The Northfield Grove housing estate aims to incorporate green infrastructure to the neglected site. The project is part of Scotland’s Place Based Investment Programme (PBIP), with a £1.998m fund and a delivery estimate of £750,000. The development includes the installation of a green spine rain-garden to manage and control surface water runoff alongside soft landscaping improvements.

Who is on the project team? (designer, consultants, etc)

Thomas & Adamson, Civic Engineers, RaeburnFarquharBowen

Describe the context of this initiative or project, its neighbourhood and the community it serves?

We are helping to transform Northfield Grove, a social-housing estate in Edinburgh, which had become neglected with overflowing bins and fly-tipping, into a climate-adapted neighbourhood, for a project that is delivering significant social and environmental impact. Through innovative design, we are helping to create attractive, multi-functional green infrastructure and sustainable rainwater drainage, by way of a “green Spine Raingarden” providing a rich environment within which residents and nature can flourish. Commencing in Summer 2023, we provided civil engineering advice and design (from RIBA stage 3 through to 6) on the environmental improvements to Northfield Grove in support of the City of Edinburgh Council’s objectives to help to create strong, sustainable and healthier communities, so as to ensure all residents can enjoy a high quality of life and to improve the environment in and around the city for the benefit of future generations in a rapidly-changing climate. The key aims of the project are to enhance street environments in the Northfield Grove area with hard and soft landscaping solutions; enhanced local walking, wheeling and cycling connectivity, and to transform the area into a desirable, high quality, vibrant and sustainable local community. In addition, the works will implement improved play areas for children of various ages encouraging a safe and engaging environment in which the community can be a part of. Works also seek to improve parking areas ensuring accessibility for all. Construction is due to complete in March 2024.

Describe the intervention you’ve made, including its purpose and motivation? How it will contribute to climate resilience.

The project utilises strategically-placed raingardens to enable the largest catchment of surface water to drain directly to them. This allows for the stress on the current drainage network to be relieved by a significant amount. Water is able to collect in the raingardens and be fed at a manageable and slower rate into the overall drainage system – creating a sustainable solution. Similarly, the incorporation of two swales at the southern end of the site helps to sustainably manage surface water. The swales are positioned so that they collect surface water runoff from the adjacent hardstanding areas. In addition, due to their positioning, they collect further surface water runoff from the roofs of adjacent buildings from nearby downpipe outlets. The scheme not only handles the surface water management on the road and adjacent footway areas, water from nearby buildings is also incorporated into the overall scheme. Green infrastructure, extensive rain gardens have been placed parallel with the regraded carriageway and parking spaces to capture/treat runoff whilst reducing flows on the existing drainage network. These raingardens have been placed on both sides of the carriageway creating a green avenue and separating the footpath from vehicles for safety, bringing an appealing visual to the scheme, creating a high-quality, environmentally-conscious and resilient area. The green infrastructure provides resilience to flooding due to changing climate whilst both increasing biodiversity within a previous tarred landscape and bringing health and wellbeing to the local community. 

Explain the environmental and social impact of the project?

Once completed, the project will have a positive impact on residents’ quality of life by providing a high-quality, resilient regeneration of the Northfield Grove area. The community will be provided with an improved urban landscape that enables the sustainable management of surface water run off, as well as embedding green infrastructure into the local landscape. The project has been shaped by the community, with outstanding collaboration and stakeholder engagement throughout. Residents shared their aspirations and fed back on concept ideas through a series of on street ‘pop up’ events, with their feedback directly shaping the development plans, including: providing a family friendly environment and access to areas for play and recreation; more green spaces and redefined waste and recycling provision; and greater amenity with provision for active travel. The project has the potential to be at the forefront of urban regeneration projects in the local Edinburgh area. It will enable the City of Edinburgh Council to showcase an exemplar application of SuDS within a local urban environment – aiding in fulfilling its city objectives to help create resilient communities that are filled with residents benefitting from a higher quality of life. The embedment of green infrastructure within the scheme will create an environment that is fit to serve future generations in a rapidly changing climate. New local paths and areas for play have ensured accessibility is maintained throughout the site and provided green spaces to bring the community together, and improve health and wellbeing.