Yorkshire Richmond is classified as a remote settlement and a service centre in the Yorkshire Forward classification of rural capitals. It is accessible from the A1 and A66 and is close to Darlington East Coast main line railway, though there is no train station in Richmond itself.

Richmond is an attractive market town on the River Swale on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The town has a Norman castle and is characterised

by Georgian architecture. The scenery is described as breathtaking. With a cobbled market place, the river Swale, and an historic fabric, the town is known to have inspired painters and poets.

Local facilities include: Richmond Castle; St Agatha’s Abbey; Friary Tower and Gardens; Georgian Theatre Museum; Green Howards Museum; Millgate House Gardens; Richmondshire Museum; an indoor market; outdoor market; a farmers market; a Craft and Collectors Fair and a range of independent shops, including Altberg Bootmakers who produce custommade and made-to-measure boots. The town has been used as a TV filming location.

Richmond Station was restored through great community effort, led by the Richmondshire Building Preservation Trust with the help of many partners, including Yorkshire Forward’s RMT programme. It houses a café, gallery, two cinemas, a heritage room and community spaces as well as a micro-brewery, icecream maker, cheese maker, and craft 59

Distinctive Futures-Chapter 5. Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber

bakery. The Station continues to rely on volunteers and entrepreneurs to run and develop it.

Richmond also has broadcasting studios for ‘Fresh Radio’, the Yorkshire Dales local radio station.

Richmond boasts a combined walking and book festival, which includes a range of guided walks each September and October. Associated activities include concerts, films, speakers, performances, and exhibitions.

Richmond was voted ‘Greatest Town in the UK 2009’ in the Academy of Urbanism awards. The assessment was based on character, governance, commercial viability and sustainability. With the help of the Yorkshire Forward RMT and English Heritage funded Heritage Partnership Scheme, the appearance of Richmond has changed considerably and its Georgian character has been restored; this played a key role in winning the award.

Ilkley Ilkley is a spa town located in Wharfedale on the south bank of the River Wharf. It has a railway station and is in commuting distance of Leeds and Bradford.

The town is characterised by Victorian architecture and is surrounded by attractive countryside, including Ilkley Moor, made famous though a folk song, often described as the unofficial anthem of Yorkshire, “On Ilkla Moor Baht ‘at”.

The song words are written in Yorkshire dialect, the title translates as “On Ilkley Moor without a hat.”

The town is a tourist centre and has a high number of independent shops including: Lishman’s of Ilkley, an award winning butcher’s shop (featured in an Observer article by Rick Stein); Betty’s tea rooms; and a Michelin starred restaurant, the Box Tree. Local attractions include the Manor House (Art Gallery and Museum), the Toy Museum, and Millennium Green and Maze. Ilkley also has a lido, built in 1935.

With ramped access, central fountain and slide and an Art Deco café, it is one of Yorkshire’s last open-air swimming pools.

The ‘Cow and Calf’ rock formation is one of the moor’s natural attractions and a

60 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

popular location for climbers. The Old Bridge outside of the town centre marks the start of the Dales Way, an 80 mile walk ending in the Lake District.

According to their own website, the Ilkley Literature Festival began in 1973, the brainchild of Michael Dawson, the first Director of the newly formed Yorkshire Arts Association. It is reputed that, during the 1971 postal strike, lack of mail gave him the space to browse through brochures from arts festivals across the country. Discovering that there was nothing of the kind in the north of England, he set about instituting a new Literature Festival in Ilkley, his home town. After two years of planning and fund raising, the first Festival was launched

by W.H. Auden in one of his last public appearances. The Festival, which was initially biennial, became a regular yearly event by 1988.

The Literature Festival is now the oldest and largest in the north of England and hosts 140 events in a variety of venues.

Innumerable famous authors have passed through its doors, from international figures and Nobel Prize winners to poets like Ted Hughes and Benjamin Zephaniah.

Ilkley also has a music festival and a beer festival. The Moor Music festival take place outside of the town centre (Addingham Moorside). Taking place over a weekend, the festival includes activities for families and a range of music from acoustic to reggae and art house cinema.

In 1991 Ilkley won an international horticultural competition ‘Entente Florale’ and in 1990 and 2004 the Britain in Bloom contest in the category of ‘Town’.

Ilkley is a Fairtrade Town. The status was achieved by Ilkley Fairtrade Group on 25th April 2006 with the support of Ilkley Parish Council. In 2009 Ilkley was also awarded ‘Walkers are Welcome’ status.

The town has proactive community and many community networks most notably Ilkley and District Round Table, Ilkley Film Society, Ilkley Literature Festival committee and Ilkley Music Festival committee.

Marsden and Slaithwaite Marsden and Slaithwaite are small, historic industrial villages in Kirklees.

The two towns are approximately 2.5 miles from each other and are located in the Colne Valley alongside the river Colne and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal. Both have a railway station with direct lines to Manchester and Leeds.

The traditional housing in the villages was built for the workers of the former local woollen mills. Both villages featured in the British TV show, ‘Where the Heart Is’ and are established media filming locations, Marsden in particular. The villages are characterised by distinctive bridges and historic built form with compact streets and local grit stone buildings, popular with tourists.

Slaithwaite has the canal running alongside the main street (currently the only village in England that has this feature). There is a local butcher in Slaithwaite that produces award winning Master Pork Pies, (Eddie Grange and Son). Notable buildings include the village church and the 17th century Dartmouth Estate Manor House. There is a ‘moonraking’ festival in Slaithwaite held annually in February half term; it celebrates the story of Uncle Ken Boot with lanterns, storytellers, bands, music and dancing.

Marsden village is surrounded on three sides by Marsden Moor, Meltham Moor and Saddleworth Moor. Marsden Moor Estate surrounds Marsden to the west and south (owned by the National Trust). The area is characterised by beautiful scenery and is popular for walking and cycling.

Notable buildings include the local church with a peel of ten bells. It is home of the Mikron Theatre Company who travel by narrowboat and hold a programme of professional arts and cultural activities at the Marsden Mechanics Hall. It has an annual jazz festival held in October.

Marsden and Slaithwaite are part of the Transition Towns movement. A local community-led group, MASTT, are taking proactive steps to deal with the twin threats of Peak Oil and Climate Change.

MASTT plans to help these vibrant

communities to build food security and reduce their reliance on fossil fuels.

A separate study is currently underway, commissioned by Kirklees Council, to consider possible tourism strategies to enhance the offer of the Colne Valley.

Themes identified as options are: an industrial heritage trail utilising wireless technologies, a visitor centre for the Peak district, variations on walking and cycling themes and developing an offer for ‘learning breaks’.

Potential for themed distinctiveness in Yorkshire and Humber Our research leads us to believe that a themed distinctiveness approach brings many benefits if it is executed well. It can be a source of economic diversity and hence of resilience in times of uncertainty.

The Renaissance Market Towns programme implemented by Yorkshire Forward in the last seven years, has laid good foundations for such initiatives to be implemented successfully through the development of the rural Town Teams, capacity building within governance bodies, emphasis on the quality of the public realm, support to bring empty and historic buildings back into use and promotion of strategic thinking.

Unexpected opportunities may also have been created by the downturn in the economy as it may lead to a greater appreciation of civic contributions to regeneration, an increased focus on existing strengths of a community, and development of a wider range of tools to support small-scale initiatives.

Furthermore as public funding decreases we can expect greater integration between tourism and regeneration initiatives as we look for multiplicity of outcomes from public investment. This integration is already in the making with the ‘Welcome to Yorkshire’ strategy launched this year

by Yorkshire’s tourism board.

The three examples of rural towns we have studied indicate that themed distinctiveness has already emerged in some Yorkshire towns:

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• Ilkley has multiple distinctive features: an attractive hinterland and built fabric; proactive residents and many cultural activities including the Literature Festival that has been gestating over a thirty year period. It has the benefit of close proximity to major cities, to an extensive countryside and to an airport. It could be a strong candidate for developing themed distinctiveness around the expansion of the international Literature Festival.

• Richmond already has emerging themed distinctiveness, including the ‘walking/reading’ festival. But more importantly it could capitalise on the many markets that already take place, and the rediscovery of the value of local food and produce. With planned support Richmond could reinvent its original function as a commercial centre for the hinterland; an initiative currently being pursued to great effect by Sansepolcro market town in Umbria, Italy.

• Marsden and Slaithwaite as a cluster have potential for themed distinctiveness as their original function has almost gone; they therefore have a strong incentive to reinvent themselves in order to regain economic advantage.

The towns already have proactive communities, with many incomers.

There is evidence of an entrepreneurial culture with contemporary ideas allied to existing traditions. The two towns seem well placed to develop a multilayered, clustered theme, based on the Transition Town methodology.

