- The purpose-built space, located at the foot
of the new Olympic Steps, was designed for and by young people, created by apprentices
as part of the London School of Economics (LSE) Apprenticeship in City Design
- The space was delivered in partnership with
architects Flanagan Lawrence and includes art by Lois O’Hara, as well as places
for young people to hang out, create and communicate
- Samovar Space was launched as part of a
drop-in community event on
Saturday, 22 October, attended by local residents, LSE apprentices and
programme lead at LSE, Dr Julia King
Quintain, the developer behind London’s Wembley Park, has opened Samovar
Space to the public, an area expressly designed by and for young people in
recognition of the value of their role in inclusive urban design.
Situated along the iconic Olympic Way, at the foot of the Olympic Steps,
the space was launched as part of the LSE Apprenticeship in City Design,
delivered in partnership with and funded by Quintain. The apprenticeship empowers
young people to become directly involved in community design benefitting
under-represented groups in the built environment. The project is the result of
26 months of collaboration with five apprentices ages 16-24, who undertook a
learning and working experience at the LSE paid at a standard researcher rate.
Samovar Space was devised as a sociable, open-air space, somewhere where
people could spend a long time without having to spend any money. Something to
do without having to do anything. The apprentices’ chosen themes of
‘Collaborate,’ ‘Calm,’ and ‘Consume’ emerged as three budding, loose ideas,
devised to provide design intention without strict definitions or rules for the
project,
designed around a purpose-built Sound Shell designed by Flanagan Lawrence that
will play host to events for young people throughout the year.
Samovar Space takes its name from a large, communal kettle popularly
used to brew tea in Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Associated with family
events and community gatherings, a samovar epitomises the welcoming and
non-commercial spirit that the apprentices wanted their proposal to embrace.
The Apprenticeship
in City Design is a legacy project of Brent London Borough of Culture 2020, of
which Quintain was a principal partner, and has been developed and lead by Dr
Julia King, a research fellow at LSE Cities. The space was designed in
collaboration with architects Flanagan Lawrence who worked with the Apprentices
through an iterative process to help translate their initial conceptual ideas
into realisable spatial solutions. The space also includes a site-specific
floor mural, Think Independently, Together by multi-disciplinary artist Lois O’Hara,
developed alongside young local adults whose critical feedback shaped the final
artwork.
Julian Tollast, Head of Masterplanning and Design at Quintain, said: “It is a sad fact that young
people's needs are often overlooked when it comes to the built environment. With
Samovar Space, we wanted to give this demographic a place to hang out and so we
set the LSE apprentices the task of designing something they felt was fitting.
It’s important for us that alongside all the changes local people are seeing at
Wembley Park it remains an inclusive neighbourhood for all and so we are proud
to have worked with the talented LSE apprentices to deliver this special
project.
Dr. Julia King, Research Fellow at LSE and Samovar Space programme lead said: “In
establishing the Apprenticeship in City Design I wanted to think of a method for
engaging with young people that could be sustained over a long period of time
taking a project from conception through to completion; and in doing so give
young people the tools to research their own experiences, inform design
processes and have a voice in planning and development. The COVID-19 pandemic
has drawn greater attention to how important it is to have just and inclusive
public space but if young people are absent from the design, decision-making
and planning process, how can we ensure that spaces are truly for them. It has
been a great privilege to work with this group of young people who have shown
that when local young people are included, they can easily articulate their
unmet needs. We have also found that in designing-in young people we have ended
up designing-in a lot of other groups which is evident when you go to Samovar
Space and see so many demographics using the space in a range of ways.”
Jason Flanagan,
Partner at Flanagan Lawrence, said: “Collaborating
with the LSE apprentices to help realise their vision for the Samovar Space has
been a unique and enlightening experience, and the process, led by Dr Julia
King, LSE’s programme lead, has developed an innovative approach to involving
community groups in the design of inclusive public space.”
