Woodwork becomes medium for public consultation on regeneration
Assemble & Join, Aylesbury Estate, Southwark, London
HTA for Notting Hill Housing Trust
This is a very hands-on form of public consultation, in which participants get to make proper stuff. Assemble & Join is a community woodworking project run by HTA's communications team across regeneration sites. The project came to Southwark’s Aylesbury Estate as part of its summer activity programme, attracting 300 participants over a three-week period.
Local residents were invited to participate in design and build workshops, using a CNC router and various hand tools to make wooden items to install in the public realm.
The aim is to encourage an interest in design and making and in collaborative working and thinking. The workshops ran throughout August and were open to all ages and abilities.
Creations including bat boxes, bird houses, public seating, signage, play equipment and public art have been installed around the estate for everyone to enjoy.
The project has worked as a great way of engaging with residents who are not generally seen at traditional consultation events.