Benoy’s West Bromwich Town Centre Masterplan has been shortlisted for the ‘Award for Plan Making’ at the 2023 Planning Awards.
Benoy worked on the scheme as part of a broader partnership with Sandwell Council, Savills and Mott MacDonald.
The masterplan delivers improved connectivity within the centre and the surrounding neighbourhoods, with an emphasis on sustainable travel and green linkages, with low-carbon travel options to Dartmouth Park and Sandwell valley. This includes improvements to the cycling and walking network to create a sustainable place to support population growth. The proposals moved away from private car as the dominant means of accessing the town through improved walking and cycling routes, connections to public transport and embracing new opportunities for transport such as car clubs, e‑bike hire, e‑scooters and remote working.
Commenting, Chris Richmond, who led the project for Benoy, said: ‘We are delighted to see the West Bromwich Town Centre Masterplan be shortlisted for this award. Together with Sandwell Council, Savills and Mott MacDonald, we wanted to deliver transformational change to the town centre and create a place that people would be proud to call their home. The masterplan is the result of a shared vision to unlock investment and deliver new schemes that can drive economic growth and improve the quality of life for local people.’
The work, together with the Interim Planning Statement, has given the Council an up-to-date policy framework within which strategic decisions on land use, investment and other forms of development can be taken and subsequently delivered.