There is already public investment planned to develop a workspace to facilitate development of green industry in Slaithwaite.

everyday places and leisure destinations.

We have only scoped four of Yorkshire’s rural capitals (two as a cluster) and their potential for themed distinctiveness.

Nevertheless, it is evident, that these towns, and many other Yorkshire towns, have traits of local distinctiveness that would provide a firm basis for developing themed distinctiveness initiatives.

Below we set out key conclusions and recommendations for Yorkshire and Humber. The recommendations are grouped under two headings to distinguish between more immediate, practical measures to stimulate or pilot themed distinctiveness and longer term measures which are needed to create a climate in which distinctiveness can be further developed and protected.

Piloting themed distinctiveness Recommendation 1: Disseminate best practice This study highlights the relative shortage of information and understanding regarding the definition and value of distinctiveness. Raising awareness is therefore an important precursor to any distinctiveness initiative. Having invested in commissioning this study Yorkshire Forward can maximise the benefits of the information now gathered to inform other agencies and local initiatives about the existing distinctiveness designations as well as providing exemplars of how a themed distinctive offer has benefited other rural capitals. Dialogue and joint working can be supported by providing opportunities for discussion through seminars and conferences as well as factfinding trips with interested stakeholders.

Recommendation 2: Running a pilot scheme

Conclusions and recommendations The study has established that themed distinctiveness has economic and social benefits. These are set to grow as the downsides of globalisation are increasingly understood. The localisation agenda is now firmly on the political agenda and the ‘unique’, the ‘authentic’ and the ‘local’ are increasingly desirable characteristics for

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In the Yorkshire and Humber region, the regional development agency and local authorities have, through the Renaissance programme, already demonstrated their ability to successfully invest in transformational projects. Such transformational models are particularly important in relation to those rural capitals that have been built around a single industry and which, for various

reasons, have lost have their key source of employment. A similarly bold approach should now be taken in other rural capitals, piloting themed distinctiveness projects that have the potential to address the future needs of rural society. One of the most profound findings of our study is the fundamental role played by charismatic entrepreneurs in establishing and sustaining distinctiveness initiatives Public bodies should continue to develop opportunities for entrepreneurs to emerge and develop their ideas. Such initiatives are especially beneficial to Yorkshire and Humber since the region still lags behind other regions in research and development investment by business.

(Yorkshire Futures, 2009, p42, p90.) (On a more positive note the region is second only to the East in percentage growth of the creative industries, who are being encouraged to flourish with the help of managed workspace such as Springboard and Evolution in Northallerton, both supported by Yorkshire Forward’s RMT programme.) Support for such initiatives requires a culture within the public sector that recognises the special needs of the entrepreneurial sector. In addition, in the absence of existing entrepreneurial ideas, regional development agencies and other public bodies may need to act as catalysts for developing themed distinctiveness, either by creating the initiatives themselves or indirectly by supporting others in doing so.

The public sector can be pioneering and entrepreneurial. Yorkshire Forward has pioneered a lot of new thinking around the development of rural capitals with a positive and measured approach to risk taking. This approach will be needed again for developing themed distinctiveness as a way of creating new economic opportunities.

Running a pilot scheme will allow Yorkshire Forward to identify, at an early stage, individuals or towns with ideas of distinctiveness. The following suggestions look at how a pilot scheme could be developed: • Develop an enterprising place: Many entrepreneurial projects struggle in

the early stages. A pilot scheme that includes pitching, mentoring and small start up funding to develop and test themed distinctiveness ideas could be encouraged by Yorkshire Forward.

• Work closely with the town team or community partnership: Often these groups will be in the best position to identify potential entrepreneurs and themed distinctiveness. Those with the passion necessary to see through a distinctive process may already be working on behalf of their town.

• Signpost interested parties to existing distinctiveness audits: Encouraging towns to consider their distinctive offer at an early stage can help to focus activities.

• Signpost interested parties to existing training and business support programmes such as Business Link: It is vital, however, to recognise that entrepreneurs do not have traditional structures of established businesses and rely heavily on their informal family and friendship networks in the early years of developing their ideas; any training support would need to be bespoke to this process.

• Provide access to research and development grants: Access to smallscale funding will be an important mechanism as themed distinctiveness ideas begin to consolidate, assisting entrepreneurs and community groups to take the project to the next stage of development. Failure, or high risk of failure, would have to be accepted with such grants. The application forms and the projected monitoring and evaluation would need to be light touch to be of real assistance to the applicant. Micro bank finance should be considered.

• Seeding a new project: Where ideas exist but there is no automatic champion to take a lead, public agencies can themselves seed a pilot project for the community to take forward and develop as themed distinctiveness. This can take many forms: initiating art festivals on a special theme; creating databases of all local producers relevant to the

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distinctiveness theme; setting up incubator units for micro businesses.

Change could be seeded very quickly by initiating new thinking related to economic and social changes. A local campaign to eliminate the use of plastic bags, introducing a local currency, or initiating barter and exchange projects could all lead to themed distinctiveness based on new social values.

Recommendation 3: Mapping local distinctiveness This stage can happen as part of a specific pilot scheme or is a process which can be initiated by a town at any time.

Distinctiveness is a complex, multilayered concept. It is vital to understand all aspects of the ‘core’ and the ‘dynamic’ elements of distinctiveness, as well as the ‘local’, ‘clustered’ and ‘themed’ approaches to distinctiveness, and to distinguish between them before developing new distinctiveness initiatives.

Local authorities, town and parish councils, town teams and local groups have an important role to play in encouraging greater knowledge and understanding of local and themed distinctiveness through the preparation of audits of local distinctiveness. The auditing process would create a valuable bank of information, bring local people together and enhance the understanding of the rural capitals’ true assets. This could include social networks and special individuals; both being aspects of communities which are not traditionally considered as having an economic value.

Distinctiveness audits would have the potential to contribute to local strategic plans, to the Renaissance Rural Capitals programme and to tourism strategies and destination management strategies. The audits could be achieved in three ways: • Rural capitals could be encouraged to utilise existing tools, such as Common Ground’s ABC guide, to facilitate selfaudits of local distinctiveness.

• A simple self-mapping tool could be developed in the form of spider diagrams, as suggested in Chapter 4 of this report, to map the existing strength 64 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

of distinctiveness as well as the capacity of the rural capitals to develop a themed distinctiveness initiative.

• A regional map of existing and planned distinctiveness themes and initiatives could be developed. This could be undertaken rapidly and at low cost.

Regional mapping of this kind would inform other strategic policies such as tourism and facilitate knowledge exchange within and between regions. It would set out which towns are already involved in or planning distinctiveness initiatives and would specify whether these are ‘designated’ initiatives such as Cittaslow or the Book Town movement, or new/emerging themed distinctiveness, based on the rural capitals’ unique characteristics.

For ease of access any audit reports undertaken by Yorkshire towns could all be stored on Yorkshire Forward’s website.

Developing a climate for distinctiveness Recommendation 4: Protecting local distinctiveness There are many reasons why it may be necessary for the town and public bodies to take steps to protect existing or emerging distinctiveness. Changing economics and cultural habits are contributing to the erosion of the local retail offer, causing the decline of country pubs and facilities such as the post office and affecting the availability of local transport. Too often the quality of the built fabric does not reflect or add to local distinctiveness. Bland housing schemes and retail parks have been implemented on the boundaries of conservation areas.

The character of some rural capitals has been dominated for many years by a crippling increase in traffic and associated car parking areas that blight some of the key land available in the town centre.

Successful town centre pedestrianisation schemes such as Hebden Bridge, the transformational project for the town, developed through Yorkshire Forward’s Renaissance Market Towns programme and delivered by the local authority, illustrate the positive impact that such a

scheme can have on the distinctiveness of a town’s life. The distinct topography, architecture, river, independent traders and local street artists create a sense of a unique place that is accessible and enjoyed by residents and visitors alike.

Regional agencies, local authorities and individuals, through the choices they make, can significantly reduce the erosion of distinctiveness through a range of short, medium and long-term measures, many of which are also good for the economy and for social wellbeing.

The following list of protective actions is not exhaustive; a bespoke set of interventions could be devised for each rural capital guided by their specific conditions and needs.

Short and medium term protective measures may include: • Local retail plans can be included in Local Development Frameworks.

• ‘Shop local’ initiatives and campaigns which promote local produce can be supported.

• The introduction of local currencies can be considered to keep money circulating within the local economy, along with alternative non-monetary models, such as the Local Exchange Trading Systems (LETS) used in Bradford and Sheffield.

• Regional and local regeneration priorities and tourism and destination management strategies can be aligned to ensure that the distinctiveness offer is accurately positioned within an integrated economic strategy.

