Planning the Data Revolution
Picture it: a drafty village hall, information boards with complicated technical language, and a group of angry residents. When many people think of consultations, this is the image they conjure up. A picture unchanged for decades.
While the pandemic forced consultations online, most swapped the village hall for a digital image of the very same hall, complete with photos of information boards. A different user experience, but functionally the same thing.
The industry can do better
This doesn’t have to be the case; we can do better. The traditional way of doing consultations is flawed, amplifying unrepresentative opinions and creating poor design that focuses on minimising the impact on existing residents and not creating exceptional places for the future.
But how can we do this? It starts with challenging the status quo – considering questions like:
- Can we communicate planning information differently?
- Can ordinary people understand the language used or is there a simpler way?
- Are words the best way to communicate your concept or is an image better?
- Can we make it interactive?
The Deetu Data Revolution
Deetu was founded on a principle of challenging ways of working, which is why our consultation process goes beyond the village hall. Our methodology is proven to gather more feedback from a broader audience, that can influence place-making in the design process.
Expanding the audience is vital in reaching beyond the most motivated opposition and drawing out the silent majority. Our innovative tools are constantly evolving, in response to many of the questions raised above. It means we can put your plans in front of more people, but importantly, we can help them to understand in a way that traditionally they are not able to.
We also know that more feedback means more opportunity to improve design. Our carefully, collaboratively, crafted surveys hone in on topics that matter to the design of your place. Using our advanced methods, we collect and analyse quality data for your application. More importantly, they also allow us to discover trends that are hidden in traditional consultations.
Examples of some accessible Deetu engagement tools
Whether we change the language we use, the way we communicate information, or the questions we ask, it all combines to generate more, and higher-quality, data to interpret that helps you get a deeper understanding of the communities you’re working with.
Why is it important?
While the new Government may be considering changes to the planning system, planning committees still hold the reins and many of the difficulties faced by developers will remain.
A high-quality consultation can help to shape the narrative around a project. Comprehensible information creates an informed audience which helps reduce the influence of noisy NIMBY’s.
Designing better places is good for the long-term health of the industry and those that will live there. At Deetu, we make sure to ask the right questions and get you the insights needed to design these better, healthier places.
Challenging the established thinking helps ensure the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
How are Deetu different?
Broken down into four focus pieces, we dive deep into the data we have collected and how we set out the importance of interpretation and analysis for your projects:
- We reach more people. Taking you through our success in expanding our audiences and the benefits this has created.
- We uncover who’s being heard. Sharing data we collected that looks at the types of voices we here from in the planning process and the consequences of this
- We challenge the status quo. Examining when we receive feedback and the implications this has for traditional consultation methods.
Take a read:
2. Whose voice runs the planning system
3. Getting feedback, 24 hours a day!
