The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is recruiting a new cohort of Mayor’s Design Advocates (MDAs) – independent experts who will ensure quality buildings and public spaces that benefit Londoners are at the heart of the capital’s recovery from the pandemic.
Sadiq will appoint 30 Design Advocates with a wealth of expertise and skills to support his vision of ‘good growth’, delivering a more inclusive and sustainable built environment.
The original cohort of MDAs was appointed in 2017 and developed guidance and policy in support of the London Plan in relation to housing design, circular economy, public realm, social infrastructure, urban industry, the child-friendly city and high streets. They have also developed a handbook to support diversity in the built environment profession.
MDAs also design reviewed more than150 schemes through the London Review Panel, where the Mayor is investing funding, making a planning decision or supporting local authorities. These have ranged from high profiles schemes like the Tulip, Bishopsgate Goodsyard and Oxford Street pedestrianisation, to supportive workshops for community groups in receipt of Crowdfund London funding.
The objectives of the new cohort are:
Quality
Utilising expertise spanning the range of specialisms needed across the Greater London Authority Group to support quality, sustainability and inclusion in the built environment, in line with the Mayor’s Good Growth by Design programme.
Recovery
Shaping and supporting activities delivered as part of the London Recovery Programme. This could include work undertaken as part of the recovery missions, led by the London Recovery Board, or more general work towards its key outcomes.
Representation
Being reflective of London’s diverse population and equipped to support the delivery of an inclusive built environment in which a spectrum of experiences and communities are valued and able to play a role in shaping the capital’s future.
‘Good Growth’ is the Mayor’s guiding principle for the built environment and sets the direction of the London Plan and all related Mayoral decisions, investments, strategies and policies. Good Growth acknowledges that Londoners will not accept growth at any cost. Growth of our built environment must be socially and economically inclusive, physically accessible and environmentally sustainable. In the wake of the global health crisis and its ensuing social and economic impacts, these principles have a renewed significance and shape the collective approach to London’s recovery.
The Good Growth by Design programme has supported Good Growth through planning policy, design guidance and design review. It has supported projects funded through the Mayor’s investment programmes, and called on the sector to enact the Mayor’s vision. It has provided policy development and guidance on critical issues facing our built environment and established robust processes to promote quality as well as advocating more broadly for a built environment for all Londoners.
Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration & and Skills, Jules Pipe, said: “We know that good architecture and planning can make a real difference between the places that work – socially and environmentally as well as economically – and those that age gracelessly.
“That’s why we are delighted to be recruiting a new cohort of 30 experts who will use their extensive expertise and skills to help us build back fairer and greener after the pandemic and support our vision for Good Growth in London. We look forward to reviewing applications and welcoming the new cohort in March 2022.”
Supporting the Mayor’s Good Growth by Design programme, the new cohort will be appointed in March 2022, replacing the existing MDAs.
Notes for editors:
To date, MDAs have shaped the Mayoral position on key issues within the built environment informing policy and investment positions. They have reviewed over 150 projects and schemes, shaping them for the benefit of Londoners. They have advocated for Good Growth placing new emphasis on inclusion, sustainability, accessibility and quality in the built environment. And they have helped to re-establish priorities in the wake of the pandemic.
Good Growth by Design is the Mayor’s programme to promote quality and inclusion in the built environment. It is a plan and a call to action to deliver good growth. It recognises the role of design in improving development and delivering quality of life in an ever-denser city. It draws on existing design and place-shaping expertise by engaging with the built environment profession.
The programme covers six pillars of activity:
1. Setting Standards:
Using design inquiries to investigate key issues for architecture, urban design and place-shaping, in order to set clear policies and standards.
2. Applying Standards:
Ensuring effective design review and scrutiny across London, including the establishment of the London Review Panel.
3. Building Capacity:
Enhancing the GLA Group’s and boroughs’ ability and resource to shape new development to deliver good growth.
4. Supporting Diversity:
Working towards a more representative sector and striving for best practice while designing for diversity.
5. Commissioning quality:
Ensuring excellence in how the Mayor and other public-sector clients appoint and manage architects and other built environment professionals.
6. Championing Good Growth:
Advocating best practice to support success across the sector
The application can be found at the following link: https://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/jobs-and-working-city-hall/current-vacancies/md2021-mayors-design-advocates
Applications should be submitted via the GLA online recruitment system no later than 23:59 on 15 December 2021.
About the Good Growth by Design programme: https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/regeneration/advice-and-guidance/about-good-growth-design
About the Mayor’s Design Advocates: https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/regeneration/advice-and-guidance/about-good-growth-design/mayors-design-advocates