• Efforts can be made to ensure that all master plans, action plans and development briefs are informed by the distinctiveness audits.

reviewing and reforming public sector procurement policies to include clauses that encourage local purchasing and employment creation. This has become increasingly acceptable on the grounds of sustainability, and some models have already been developed. For example, Bradford’s Procurement Strategy 200811 aims to “increase the opportunities for local suppliers to win Council business either directly or as part of the overall supply chain”. It is closely aligned with the Bradford Together initiative through which the Council works to deliver sustainable business in the district.

Such longer-term measures may require national policy to change as well as developing new models and fiscal systems. It is more sustainable to protect distinctiveness than to lose it and have to restore it.

Recommendation 5: Developing local distinctiveness The study highlighted the fragility of initiatives based on distinctiveness.

Any number of events can undermine the process - burn out, lack of business support, lack of seed funding, lack of capacity to accommodate successful growth, lack of wider support or lack of a suitable policy context into which the initiative can fit. The public sector is well placed to offer support to all stages of a themed distinctiveness initiative. Support that may be appropriate to the incubation stages of distinctiveness projects is already covered in recommendations 1, 2 and 3. Below are some suggestions of further enabling and facilitation that may be required, some of which have already been successfully trialled through the Renaissance Market Towns programme:

Longer-term protective measures may include:

• Support can be given to sustain informal networks and the social capital required to develop themed distinctiveness, including provision of guidance with setting up appropriate delivery vehicles.

• Tax credits could be introduced to encourage the production of local food and produce.

• ‘Time banks’ can be set up as a method of recognising, valuing and encouraging volunteering contributions.

• The local economy can be supported by

• Succession planning and the

• The public realm can be improved to help to protect local distinctiveness.

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Distinctive Futures-Chapter 5. Implications for Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and Humber

development of exit strategies for the entrepreneur/figurehead can be encouraged where existing distinctiveness initiatives are underway.

This is important and needs planning for at an early stage to avoid burn out and guarantee the continued success of the initiative.

• Barriers can be removed at local levels.

This may be done by remodelling market squares and high streets to reduce the impact of traffic, by negotiating with national retail chains to promote the use of local suppliers, by commissioning bespoke designs for retail outlets or by establishing delivery times to avoid conflicts between pedestrians and peak traffic.

• Stakeholders can coordinate their efforts to support the themed distinctiveness by improving things such as ‘brown’ tourism signage, enhancing the quality of the hospitality sector and engaging with other external initiatives that can contribute to the theme.

• Yorkshire Forward and other public bodies can enable opportunities for promotion which the towns may not otherwise have access to. Each town’s needs would have to be considered on an individual basis, for example promoting and supporting projects concerned with preserving local customs, language, oral history and culture.

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Appendix 1

Themed Distinctiveness Unpacked

Centre for Alternative Technologies Machynlleth, Powys

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68 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

Case Study 1 - Machynlleth

Centre for Alternative Technology (insets) Machynlleth, Powys

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 1. Themed Distinctiveness Unpacked

Machynlleth Distinctiveness unpacked: the eco-tech story.

Population: 2,147 (Parish, 2001 Census).

Themed distinctiveness: Eco technology .

Other distinctiveness features: • Slow Food; • Arts – Museum of Modern Art (Wales) and The Tabernacle centre for performing arts.

Reason for inclusion: Machynlleth was selected as an exemplar of a rural town which has found a new lease of life through an eco technology focus, creating new opportunities for both enterprise and tourism.

When? 1973, the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) was founded on the site of the disused Llwyngwern slate quarry 3 miles from Machynlleth, in the Dyfi valley, mid Wales.

Who started it? One of the founders was charismatic and entrepreneurial aristocrat, Gerard Morgan-Grenville, along with other like-minded volunteers.

What was it? It was originally a ‘green’ community dedicated to eco-friendly principles; but from the outset it undertook research projects into practical implementation of new green technologies.

What is it now? CAT has grown to become an ‘Ecosite’, in European terms a demonstration site dedicated to environmental protection, sustainable development and social equity. It develops on-site, sustainable, innovation technology projects and promotes knowledge transfer through awareness campaigns, education, and visitor interpretation. It receives around 65,000 visitors every year.

How is it structured? CAT is a registered charity (company limited by guarantee) which operates the visitor centre and training activities and has a commercial trading arm, CAT plc, which operates the site shops, restaurants, cafe and mailorder outlet linked to the web site.

How did it grow? Gerard MorganGrenville is reputed to have put in

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£20,000 of personal funds into the initial establishment of CAT in 1973.

The charity’s 2006/7 accounts show a turnover of £4.2 million including £1.3 million in grants from around 80 sources including charitable trusts, ERDF, Powys County Council and the Welsh Assembly.

Over £2 million in earned income comes from training course fees. The plc’s turnover is around £2 million p.a.

Benefits to the town?

In combination, CAT is the largest enterprise in the region. A study of CAT (Harper, 2003) indicated that it brought in 5 million Euros per annum directly to the local economy through a combination of direct expenditure and visitor expenditure. At the time it employed 120 (full-time equivalent) staff, all living locally and, using a conventional multiplier of 2.5 estimated that about 300 people were supported directly and indirectly, in a total population of 12,000 people in the Dyfi Valley which is recognised as an area with high unemployment. Employment numbers have continued to increase gradually since then. It is now staffed by approx. 150 permanent and seasonal staff and 12 volunteers/internships all year round, and a further 60 people during the summer months.

Spin-off developments: CAT directly stimulated growth of other eco-related industries in and around Machynlleth town: • Dulas Engineering originated in a shed on the CAT site and developed products there. In 1982, it relocated to edge of Machynlleth and has grown to 60 employees. Now known as Dulas Ltd. Highly innovative and with its own R&D capability, Dulas Ltd presently operates in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America.

• The award winning ‘Very Efficient Heating Company’ is also based Machynlleth; established in 1993 by Chris Laughton of CAT.

• Aber Instruments was established in June 1988 following several years of R&D into biomass monitoring at CAT (jointly with the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, and I.C.I. Biological Products).

◦◦ A range of sustainable tourism projects (visitor research, cycling tourism promotion, active holiday promotion); ◦◦ Advice on setting up community renewable energy projects and accessing domestic Energy efficiency advice and grants;

• Other jobs have been created/ sustained through the award-winning Dyfi Eco Park, which was established in Machynlleth, funded by the Welsh Development Agency. The park is home to Byteback Systems, a specialist software company.

• Ecodyfi also acts as an advocate and support to other initiatives:

• The park offers a mixture of office and light industrial units built to a high standard of environmental performance.

◦◦ It supported and promoted local people to obtain Fair Trade status for the Dyfi valley.

Benefits to the hinterland?

• The creation of Ecodyfi: The ripple effect from CAT has stimulated an interest green technologies and lifestyles which permeate the whole of the Dyfi Valley and has been taken up by the strategic authorities: • Ecodyfi was founded in 1997 – initially by individuals from Powys County Council and Dulas Ltd - eventually establishing itself as the local regeneration organisation for the Dyfi Valley.

• It is now a partnership body whose members include local individuals, private companies, voluntary bodies, local authorities, Snowdonia National Park and the Welsh Development Agency. It is a not-for-profit organisation.

• Originally focused on the ‘green economy’, Ecodyfi now acts as the umbrella grouping for community regeneration activity in the valley.

It levers in funding from a number of sources and runs a wide range of projects including: ◦◦ Promotion of take up of outdoor activities by local people (funded

by Lottery and Countryside Council for Wales); ◦◦ The ‘Footprint’ project to calculate carbon footprint of the valley;

◦◦ The ‘Rubbish Resistance’ domestic waste reduction project.

◦◦ It is heading a campaign for the Dyfi Valley to regain its status as a UNESCO ‘Biosphere Reserve’ (which is a designation for areas which enables local people to protect the things they value – local knowledge, language and culture as well as the local and global environment). ◦◦ It supported the set up of a ‘Communities First’ partnership, funded by Welsh Assembly Government, as part of a programme aimed at cutting poverty and helping to improve the lives of people who live in the poorest areas.

How to sustain it?

CAT’s visitor numbers appear to have hit a peak and may have begun to drop/plateau. As a result, the two CAT companies restructured in 2006/7 to enable both to operate at a profit. Wages appear to be low. CAT’s company accounts assert that employees are paid less than the average for Wales and that it would cost a further £400,000 p.a. to bring wages up to that level. This employment model may only be sustainable due to the commitment of its workers to the company ethos. Overall, however, the CAT business model appears to be sound; the continued commitment to R&D which should result in additional commercial opportunities.

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SWOT Analysis: Strengths: Intellectual capital; landscape; diversity of visitor offer; strong background employers; hinterland benefiting from Ecodyfi – valley partnership projects.

