1. pr & marketing internal communication community engagement
CASE STUDY
Peterborough Garden Park
Athene provides specialist community engagement for
Peterborough Garden Park

2. 25 Priestgate, Peterborough PE1 1JL tel: 01733 207340 email: mail@athene-communications.co.uk web: www.athene-communications.co.uk
A record-breaking proposal
Peterborough Garden Park is the UK’s
premier garden and retail centre, with
stunning architecture set in beautifully
landscaped grounds. The Park has won a
whole host of design, catering and community
involvement awards, including a British
Council of Shopping Centres Gold Award.
The owners of Peterborough Garden Park
were looking to offer customers an even
better shopping experience by extending the
existing site to include a new foodstore and
create 300 new jobs.
It pays to talk
Public consultation and the development of
a Statement of Community Involvement (SCI)
is a statutory part of any outline planning
application but it’s not just about ticking
boxes – it’s a terrific opportunity to connect
with local people and make sure that planning
proposals address the hopes and concerns of
their community.
We worked closely with Peterborough Garden
Park and the wider consultant team to put
together a comprehensive programme of
community engagement so people had a real
chance to air their views and make a valuable
contribution to the final design. With this
approach, we could secure people’s support
for the proposals.
The timing and content of the consultation
period were decided following a series of
meetings with Peterborough City Council,
parish councils, residents’ associations, ward
councillors and the private sector. Although
the initial period was set for three weeks, we
responded to local feedback and extended
it to nine weeks so we could capture the
thoughts of as many community groups
as possible.
The consultation period itself was heavily
promoted to reach our extensive target
audience. We organised media briefings
with the Peterborough Evening Telegraph
and BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, produced
a permanent on-site exhibition, a travelling
exhibition, a dedicated microsite, advertising,
posters and a leaflet drop to all 9,000 homes
within a one-mile radius of Peterborough
Garden Park.
Feeding back
We gave people the option of returning
their consultation surveys by post using the
included freepost envelopes, by visiting our
permanent exhibition at the Garden Park, or
by filling it in online via the microsite. They
could also get in touch through the dedicated
email address and freephone number.
All responses were fed into our own
specialist data management system, which
was purpose built for securely capturing and
analysing feedback during the consultation
process. The feedback we received
showed just how effective the consultation
had been and helped shape how the
proposed development could further
benefit the community.
Ideas included a Skills Centre to train local
people and a Leisure Cycle Hub to connect
with Peterborough’s existing Millennium
Green Wheel network. Feedback from the
Disability Forum also helped to make access
even more inclusive.
Getting results
The findings of the SCI showed overwhelming
support for a new foodstore at Peterborough
Garden Park. The overall approach and the
willingness to take local views seriously have
also been widely acknowledged by
the community.
The consultation created a huge wave of
support for the proposals by letter and
postcard, which actually broke previous
planning department records. By reaching as
many parts of the community as possible, we
gave people a real opportunity to influence a
very important development.
The outcome
Members of Peterborough City Council’s
Planning and Environment Committee met
on Tuesday 14th August to discuss the £15
million proposal. The application was granted
to build a supermarket, training centre and
cycling hub.
As well as a supermarket, the development
will also bring a skills centre, which would
include a workshop and arts and crafts area
as well as a cycling facility and a children’s
play barn.
The committee unanimously approved
the project for outline planning permission
and the site could be completed by
December 2013.
We arranged for media coverage with
Peterborough Telegraph, BBC Radio
Cambridgeshire, Heart FM and Connect FM.
We organised for a letter of thanks, to be sent
to those that had provided a letter of
support for the plans.
Peterborough
Garden Park