ethos/community
The Partners have been designing social housing and public buildings in Scotland for three decades. They are wholly committed to the ideals of high quality design in these fields, seeing it as a key component in social inclusion and the regeneration of Scotland’s towns and cities.
In our work with housing associations and co-operatives, building on the Partners’ experience of pioneering tenant participation, we have developed a number of effective methods of communicating with non-technical committee members, and communities at large. These include modeling and presentation techniques, but they mainly focus on clear and empathetic communication by individual team members, plus a willingness to respond positively to the legitimate wishes and suggestions of community participants.
In our experience, communities are chiefly interested in possible outcomes, the "what, why, when and where", rather than the technically complex “how”. With them, we ask – and find answers to – these key questions. The outcome: masterplans and buildings that reflect communities’ needs + aspirations, and become effective components in change for the better.