Weaknesses: Lack of tourism support funding; poor quality of some buildings; challenges to Machynlleth’s ‘eco’ identity.

Opportunities: Machynlleth at heart of sustainable Dyfi Valley (landscape, farming, food and tourism); potential roll out of new spin off companies from CAT, Dulas, etc.; renovation of key historic features – campaign for Clock Tower restoration and proposed conversion of Tannery as sculpture centre.

Threats: Stasis - visitors to CAT have levelled out; closure of tourist office 2009; criticised for limited/poor visitor accommodation.

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Case Study 2 - Hay-on-Wye

Local book sales (insets) Hay-on-Wye, Powys

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 1. Themed Distinctiveness Unpacked

Hay-on-Wye Distinctiveness unpacked: the Book Town story.

Population: 1,450 (Parish, 2001 Census).

Themed distinctiveness: the original ‘Book Town’.

Reason for inclusion: Hay-on-Wye is an important example of the way that themed distinctiveness can be conceived and grown over decades becoming a dominant part of town’s identity and a key economic driver.

How did it start? 1961, entrepreneur Richard Booth opened the first secondhand bookshop in Hay, convinced that a town full of bookstores would be an international attraction.

How did it grow? Private enterprise and a passion for books has driven the growth in the number of shops - many of the people who have worked for Richard Booth opened their own bookshops.

By the late 1970s, Hay had become the world’s first official Book Town with over 30 bookshops.

What is it now? There are now almost 40 bookshops in the town employing approximately 100 staff. It has inspired the international Book Town movement.

Richard Booth was awarded an MBE in 2004 and recently sold his bookshop for a reputed £1 million.

• Hay Festival is constituted as a notfor-profit company and run on highly commercial lines; its turnover in 2006/7 was £1.8 million of which government grants represented just 13%. It has a core team of just 12 staff but employs up to 120 over the festival period. The directors’ successful management approach meant they were invited in early 2009 to take over the management of the Brecon Jazz Festival.

• Interest in Hay has stimulated growth of over of over 60 Book Towns globally.

With funding from the EU Telematics programme in the late 90s, it has led to the establishment of the International Organisation of Book Towns – with 13 members - and an annual International Book Town Festival. (The 6th was held in Montereggio in 2008).

• There have been many smaller positive effects. The growth of the Book Town and festival encouraged artists and craftspeople to locate in the Hay area.

Hay supports a number of art galleries and The Haymakers, a small artists’ cooperative, has been flourishing since the 1980s.

• United Hay, a cultural regeneration body was set up in 1997 with funding from the Wales Development Agency; its development worker was instrumental in setting up a number of community and arts projects and contributed to the re-launch of the local Chamber.

Spin off developments: • The first Hay Literary Festival took place in 1988, spearheaded by Norman Florence, an arts administrator at the British Council, and his son Peter Florence, a young actor, who is reputed to have funded the first event with the winnings of a poker game.

Benefits to the town?

• The 2008 Festival was sponsored by The Guardian newspaper and claimed 80,000 visitors over ten days, attracting big literary names from all over the world. Now branded as ‘Hay Festival Wales’, it now operates a number of international ‘franchises’, including ‘Hay Festival Alhambra’ and ‘Hay Festival Segovia’.

• The town attracts both practising and retired professionals and sustains a high proportion of accountancy, solicitors, estate agents compared with its 1,450 population.

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The combination of Book Town status and successful festival has had multiple benefits: • Bookshops have regenerated buildings that had been long neglected.

• A range of arts and antiquarian businesses have opened. Hay now has around 17 restaurants.

• Hay now has an international profile and is reputed to attract over 500,000 tourists each year; 54,000 people visited Hay’s tourist office in 2008.

ways to maintain the attractively offbeat reputation of the town.

SWOT Analysis: Benefits to the hinterland?

• The Hay Festival is a major employer during its two weeks, providing employment opportunities that are of benefit to a wider fifteen mile radius and an important injection of capital into a largely seasonal economy. Other tourist opportunities include hill-walking, fishing and horse riding. These help to maintain a hospitality infrastructure that in turn benefits the town.

Strengths: Economically resilient and diverse; socially embedded.

Weaknesses: Lack of social inclusion (gentrification); potential resilience of identity.

Opportunities: Globalisation of Book Town and literary festival concepts with ‘Hay’ as flagship brand.

Threats: Perceived interference by statutory agencies; internal tensions between shopkeepers and the Festival.

• It has stimulated a significant growth of visitor accommodation in the area; 10% of visitors have overnight stays.

• The Festival, which is now located outside of the town centre, is estimated to bring more than £3million each year into the local economy.

How to sustain it?

• The cultural attractions have increased Hay’s popularity as a retirement community pushing up housing prices.

• Whilst the Hay Festival thrives, much of the employment created is seasonal, low paid and there is a perception that local residents do not always benefit from the visitor economy.

• In a recent media battle (January 2009), shopkeepers in Hay reported falling sales, which they attribute jointly to the dominance of the Festival, its out-oftown location and the rise of Internet book sales.

• Richard Booth, a charismatic figure who once proclaimed Hay an independent kingdom and himself as its King, is largely retired, and the town is feeling the lack of its media savvy figurehead.

• The network of well-established bookshops and book entrepreneurs that has developed – in part through Richard Booth’s tutelage – is working through

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Case Study 3 - Rutland Water

Rutland Water (insets) Rutland

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 1. Themed Distinctiveness Unpacked

Rutland Water Distinctiveness unpacked: the story of Rutland Water.

Population: 34,563 (County. 2001 Census). Three market towns cluster around Rutland Water. Populations: • Oakham 9975 (Parish); • Uppingham 3947 (Parish); • Stamford 19525 (Parish).

Themed distinctiveness: Outdoor leisure and water sports; heritage cluster.

Individual distinctiveness features: • Rutland Water: nature reserves, fishing, water sports; • Oakham: Historic Oakham Castle, Rutland’s County Museum, Britain in Bloom award winner; • Uppingham: Arts & antiques - includes prestigious Goldmark Gallery; • Stamford: 11 historic churches, Fair Trade Town.

Common distinctiveness features: • Heritage: Quality of fabric of three historic market towns; • Outdoor recreation & sports: Easy access to Rutland Water and its facilities; • Education: Respected public school in each town; • Commuter towns: good road and rail links to Leicester, Nottingham, Peterborough, London; • Food & shopping: Quality farmers markets and restaurants; predominance of independent retailers.

Reason for inclusion: Rutland Water was selected as one of the case studies as it offered the opportunity to study the impact of large-scale, outdoor leisure and water sports provision and its relationship to and impact on its ‘hinterland’. It had synergies with potential clusters in Yorkshire and parallels with international exemplars such as Emscher Park in Germany.

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When? Rutland Water was completed in 1977 by Anglian Water in response to East Midlands’ growing regional water supply needs.

What was it? At the time Rutland Water was one of the largest man-made reservoirs in Europe, covering 1225 hectares. Several farms and one whole village were lost through the creation of the reservoir which was vociferously opposed at the time.

What is it now? It is now recognised as a major asset to both local people and visitors offering a wide range of outdoor leisure pursuits. The extensive Nature Reserve, which was created at the same time as the reservoir, is a site of special scientific interest, is designated as a European Special Protection Area and internationally recognised as a globally important wetland RAMSAR site. There is a 25-mile circular track for walking and cycling, nationally significant bird reserve, international class fishing, Olympic class sailing facilities, as well as a range of amateur water sports, rock climbing, golf, leisure cruises, and visitor centres. The dramatically positioned St Matthews Church, Normanton, which is now a museum, was located just above the proposed water line and now appears to float, surreally, at the water’s edge.

How is it structured? Rutland Water is owned and developed by Anglian Water who operate several of the visitor facilities including the Fishing Lodge and Watersports Centre. In partnership with Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust they manage the Rutland Water Nature Reserve, Education Centre and Birdwatching Centre. Others such as the Sailing School, Rokblok (climbing centre), cruise ship (Rutland Belle), Cycle Hire/ Cycle Shop, Golf Club and Garden Centre are operated by tenants/ franchises which have sprung up around the water to form a core part of the visitor offer. For example, the highly successful Sailing Club is a membership organisation with over 800 members which has grown to create Olympic class racing facilities.

Benefits to the hinterland?

SWOT analysis:

Strategically positioned at the heart of Rutland County, the smallest and oldest county in England, Rutland Water is surrounded by a cluster of small, relatively affluent ‘heritage’ market towns. Figures to underpin an analysis of the economic benefits of the Water to the towns are not readily available but anecdotally there appears to be considerable synergy:

Strengths: Resilience - the towns reflect a layered economy with some local industry as well as agricultural linkages; proximity to urban centres with road and rail connections – ability to commute is a major driver of change; diverse tourism offer, year round attractions; high volume events and festivals (not just at the Water - Burghley Horse trials (just outside Stamford) attracts 160,000 in three days.

