Design
Design Champions – tips from a top champion
In February 2006 Councillor Daniel Moylan, the Deputy Leader of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, came to talk to the Design and Historic Environment Champions Club in the North East about his role as champion in the controversial but now much praised re-design of Kensington High Street.
Download a copy of his notes on the background to this project and why good design was crucial to the reinvigoration of the High Street, and read his views on some key issues about championing good design. These are of particular relevance to Local Authority Councillors who are Design Champions, and to officers supporting their members.
The need to improve the quality of Kensington High Street, a major shopping destination and place of work, had become obvious to both the Council and local traders by the mid-1990’s. When Daniel Moylan became Deputy Leader of the Council and Chair of the Environmental Services Committee in May 2000, little progress had been made and, as he describes, ‘with the agreement of my colleague chairing the Planning and Conservation Committee, from this point on I took sole charge’.
What resulted has been hailed as an example of exemplary street design that turned accepted practice on its head, combined the best of traditional materials and the best of contemporary design, and has resulted in what is both an attractive modern streetscape and a successfully invigorated place.
The project also provides an excellent example of the role of a Design Champion. The attached file not only describes, in Daniel Moylan’s own words, the background to the project and his role in it, but also includes some tips for fellow champions and some things that officers might not want to hear!
Walk The Talk – Kensington High Street and the role of the Design Champion
