Roundtable: Supporting the needs of communities in the future

As you know Suffolk Design is a major initiative by all the local authorities in Suffolk, supported by funding from the Ministry of Housing, Local Government and Communities, to improve design quality in the built environment. Over the next year we will be working to produce design guidance to help developers, designers and planners work together to help the County grow and make it fit for the future while maintaining its unique qualities and identity. Alongside this will be programme of learning and networking events.

We are now entering an intense period of discussion as we seek to gather the views of key stakeholders in the built and natural environment of Suffolk. We are planning four roundtables where leading individuals will meet to debate hot topics about the future development of Suffolk and two major workshops where a wide range of people working in the built environment will come together to build a consensus about design objectives for the County and how we work together to achieve them. All these discussions will help shape the design guidance. Alongside these there will be online surveys and engagement with the wider Suffolk public. The first of these online surveys can be found on the website.

In a short time one third of the county’s population will be over 65. How should the planning system respond to this and other demographic changes to support the changing needs of communities over the next 30 years ?

The discussion will be held under the Chatham House rule. This is an invitation only event and availability is very limited therefore we advise that you RSVP as soon as possible.