Anglian Water’s international fishing events attract thousands of participants each year, the Osprey project attracts 15,000 people per breeding season, the annual bird watching festival attracts 100,000 in 3 days.

Retailers and local B&B hosts report the beneficial effect of Rutland Water as a year round attraction but, equally, the visitors to the Water benefit from the towns’ quality restaurants, cafes, deli’s, award winning butchers, micro-brewery, galleries, etc.

Each of the towns has an active local voluntary sector which is responsible for some key aspects of the towns’ appeal: UppTheArts promotes a year round professional theatre programme, Oakham Arts Festival is growing in size and reputation, and the Oakham In Bloom campaign has national award winning status. Volunteers are critically involved in some aspects of Rutland Water, for example at the Anglian Water Birdwatching Centre.

Weaknesses: Little sense of ‘ownership’ of Rutland Water by market townsfolk; poor signage and branding of towns.

Opportunities: Improve gateways, signage and branding; invest in growth of the arts festivals and Oakham Beer Festival Threats: Population growth / new housing developments but strain on local services; retaining individuality (Tesco has arrived in Oakham).

Footnote: Stamford, which is technically in Lincolnshire, is frequently included in the promotional material for Rutland’s tourism offer, being only a few miles from Rutland Water.

Branding and promotion: The ‘Rutland’ tourism offer is jointly promoted by Anglian Water and Rutland County. Anglian Water also promote the Rutland Water experience directly; it is only one of several reservoirs across the region which they successfully exploit for leisure purposes. Rutland Water’s attractions are well signposted and clearly branded at all key access points.

By contrast, key routes into the market towns feature standard white signage and, in contrast with the ‘cluster’ promoted in the tourism brochures, there was little to suggest linkages between the three towns.

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Case Study 4 - Made in Northumberland

Lion’s Club volunteers and signage (insets) Alnwick, Northumberland

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Made in Northumberland Distinctiveness unpacked: a regional initiative.

Population: n/a.

Themed distinctiveness: Local food and produce.

Reason for inclusion: Although not affiliated to a single town, Made in Northumberland was included as an example of a high profile, agency-led initiative, which aimed to emphasise the ‘distinctive’ character of indigenous food and produce. Examining the impact of the Made in Northumberland brand formed part of the case study visit to Alnwick – a place that is increasingly establishing its reputation as a Food Town.

How did it start? Made in Northumberland (MiN) was initiated in 2006 by Northumberland Tourism in response to visitor surveys which showed visitors to Northumberland were disappointed with the lack of good quality, local produced food and drink and the poor quality gift offering and disappointing shopping experience.

Initially concentrating on food, MiN gradually extended its remit to enhance the gift market by working with local professional artists and craft makers, to increase activity-based holidays offered to visitors and, through a training programme, to improve business skills of the food tourism industry in partnership with Northumberland College.

How did it grow? A ‘top-down’ regional initiative, MiN was led and housed

by Northumberland Tourism; it was financed by the Northumberland Strategic Partnership and One NorthEast over a three-year period from 2006. (It received £156,598 in 2007/2008 and £198,200 in 2008/2009.)

Where is it now? At the time of the research it was in the process of winding down, closing at the end of March 2009.

Activities MiN successfully undertook a wide range of project-based initiatives mostly aimed at raising awareness of the benefits of 82 Bauman Lyons with Design Leeds. October 2009

promoting locally produced distinctive produce. These included: • A toolkit to be used by food businesses in Northumberland, which provides sample, costed menus that would produce a 70% gross profit at the suggested selling prices; • Workshops with artists, makers and accommodation providers to broker partnerships and develop more art-based tourism activity in Northumberland; • Farm tours to introduce local chefs, restaurateurs, hoteliers and pub landlords to local farmers and food producers; • A ‘Made in Northumberland’ website (www.made-in-northumberland.co.uk) which promoted Northumberland as a culinary and cultural destination; • A tourism activity calendar promoting 2 months of food based events and activities to visitors; • Animations at Berwick and Alnwick Food Festivals, helping the local organisers to increase visitor footfall; • Extensive local, regional and national media coverage for Northumberland food and produce offer.

Did it work?

• An independent evaluation (November 2008) concluded that local food and arts and crafts producers were generally very positive about MiN’s role in enhancing the offering of local food, drink and locally distinctive products and services to the visitors of Northumberland and in strengthening business networks.

• MiN was generally credited with increasing awareness of Northumberland as a destination for quality food and arts and crafts produce and for stimulating interest and ambition amongst producers.

• By increasing local produce on menus MiN is generally perceived to have at least contributed to five restaurants

in Northumberland being listed in the Good Food Guide 2009. This compares to none in 2008.

• On the other hand, some criticisms were levelled at MiN on our site visits: ◦◦ Some of those interviewed felt that insufficient credit was given to the fact that both the food and music festivals were set up and run by local volunteers. (Alnwick Lions Club, for example, are organisers of both the local Food and Beer and Music festivals.) ◦◦ Some local stakeholders felt that there was little substance to the MiN campaign – there were complaints from individuals in the catering industry that some of the recipes promoted

by MiN were not genuinely from Northumberland.

Why did it wind up?

In the absence of any published report, there is no definitive answer to this question. However, the following may all have been influential: • MiN was set up as a fixed-term / pilot project with grant support and did not appear to have developed longer-term income streams (from membership charges, etc).

• Although driven by a well-regarded officer team, it was agency-led rather than being run by its membership or by a local partnership. There was no apparent sense of ‘ownership’ amongst its beneficiaries and no strong champion emerging to fight for its continuation in any other guise – for example, as a social enterprise.

• Many of MiN’s benefits seemed to have fallen into the category of ‘soft outcomes’ rather than hard outcomes such as measurable increases in employment, visitor numbers or visitor spend and, although in the evaluation report some producers did report direct trading benefits, this would undoubtedly restrict its access to future funding

streams.

• Its activities were wide-ranging; it appears this may have led to some confusion about whether it was providing a business-to-business service or a tourism promotion service.

Some of its activities were superseded by the emergence of other bodies particularly the North East England Food and Drink Group (a strategic partnership involving key agencies which was set up in 2007) and Northumbria Larder (a membership organisation for fine food and drink producers).

What next?

• The strategic bodies are now emphasising the development of distinctiveness in individual towns in Northumberland through the Market Towns Welcome (MTW) project. This project is funded by Northumberland Tourism, the Northumberland Strategic Partnership and ONE North East. It builds on research into Retail Distinctiveness done in 2007.

• The project is being co-ordinated by Miller Research (UK) Ltd, which is assisting each of the participating towns to develop its own ambitious tourism destination development plan. These have clear priorities and objectives, including, in some instances, improvements to the food and drink offer, proposed public realm improvements, enhanced cultural provision and increased business support.

• The sustainability of MTW is underpinned by ensuring collaboration with a local Leadership Group, such as the Greater Morpeth Development Trust and the Hexham Community Trust, which bring together public and private sectors to take ownership of the plan and drive the process.

• Miller has already produced a number of templates to help market towns undertake their own audit and conduct their own research. For the future,

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development of a web-based toolkit is being explored.

• With seven towns participating in 2008 and two more now listed the project is still at an early stage of development.

The challenge for a policy/tourismbased approach will be twofold.

First, to give sufficient priority to the uniquely distinctive characteristics of each town. (For example, to preserve and promote Seahouses’ traditional kipper smokehouses and fishermen’s courtyards where nets were communally mended.) Second to identify and support the growth of new forms of distinctiveness which can be nurtured.

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Appendix 2

Designated Distinctiveness Delivery Models

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 2. Designated Distinctiveness Delivery Models

Cittaslow ‘A Network of Towns Where Quality of Life is Important’ http://www.cittaslow. org.uk/

Fairtrade Town http://www.fairtrade. org.uk/

Slow Food Movement http://www.slowfood. org.uk/

History

Aims

Selection

Evaluation Criteria

Cittaslow, is Italian for “slow city” or “slow town” and is an international network of towns. A Cittaslow town signs up to working towards a set of goals that aim to improve quality of life. There are Cittaslow National Networks in Italy, England, Wales, Germany, Norway, Poland and Portugal.

Ludlow became the first UK Cittaslow in 2003.

Cittaslow aims to improve quality of life, it is described as a way of thinking. It is about caring for your town and the people who live and work in it or visit it. It is about protecting the environment, about promoting local goods and produce, and about avoiding the ‘sameness’ that afflicts too many towns in the modern world.

Towns can apply to become part of the Cittaslow Network.

