ft'work is a not-for-profit company with a strong ambition – to create thriving communities and to ensure that clear social principles underpin all new development

collaborating

collaborating

ft’work collaborates in fostering successful communities by

  • generating and exchanging fresh ideas through shared expertise
  • supporting and evaluating locally grown projects
  • helping to roll out the best ideas elsewhere

campaigning


social design principles

How can we create communities when we build places? The status quo isn’t working, at great social and financial cost. So to ensure that clear social principles underpin new development, ft’work has defined six social design principles and the actions required to achieve them. Forget costly consultants – with existing data and social capital the knowledge and means already exist to deliver successful communities.

would you like to download these principles as a pdf?


identify and address social needs as a precondition for development and regeneration

protect social infrastructure where it exists and provide for it in all new development

make integration and inclusion the drivers of major planning decisions

give ‘social heritage’ the same value and protection as ‘built heritage’

adopt self-determination as a formal component of a democratic planning process

prevent the displacement of existing communities

taking action

ft'work initiates ideas and activities and collaborates in finding ways to stimulate the growth of community

what is ft’work doing now?

View some featured case studies

Hackney New School

Helping a Hackney school to create an innovative Wellbeing Centre, to provide counselling and support to children and families in its community

explore

live.learn.play

Knights Youth Centre

Learning from the success of a South London youth club who have run street, school and community-based programmes for four generations of young people

explore

explore further

What makes communities thrive or fail? There is a wealth of research and detailed evidence