Description of Works

Public realm improvements have the potential to improve the lives of many people who live, work and spend time in the area, so it is vital that those people are included in the decision-making process and that their voices are listened to while work is going on. This philosophy has underpinned a project to enhance St John’s Wood High Street in Westminster, delivered by FM Conway, The City of Westminster's highways partner.

Delivering Innovation

The decision for the project to go ahead began with a consultation exercise. During the Covid pandemic, Westminster introduced temporary measures to promote al fresco dining on the High Street and provide additional space for pedestrians. A survey in 2021 found that 84% of residents and businesses favoured turning the temporary measures into permanent public realm enhancements.

From then on, consultation and engagement were at the heart of the project. Before detailed design began, The City of Westminster worked with residents and stakeholders to develop an outline design that would work for everyone.

Challenges and Solutions

FM Conway’s design partner, WSP, took the outline design forward and developed a scheme that involved making the High Street one-way, widening footways, changing junction layouts, and the installation of new streetlights, benches, and trees.

The key to this project was to engage with the public early and often, to ensure their views were being heard and their concerns addressed. Once works started, FM Conway employed a full-time project liaison who spoke with residents, business owners, and visitors every day to ensure the works caused the least disruption possible.

At the end of the works, a post-construction survey was carried out to establish how the scheme had been received locally and how well the construction process had been managed.

The survey showed that most people are pleased with the enhancements and were happy with the overall management and execution of the construction, and with communication during the works. It also provided some useful feedback for future projects, particularly on ensuring that people with disabilities can navigate through sites.

Another key learning that emerged from the survey was that residents and businesses support the City of Westminster’s aims to reduce carbon. The City Council wants to incorporate low carbon methods and materials in future projects and had agreed with FM Conway that the St John’s Wood High Street enhancements should be the City’s first low carbon public realm scheme.

“We’ve previously adopted low carbon practices for smaller tasks and on smaller projects, but this was a really good opportunity to see how easy it would be to upscale.” says Derek Sampson, Senior Contracts Manager, FM Conway.

Outcomes

The scheme achieved an 83% reduction in carbon compared with traditional methods, mainly by using electric-powered plant and equipment, as well as sourcing materials close to home. By engaging with the residents, business owners, and visitors during the process, the scheme also proved the value of working closely with those the works impact the most, with key takeaways that will contribute to the success of future works.

“We share Westminster’s appetite and ambition to deliver public realm improvements while reducing carbon, and we will continue innovating so that we can achieve that. We also want to make sure that there is two-way communication between us and our customers throughout all our projects. Communication should be a continual process.” Maria Pratt, FM Conway’s Customer Experience Director