Towns need to pass an assessment before being admitted as a member of the Cittaslow network. The first stage is a self assessment against a number of weighted criteria / goals. There are 3 categories of membership: Cittaslow, Town Supporter and Cittaslow Friend.

There are over 60 different criteria that any town applying to join Cittaslow must seek to address. These are split into 6 broad headings: • Environment policies; • Infrastructure policies; • Enhancing the quality of the urban fabric; • Celebrating and promoting local produce and local products; • Hospitality & community; • Communicating awareness and understanding of Cittaslow.

In April 2000, Garstang in Lancashire declared itself “the World’s first Fairtrade Town’”.

The campaign caught the imagination of local people, the interest of politicians, and made headlines across the North West. There are now over 400 Fairtrade Towns as well as more than 200 areas campaigning towards status. There are also Fairtrade Town campaigns in 17 countries around the world and all of these have been inspired by the example in the UK.

A Fairtrade Town is a town, city, village, county, zone, island or borough that has made a commitment to supporting Fairtrade and using products with the FAIRTRADE Mark. Fair trade towns support Fairtrade in demanding a trade system that puts people, not profit at the heart of the transaction

Any area can work towards Fairtrade status this includes: towns, cities, boroughs, villages, islands, counties and zones. An area sets up a campaign, each Fairtrade Town campaign is unique and the way in which Fairtrade status is achieved is different for every community. The area then applies to become a Fairtrade Town by completing an application form and meeting the evaluation criteria.

To become a Fairtrade Town, the following 5 goals must be met: • Local Council passes a resolution supporting Fairtrade, and agrees to serve Fairtrade products.

• A range of Fairtrade products are readily available in the area’s retail outlets and served in local catering outlets.

• Local workplaces and community organisations support Fairtrade and use Fairtrade products whenever possible.

• Media coverage and events raise awareness and understanding of Fairtrade across the community.

• A local Fairtrade steering group is convened to oversee the Fairtrade Town Campaign.

Slow Food UK is a national association representing the UK in the worldwide Slow Food movement. In August 2005 a founding congress was held in Skye, Scotland but for many years before Slow Food was active through local convivia (local branches) supported by Slow Food in Italy. The Slow Food movement was founded in Italy over 20 years ago. Slow Food UK was founded because the growing membership and convivia required support and services through a national UK office. Slow Food UK works in partnership with local convivia active in their respective communities.

The aim is that the movement is open and accessible to all.

Slow Food UK is a catalyst for positive and lasting change for people who seek food which is good, clean and fair. It works to break down barriers to a better understanding and help people make informed choices.

The movement works to raise public awareness about the journey food takes to reach the table through our educational programmes. Slow Food UK also works to preserve the richness and diversity of food heritage and promote methods of sustainable agriculture as the foundation of an alternative and more beneficial food system.

Slow Food Movement is a voluntary model. Individuals, families and organisations or groups can join the Slow Food Movement as a Member, Partner or Sustainer: • Member - Subscription fee for an individual or family; • Sustainer - Invest in the organisation by donation; • Partner - Form strategic partnerships, for example, with cultural, environmental, heritage and educational bodies.

Slow Food Movement is not a geographical designation; it is based on membership of individuals and groups.

As the aim of the Slow Food movement is to be open and accessible to all Slow Food activities are, wherever possible, are run free of charge or at cost to participants.

Bursaries are offered where the funding of an activity cannot be found. There is a modest subscription fee to become a member of Slow Food, but this does not cover the cost of running activities or Slow Food UK itself.

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Book Towns http://www.booktown. net/

Britain in Bloom Competition http://www.rhs.org. uk/britaininbloom/

Transition Towns Methodology http://www. transitiontowns.org/

History

Aims

Selection

Evaluation Criteria

According to the International Organisation of Book Towns, a Book Town is a small rural town or village in which second-hand and antiquarian bookshops are concentrated. Most Book Towns have developed in villages of historic interest or of scenic beauty. The Book Town concept was initiated by Richard Booth in Hay-on-Wye, Wales. In 1961 Richard Booth opened the first second-hand bookshop in Hay, convinced that a town full of bookshops would be an international attraction. By the late 1970s, Hay had become the world’s first official Book Town. The Book Town concept according to the International Organisation of Book Towns offers an exemplary model of sustainable rural development and tourism.

The aims of the International Organisation are to: • Raise public awareness of Book Towns and stimulate interest via the internet and by the International Book Town Festival every second year; • Enhance the quality of Book Towns by exchanging knowledge and skills between the Book Towns sellers and other businesses; • Strengthen the rural economy; • Undertake activities which can serve the interests of Book Towns and strengthen independent businesses in Book Towns; • Maintaining regional and national cultural heritage.

Self-selection? Members of the Book Town organisations can be associations, organisations, local governments, businesses and individuals in Book Towns.

The entrance fee for towns and municipalities is 1000 Euros and the annual fee after the first year 250 Euros; for organisations and associations 250 Euros and 50 Euros; for individuals 100 Euros and 25 Euros.

In the case of selecting the Scottish Book Town (Wigtown was chosen) towns submitted written proposals. Site visits were then undertaken

by Scottish Enterprise and European Book Town advisors.

Presentations made to the assessors. An evaluation panel then operated two forms of assessment in the final evaluation: • Qualitative assessment of towns derived from comments and observations made by members of the evaluation panel, in response to the written proposals and the additional information gathered during the visits and presentations; • A quantitative assessment based on scoring of the towns on a five-point scale derived from the critical success factors identified in studies into the Hay-on-Wye and European Book Towns.

The Britain in Bloom competition is organised and run by the Royal Horticultural Society.

Britain in Bloom is one of the largest horticultural campaigns in Europe. Entrants compete against each other within their area and then selected communities are nominated to compete against each other in the RHS UK finals.

The year round aim is creating a more beautiful Britain. The aim of the competition is to encourage communities of all sizes to make positive and lasting improvements to their local areas for the benefit of local people. People entering the Awards have reported safer communities, making friends with neighbours they never knew, turning around ‘grot spots’, transforming rundown areas and creating new and wonderful spaces for everyone to enjoy.

Individuals, community groups and local authorities can enter the Britain in Bloom competition.

Britain in Bloom has 10 entry categories, based on the population of each entry. The entries are judged by two judges who undertake a “tour” of the area entered. The route must provide examples of work and projects that meet all the categories in which points are awarded. The success of the entry into the competition rests entirely on the success of the judging tour.

The judges award points based on the following categories: floral displays, permanent landscaping, Local agenda 21 and sustainable development, local environmental quality and public awareness. These categories are weighted differently, the most important being the first 2 categories.

Transition Towns: ‘Tackling Peak Oil and Climate Change Together’. The movement is supported by Transition Network which was set up in spring 2007 to support Transition Initiatives around the world.

The aim is to address the following question: how can our community respond to the challenges, and opportunities, of Peak Oil and Climate Change?

The Transition Network’s aim is ‘to support community led responses to peak oil and climate change, building resilience and happiness’.

Open to any group of people however there is a Formal Transition Initiative and applications for formal status are managed by Transitions Networks Ltd. The movement is relatively new. Information on the process is provided in the Transition Network Document.

There are 7 general principles and 6 practical guidelines which initiatives on which ever scale are asked to observe. The principles are: • Positive visioning; • Help people to access good information and trust them to make good decisions; • Inclusion and openness; • Enable sharing and networking; • Build resilience; • Inner and outer transition; • Subsidiarity - self organisation and decision-making at the appropriate level.

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Appendix 3

Other Approaches to Distinctive Place Making

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 3. Other approaches to distinctive placemaking

Market Towns Initiative Healthcheck (No longer available online.)

Spaceshaper http://www.cabe.org. uk/publicspace/ spaceshaper

Market Towns Welcome (ONE North East initiative) http://www.markettownwelcome.co.uk/ http://www.distinctiveness.co.uk/Default. aspx / Destination Plan for Seahouses, Report (June 2008)

History

Aims

Selection

Evaluation Criteria

The Countryside Agency launched the Market Towns Initiative in May 2001. The initiative included financial support for 140 towns to carry out Healthchecks, part of the Market Towns Toolkit. The market town healthchecks allowed local people to identify the economic, environmental and social strengths and weaknesses of a market town and its surrounding countryside, the Healthchecks helped people to identify the impact of changing local circumstances and was the basis for creating an action plan for revitalisation.

The Healthchecks aims were to bring a new lease of life to market towns so that they provide convenient access to the services that surrounding rural communities depend on retail and professional services, training and jobs, leisure and cultural opportunities. The Market Towns Healthcheck provides a critical opportunity to change these generalised views of the functions of a town and nature of its hinterland. As a result, the strategic situation of the town can be fitted into the broader strategies more accurately; in turn, those broader strategies can better serve the needs of the people in the town and hinterland.

