Our purpose is to shape better cities by promoting great buildings and places in historic and other sensitive contexts. From the outset of the design process, The Townscape Consultancy offers independent design scrutiny and advice.
Planning authorities and consultees are interested in the relationship between a project and its surroundings. Our focus is on how the project will relate to the buildings, routes, and spaces around it – in many cases, this will require paying particular attention to the historic environment.
We believe that great architecture and sound urban design add value, and designing with heritage and townscape sensitivities in mind is critical to gaining planning or listed building consent. Our role is to identify these sensitivities at an early stage. Rather than simply ‘ticking a box’ with a document for planning submission, we are well known for our collaborative approach as a ‘critical friend’ during the pre-application process. Our design feedback and strategic advice, provided in a positive spirit and at the right stages, can improve projects significantly and help secure a consent.
We approach every project with a professional and pragmatic attitude, and a view to seeking solutions. And we apply vision and creativity to unlock the potential of a site, balancing heritage interest with commercial reality. Our experience in helping achieve consents for a broad range of projects in London and beyond gives us the gravitas to help steer ambitious and challenging schemes towards a credible and positive outcome, be it in relation to heritage, townscape, or visual impacts.