The Neasden 2023 vision is being shaped around five pillars: community-driven regeneration, green and connected, safe and vibrant for all, a hub for creativity and culture, and a crossroads of community and culture. Engagement included vox pops with Crest Academy students, focus groups, café conversations, community hackathons and online feedback via Brent Council. Twelve group meetings and 156 outreach emails shaped the implementation of the first phase projects for the area, with £3.1 million of funding awarded in 2024.

Who is on the project? 

Lead Designer - Sanchez Benton Architects

Engagement and Co-design -  Rumi Bose Regeneration Consultant  

Place Branding and Communications - Concept Culture 

Green Infrastructure and Sustainability - Where Pathways Meet 

Describe the context of the strategy, research or policy. What need does it serve? What questions does it answer? What is its social and environmental impact? 

The Neasden Town Centre Placemaking and Sustainability Action Plan is an ambitious strategy to transform Neasden by 2030, focusing on health, prosperity, and sustainability. Located in Brent, NW London, Neasden faces environmental, social, and economic challenges, including traffic dominance, poor air quality, and severed connections The high street suffers from a lack of cleanliness, greenery, and amenities for families, youth, and older residents. widespread joblessness, low skills, and deprivation prevail,, while anti-social behaviour and gang crime remain pressing concerns. Through co-design with stakeholders, our strategy is structured around five key pillars. Community-Driven Regeneration: Committing to a process that is co-authored and co-delivered with the community, building legacy and capacity, ensuring developments in Neasden are reflective of local needs, aspirations, and its unique character. Green and Connected: Delivering sustainable development and improved connectivity to transform Neasden into a greener, accessible town centre of the future, reinforcing environmental innovation and stewardship. Safety and Vibrancy for All: Prioritising creating a safe, legible, vibrant public realm that encourages community engagement, supports local businesses, and attracts visitors, making Neasden a sought-after destination. Creative and Cultural Hub: Leveraging Neasden (and Brent’s) musical and cultural heritage as a foundation for a creative economy, positioning the town as a hub for arts, culture, and education that celebrates diversity, innovation and a centre of Black British Music culture. Crossroads of Culture and Community: Celebrating Neasden’s rich multicultural heritage and strong community spirit as its core identity, fostering a welcoming environment for all.

Did you consult key stakeholders or the community in the creation of this document or policy? How did you select participants? Was the final strategy shared with the community? Is this engagement ongoing?

Our engagement and co-design strategy created a robust framework to involve local stakeholders and communities actively. Insights from this process informed the vision and projects within the Neasden Town Centre Sustainability & Action Plan. A hybrid engagement approach, combining digital and in-person activities, was developed to ensure wide participation. Key ideas were refined through discussions with Brent Council and tested extensively with the community via creative activities: Vox Pops with Crest Academy students (ages 11–15), Focus groups with College of NW London students, Café conversations with residents and traders, Brainstorming sessions with the Neasden Collective, Community hackathons on identity, connectivity, and sustainability, Online feedback through Brent Council’s “Have Your Say” platform, Flyers distributed to local businesses, Walkabouts with the Metropolitan Police. Key outcomes include: 12 targeted group meetings, 156 outreach emails, 56 young people participating in Vox Pops, 47 high street businesses visited, 50 online survey responses, 20+ community hackathon attendees.

How will the research or strategy be taken forward or implemented? Please describe any accountability, metrics or enforcement built into the process to encourage meaningful change.

The Neasden Town Centre Placemaking and Sustainability Action Plan formed the basis of Brent Council’s bid to the Mayor of London’s Civic Partnership Programme. In August 2024 Brent Council was awarded £3.1m, the largest grant awarded through the grant programme. This funding will now enable Brent Council to implement this first phase of transformative actions, initiatives and projects from the strategy. These will be further co-authored, co-designed and co-delivered throughout 2024-27 to support the overarching vision to achieve a fairer, safer, greener, healthier, connected and more diverse Neasden. In the short-term: Brent Council are now starting to reach back out to engage the local community on the CPP GLA Exemplar funding allocation for three priority project areas. A dedicated Project Manager to lead programme delivery has been resourced. In December, a design and planning team will be procured and project delivery will commence. LB Brent and GLA are currently working together to finalise Neasden CPP planning, including grant agreement and defining the exemplar projects for Public Realm, Community Programming, Transport. The Neasden community, including their children and young people have been key authors of this vision for Neasden, and the approach established by the project team has enabled their voices to continue to shape projects as they come off the drawing board and are implemented in the coming years.