The term ‘market town’ covers towns in rural England with a variety of backgrounds, including those that have traditionally hosted an agricultural market, as well as seaside resorts, fishing ports, mining and manufacturing towns.

Populations range roughly from 2,000 to 20,000, but the ability to serve people in both the town and its surrounding countryside is more important than the town’s size.

The Healthcheck looks at the following areas and a SWOT analysis is prepared for each: Environmental; Economic; Social and Community; Transport and Accessibility.

Spaceshaper is a practical toolkit, developed by CABE to measure the design quality of a public space before investing time and money in improving it. It combines a structured workshop, led by a trained facilitator, with specially designed questionnaire and software which enables ‘instant’ analysis of participants views.

Spaceshaper captures the views of both staff who are managing the space as well as those of the people that use the space. It encourages people to demand more from their local spaces.

Aims can include: • Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of a space • Comparing different people’s views • Establishing what is most important to people • Measuring how well the space is meeting user’s needs • Tracking changes in people’s perception over time • Stimulating new ideas for improvements • Setting priorities for a new space.

The ‘client’ (local authority, Town Team, community group) identifies the site which can include parks, green spaces, town squares, etc.

The site is then evaluated using individual questionnaires in terms of: • Access: finding your way about; • Use: what activities and opportunities the space has to offer; • Other people: how the space caters for different needs; • Maintenance: how clean and cared for the space is; • Environment: how safe and comfortable the space is; design and appearance: what the space looks like and what materials it uses; • Community: how important the space is to local people; • You: how the space makes you feel.

The results of the evaluation are entered into software which produces a set of spider charts and diagrams to visually illustrate the results.

Miller Research in partnership with Alison Caffyn Research Consultant and AMTI were commissioned by One NorthEast, Northumberland Tourism and Northumberland Strategic Partnership (NSP) to develop a destination plan model which could be applied to market towns within the region. The project has been run in six market towns in Northumberland: Berwick, Alnwick, Amble, Seahouses, Haltwhistle and Wooler. All the towns except Berwick have recently conducted a study into developing their retail distinctiveness and competitiveness. This work highlighted the growing importance of tourism to each town but was not able to develop specific actions to help each town develop their tourism economies. The destination plans now aim to complement the retail work and focus on developing the tourism potential in each town.

The overall aim is to help rural market towns to achieve their full potential as tourist destinations and to prioritise investment in improvements to their attractions and facilities.

The process comprises working with town groups to understand the current tourism infrastructure and identify where gaps and problems are occurring.

The information is used to inform a strategic planning process with key members of the local community to identify actions for future activity which could help improve the value of tourism in each town.

All the towns in the Market Towns Welcome project are located in Northumberland and rely heavily on tourism to support their local economy.

The towns were selected initially by Northumberland Tourism and ONE North East.

Once the model had been developed, it was rolled out to further towns in the region.

The development of the tourist economy will be a measurable output of the Market Towns Welcome Project. The tourism sector employs a high proportion of local people and contributes directly or indirectly to a large part of the local economy.

Recent research (STEAM 2006) estimates the impact of tourism in Northumberland: • Northumberland receives 1.8 million overnight tourists, spending 6.6 million nights in the area, plus 8 million day visits.

• Overnight visitors spent £248 million; day visitors spent a further £142 million, plus indirect revenue of £228 million giving a total contribution of tourism to the Northumberland economy of £621 million • Approximately 11,400 jobs (full time equivalents) were supported by direct tourist expenditure, a further 2,650 jobs were supported by indirect revenue.

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The SusSET Toolkit (Sustaining Small Expanding Towns) http://www.susset. org/welcome.html

LODIS - Local Distinctiveness Strategies http://www.ihbc.org. uk/context_archive/60/ LODIS/lodis.html / Chesters Local Distinctiveness Strategy, ChesterCity Council (Sept 2002)

Placemaking CharterA Charter for Destination Management. www.enjoyengland. com

History

Aims

Selection

Evaluation Criteria

The SusSET Toolkit is a toolkit to help EU small towns (population under 50,000) to develop in the 21st Century. The SusSET project has 12 partners which represent 12 SusSET towns within the EU, these towns include Ellon, Inverurie and Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The other 9 SusSET towns are in Sweden, Poland and Western Greece. The SusSET project was undertaken in 2007, the partners hope that the EU or the EU Small Town Association will adopt the Toolkit and commit to developing its next stage. The initial work was undertaken by people who are responsible for and / or have experience in looking after their towns, the Toolkit is described as a product ‘by practitioners for practitioners’. The Toolkit facilitates the production of a Sustainable Small Town Strategy which incorporates 18 components, the concept of developing a ‘themed town’ falls into the ‘Identity and Culture’ component and is therefore just one aspect of the strategy.

The Toolkit provides a model for managing change; it offers advice for small towns across Europe to help towns find ‘coping strategies’ for the first quarter of the 21st Century. The Toolkit recognises that small towns are often neglected through national policy and in some cases are suffering from acute problems including economic failures due to rapid advances in technology, democracy and the global economy. The project partners recognise the role small towns have to play in the quest for ‘territorial cohesion’ across Europe and in the pursuit for ‘sustainable development’.

The Toolkit aims to: • Fill the research and policy gap with regard to small towns; • Pull documentation and case studies together in one place; • Present a model of how to approach small town strategy; • Identify key messages about safeguarding the future of small towns; • Raise the profile of small towns in EU regions.

Small towns are defined as those with a population of less than 50,000 and provide a service role. The Toolkit aims to help small traditional towns experiencing difficulties, these include: economic failures, lack of support to take advantage of growth opportunities, lack of support to fend off threats, loss of traditional functions, loss of young, mobile population, suffering from competition from cities or ‘cityflight’ (influx of people from cities into rural areas). SusSET partners developed the Toolkit based on several inter-town exchanges, discussions and meetings. The Toolkit can be used by any EU town (of population less than 50,000) to help produce a vision and strategy for the town.

If the Toolkit is used successfully it should facilitate towns to: • Produce a long term vision (at least 10 years); • Form a comprehensive and holistic strategy that integrates social, economic and environmental aspects; • Create opportunities for the town’s community to become truly involved in the vision and strategy and ‘buy in’ to the delivery process; • Ensure that the municipality is a committed champion or partner; • Create a mechanism such as a ‘partnership’ or ‘umbrella forum’ to act as co-ordinating body; • Form specific action plans to include ‘quick wins’ ; • Put a sound management system in place; • Attract resources and be creative in forming funding package solutions; • Be determined to achieve vision but remain flexible and alert to change; • Be outward looking and cooperate with other towns.

The link between local distinctiveness and economic competitiveness was the subject of an international project, titled LODIS, funded by the European Union, 1998. The partners participating in LODIS were Catania (Sicily), Salerno (Southern Italy), Vale do Lima (Northern Portugal), Limerick (Ireland), Visby (Sweden) and Chester. As lead partner, Chester was responsible for overall coordination and financial management. Each of the partners was responsible for an important historic city or region where there is a vital need to strengthen the local economy. Whilst all had commonality of problems and opportunities, such as environmental protection, traffic management and tourism, they all enjoyed differing political, cultural, social and economic conditions. All partners were also members of national and European networks of historic towns, which was intended to facilitate the spread of knowledge and good practice more widely.

The overall objectives were to develop Local Distinctiveness Strategies for each partner region and to establish a European Local Distinctiveness Network for technical and information exchange. The strategies were intended to provide a framework for a series of linked social and economic actions to promote the increased competitiveness of the local economy. They are intended to lead to consistency of decision-making regarding the public realm, so that individual actions reinforce the sense of place, rather than slowly erode it.

Specific aims include: • Ensuring the future vitality and viability of historic centres and their capacity to respond to external threats; • Involving local people and businesses to promote a sense of ownership, civic pride and sense of identity; • Encouraging a sustainable future based on the promotion of local skills and products; • Integrating the arts, heritage, local industries and urban design to shape the public realm; • Promoting cultural tourism and marketing to reinforce local character.

A key aspect of the three-year LODIS programme was a series of 27 pilot projects demonstrating aspects of local distinctiveness and links with the local economy. These included architectural lighting, street furniture, design guides, historic building repair handbooks, interpretative signage, street markets, ‘welcome host’ initiatives, traditional music festivals and partnership development. It is unknown how these towns were selected however as the LODIS research looks at the link between distinctiveness and economic competitiveness in theory it could be applied to any town or city. Chester’s Local Distinctiveness Strategy has the following aims: • To reinforce those characteristics that make Chester distinctive and nationally and internationally recognised; • To tackle those characteristics that are eroding Chester’s distinctive qualities; •To reinforce Chester’s economic competitiveness and its long term economic sustainability.

