Gedling Design Code Framework Approved

Collection of design code documents for Gedling Borough Council, showcasing the core and additional documents.

Gedling Borough Council recently approved and adopted a Design Code Framework, prepared by David Lock Associates in collaboration with Proctor & Matthews Architects and Participatr.

Central to the framework is a Core Design Code Document, which sets out the overarching vision, key themes, and coding plan linked to settlement-wide visions and placemaking strategies. Additionally three Design Code Documents outline design requirements that are specifically tailored to different scales of development and their potential users, and a supporting Observation Library utilises information gathered through a baseline assessment and extensive engagement with stakeholders including officers and developers, the wider community, and via Participatr’s “Place Gedling” platform.

Gedling Borough forms part of the wider Greater Nottingham area, and is characterised by a variety of built environments, from hillside and ridgetop suburbs in urban areas, to traditional settlements and former colliery communities in valleys north of the River Trent. A series of case studies on the tapestry of settlements, with a focus on the most historic and culturally distinctive, were produced to inform the Code and its requirements, with illustrative contemporary examples given to demonstrate how residential developments can be designed to respond to the unique and distinctive features of the landscape and a true sense of place can be achieved.

The Design Code Framework, which formed part of the National Design Code Pathfinder project, sought to create an exemplar that can be followed by other authorities when preparing Design Codes to create places that are not only well-designed but locally distinctive. Members approving the Design Code Framework noted how easy it is to follow, and appreciated the approach taken to prepare the framework as a series of accessible documents.

David Lock Associates Partner, Stephen Haines said ‘working on this with the Pathfinder Project, has been a rewarding opportunity to show how Design Codes can balance practicality with inspiration. By focusing on local character and community input, we’ve created a framework that’s clear, usable, and deeply rooted in Gedling’s identity.’