Colne, Earby and Barnoldswick Masterplans, Pendle
Pendle Borough Council have appointed a multi-disciplinary consultancy team, led by Optimised Environments Ltd (OPEN), to prepare masterplans to guide the role, function and physical development and regeneration of Colne, Earby and Barnoldswick centres and outlying areas over the next 10 to 15 years.
PLACED’s work is focused on Stage 1 (October 2022) and Stage 4 (Spring 2023).
What we did
Stage 1 was completed in October 2022, where our team delivered pop-up events in each town, as well as a steering group and online survey. In total, 260 people took part in PLACED engagement activities.
Throughout the engagement events, we asked the following questions
- What is missing in your town? (with a selection of precedents around 6 themes such as connectivity or community)
- What is unique or special about your town?
- What three words would you like to be able to use to describe your town in ten years’ time?
- What do you like about Colne, Earby and Barnoldswick?
- What would you change about Colne, Earby and Barnoldswick?
- How do you usually travel between the towns?
We returned in 2023 for a series of workshops for each location.
Outcomes
In Stage 1, we found that there were similar themes and specificities amongst the engagement. People wanted better transport links, well maintained routes and improved surfacing, as well as a better economy which focused more on children and young people. There was also a desire for safer public spaces, more homes for first time buyers and a greater support of local independent shops.
Colne suffers with traffic issues and economic inequalities, whereas Earby urgently needs regeneration and pedestrianisation in the town centre. In Barnoldswick, respondents spoke of a lack of public services and a need more investment in the area.
We will return to Pendle in early 2023 to engage with Stage 4, where the masterplans should begin to take shape following the previous stages.