Using the example of Chester the distinctiveness strategy identifies issues, actions and indicators to evaluate the distinctive elements of the city. The distinctiveness of Chester is split into a number of categories including: events and attractions; tourism; shopping; economy; location and townscape. Within each of these categories the distinctive characteristics of Chester are described and issues, actions and indicators identified. To give an example, Chester Races is listed as a distinctive event within the events and attractions category, one distinctive feature of the races is that it is located in the heart of the city (unique in the UK), one of the identified issues is the hazardous route from the stables with the action to develop a racecourse masterplan. The indicators are the number of people attending the races and number of non-race events held. Such measurable outputs have been identified for each of the distinctive characteristics.

Launched in 2007, the Placemaking Charter is a product of Partners for England, an organisation of key stakeholder involved in the delivery of sustainable tourism in England.

The Placemaking Charter has been extensively piloted in the South West region, the results of which are continuing to refine the charter. However, the charter in its current form is still available for adoption by local authorities.

The charter is a tool for enabling local authorities and other key stakeholders involved in the delivery of destination management and tourism to co-ordinate and delivery sustainable tourism at local, regional and national level. The charter promotes 5 key principles which all stakeholders must realise and adopt: • integrate; • inform; • innovate; • invest and • improve.

The charter begins at the local authority level, with LA’s developing the charter in collaboration with other key stakeholder. The sub-regional tourism partnership then collates charters from LA’s within the region and makes recommendations to the Regional Development Agency (RDA), who then inform VisitBritain and the Tourism Alliance.

It is the responsibility of the RDA and the sub-regional tourism board to monitor the sign-up and results of the Charter by the LA’s, with the Local Government Association monitoring at a national level. If the Charter is used correctly it can be a useful tool to enable joined-up thinking in the implementation of national and regional policy.

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Appendix 4

Bibliography

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 4. Bibliography and weblinks

Action for Market Towns. Market Towns: Local Foodcheck Handbook. Bury St.Edmunds: Action for Market Towns Alexander, Christopher, 1979. The Timeless Way of Building. OUP USA. Allen, P., 2004. Spin-out Effects of Ecosites on Local Economies. The IPTS Report.

[Online] 83. Seville: European Commission, Joint Research Council, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies. Available at http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/home/ report/english/articles/vol83/ENV3E836.htm.

Arup, 2008. Low Carbon Rural Capitals Scoping Study. [pdf] Yorkshire Forward. Available at http://www.yorkshire-forward. com/improving-places/rural-areas/market-towns.

Bauman Lyons Architects, 2007. Market Towns of the Future. [pdf] Yorkshire Forward. Available at http://www.yorkshire-forward. com/improving-places/rural-areas/market-towns.

Bianchini, Franco & Parkinson, Michael, eds., 1993. Cultural Policy and Urban Regeneration: The West European Experience. Manchester: Manchester University Press.

Bradford Metropolitan District Council, 2008. Procurement Strategy 2008-11, [pdf].

Available at http://www.bradford.gov.uk Braithwaite, L., 1981. The Historic Towns of Britain. London: A&C Black Lts. Brown, Jonathan, 1986. The English Market Town: a social and economic history, 17501914. Wiltshire: Crowood Press.

Burdett, Ricky & Sudjic, Duyan. 2008. The Endless City. Phaidon Press Ltd. Clifford, Sue & King, Angela, eds., 1993. Local Distinctiveness: Place, Particularity and Identity. Common Ground. [Includes an article, Losing Your Place, by the editors.]

Clifford, S & King, A., 2006. England in Particular: A celebration of the commonplace, the local, the verncaulr and the distinctive. London: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd. Common Ground, undated. ABC - How to read your locality. [Leaflet and poster.]

Dorset: Common Ground.

Groves, Rick, Middleton, Alan, Murie, Alan, & Broughton, Kevin, 2003. Neighbourhoods that Work. Bristol: The Policy Press. (Study undertaken by University of Birmingham for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation).

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Harper, P., 2003. Influence of CAT on Local Development. Unpublished paper in: Hebden, M., 2005, Towards the Sustainable Region: Factors driving Sustainable development in the Dyfi Valley and their Wider Influence. [Dissertation] Dept. of Geography, University of Wales, Aberystwyth.

Hopkins, R., 2008. The Transition Handbook: From oil dependency to local resilience.

Totnes: Green Books Ltd. Hunter, I., 2006. A Cultural Strategy for Rural England: Investing in Rural Community Creativity and Cultural Capital, a discussion paper. [pdf] Littoral Arts Trust for Rural Cultural Forum. Available at www.littoral.org.uk.

Johns, Nick & Mattson, Jan, 2005. Destination development through entrepreneurship: a comparison of two cases. Tourism Management , 26 (2005).

King Sturge LLP, 2009. Rural Business Space Study. [pdf] Yorkshire Forward. Available at http://www.yorkshire-forward.com/improving-places/rural-areas/market-towns.

Partners for England, undated. Place Making: a Charter for destination management. [pdf] Partners for England. Available at: http://www.enjoyengland. com/corporate/corporate-information/partners-for-england/.

Rural East Action, undated. Evaluating Cittaslow: An East of England pilot project.

Ipswich: Rural Action East. (A report prepared for the East of England Market Towns Advisory Forum.)

Seaton, A. V., 1999. Book towns as tourism developments in peripheral areas.

International Journal of Tourism Research, 1(5).

Simms, Oram, MacGillivray & Drury, 2002. Ghost Town Britain: The threat from economic globalisation to livelihoods, liberty and local economic freedom. Available at: http://www.neweconomics.org/tex/z_sys_PublicationDetail.aspx?pid=127.

URBED, 1999. New Life for Smaller Towns: A Handbook for Action. London: URBED Wright, Peter, 2000. Yorkshire Placenames. Dalesman Publishing Co. Ltd. Yorkshire and Humber Assembly, 2009. Yorkshire and Humber Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. [pdf] Yorkshire and Humber Assembly. Available at http://www. adaptyh.co.uk/.

Yorkshire Forward, 2007. Assessing the Economic Performance of Rural Capitals in Yorkshire and the Humber. [pdf] Yorkshire Forward. Available at http://www.yorkshireforward.com/improving-places/rural-areas/market-towns.

Yorkshire Forward. A Charter for Destination Management-Draft. Leeds: Yorkshire

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 4. Bibliography and weblinks

Forward Yorkshire Forward, 2008. Yorkshire and Humber Visitor Economy Strategy 2008-2013. [pdf] Yorkshire Forward. Available at: http://www.yorkshire-forward.com/ourwonderful-region/our-role/visitor-economy-major-events.

Yorkshire Futures, 2009. Progress in the Region 2008. [pdf] Leeds:Yorkshire Futures.

Available at http://www.yorkshirefutures.com/

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Appendix 5

Think Tank Participants

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Distinctive Futures-Appendix 5. Think tank participants

Project team Research Director: Irena Bauman, Director, Bauman Lyons Architects Project Director & Think Tank facilitator: Yvonne Deane, Deane Associates Lead consultant & Think Tank Chair: Prof. Guy Julier, Leeds Metropolitan University Researchers: Alma Clavin, Alison Gillespie

Lead officers Rhona Pringle, [Rural Capitals], Yorkshire Forward Holly Forquilha, [Rural Capitals], Yorkshire Forward

Academic advisers (Leeds Metropolitan University) Prof. Ian Strange, Centre for Urban Development and Environmental Management Prof. Franco Bianchini, Cultural Planning and Policy Phil Long, Centre for Tourism and Cultural Change Simone Abram, Centre for Tourism and Cultural Change

Yorkshire Forward Debbie Rosen, [Sustainable Development], Yorkshire Forward Seamus McDonnell, [Renaissance Towns & Cities], Yorkshire Forward Ed Poulter, [Yorkshire Futures], Yorkshire Forward Rachel Jones, [South Yorkshire Regional Office], Yorkshire Forward.

Other Paul Dodd, Urban Designer, Urban Initiatives

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Photo credits Bauman Lyons Architects: front cover and pages 13, 43, 77 and 81.

Design Leeds: pages 21, 29, 57, 67, 69 and 73.

Bauman Lyons Architects Black Building 2 Newton Road Leeds LS7 4HE tel: 0113 350 8865 www.baumanlyons.co.uk

Design Leeds Leeds Metropolitan University Hepworth Point Claypit Lane Leeds LS2 8BQ Tel: 0113 812 6752 99

Rural Capitals Programme Yorkshire Forward Victoria House 2 Victoria Place Leeds LS11 5AE Tel: 0113 394 9839 Fax: 0113 394 9880 www.yorkshire-forward.com Š Yorkshire Forward, 2009