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WhoseSpace Derringham?

People Involved

Project Description

The improvement in people’s mental wellbeing through access to urban greenspace (UGS) is well known and accepted with the ongoing Covid emergency demonstrating the importance of this connectivity. But who decides what the UGS should look like and how they function? Additionally, what happens to community wellbeing when UGS becomes a contested space? In the Coronation Road Estate, the most deprived quintile in the Derringham Ward, there are various areas of UGS and they are each perceived differently by various residents and those ‘in power.’ For example, various Hull City Council departments have their own priorities and statutory agencies such as the Environment Agency and Wildlife Trusts each have their own agendas and strategies. Each UGS can therefore have a variety of actual and perceived roles, such as a public amenity for leisure and recreation, a semi-natural space for wildlife and biodiversity, areas designated for flood alleviation. These UGS are also seen as potential development sites or somewhere to sit and walk in open space, or are just seen as ‘non spaces’ including bits of manicured turf between streets. We would like to know what residents think of their UGS, and what role they think UGS could or should have, and what they should look like in the future. Additionally, how does ‘having a say’ impact residents’ wellbeing – and how does the idea of local democracy, and any subsequent civil engagement, function in terms of residents’ relationships with their UGS? This research will inform and engage the local population on how they use their environment and how this can impact and improve mental wellbeing. The young people of the Coronation Road Estate are the future users of UGS, the project aims to be the impetus for change and allow them an opportunity to shape their own future health and wellbeing.

Type of Project Project
Project Acronym WSD
Status Project Complete
Funder(s) Wellcome Trust
Value £5,380.00
Project Dates Nov 1, 2021 - Nov 30, 2022

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