MENTAL HEALTH:
THE CINDERELLA OF URBAN DESIGN
DR LAYLA MCCAY
DIRECTOR
URBANDESIGNMENTALHEALTH.COM
@urbandesignmh
LONDON
NOVEMBER 2015

Why is mental health the Cinderella
of urban design?
• Stigma
• Self-fulfilling prophecy
of low priority
• Complexity

“It took decades to integrate
knowledge about the biomedical
effects of the cityscape into (my)
profession. But when it comes to
mental health, we haven’t a clue.’
– Urban Planner, Basel, Switzerland

UD/MH is a think tank asking: how
can we build better mental health
into our cities?
• Make the case for
urban design for
mental health
• Empower action
• Host dialogues
• Participate in panels
• Run consultations
• Prompt and publish
new research and op-
eds (Sanity & Urbanity,
journal)
• Produce research
summaries and
guidelines
• Curate research
• Showcase
innovation
• Use social media
and web channels
Share
knowledge
Increase
knowledge
Motivate
action
Increase
cross-
sector
discussion
UD/MH

7 OPPORTUNITIES THAT CURRENTLY
INSPIRE UD/MH

Conscious Cities
(using data to improve mental
health)
WE KNOW
People’s mental health
and wellbeing is
affected by the built
environment – and we
can measure it
WE DON’T KNOW
How cities can cost-
effectively measure,
identify and act on local
urban design
Urban Mind
Project

Exposure to Nature
WE KNOW:
Nature exposure can
improve mental health
including depression,
stress, ADHD and more.
WE DON’T KNOW
Specific impacts of
‘dose’ -
type/duration/etc for
exposures.

Urban design has a key role in
older people’s mental health
WE KNOW
Urban design can help
reduce dementia-
related problems, plus
anxiety and depression
in older people .
WE DON’T KNOW
How to build cities that
are optimised for older
people and those with

Transportation
WE KNOW:
Stressful commutes can
increase anger, anxiety,
hostility; decrease sleep
and social opportunity;
other commutes can be
relaxing, active and
rejuvenating.
WE DON’T KNOW
How to change culture
and optimise urban
transport design for better
mental health.

From the hospital to the street
WE KNOW
Significant investments
are being made in
research to design
healthcare facilities in
ways that improve
mental health.
WE DON’T KNOW
How to extrapolate
these findings to the
wider built environment.

Sensory input from the built
environment
WE KNOW
Sound, art, and the use
of colour can impact on
anxiety, anger, stress,
mood and sleep.
WE DON’T KNOW
How to use sound,
colour, and other
sensory inputs in urban
design to improve
mental health.

Urban design to heal
traumascapes
WE KNOW
• People often have
negative
psychological
reactions to settings
they associate with
trauma.
WE DON’T KNOW
• How to leverage
urban design to

How can we take Cinderella to the
ball?
• Research/ask people about how you can
integrate mental health into your urban design
projects and policies
• Encourage others to take mental health into
consideration in their projects
• Share and build knowledge, interest and the will
to act
• Talk, write, and showcase your research, projects
and ideas
• Get involved in a community of practice
• Help develop and use good practical

To learn more:
Visit www.urbandesignmentalhealth.com
Contact layla@urbandesignmentalhealth.com or
@urbandesignmh
Read (op-eds)
We should think more about the link between urban design
and mental health
Psychogeography: exploring the brain's reactions to urban
design
The importance of urban design in helping heal
traumascapes
Urban design and mental health: there's an app for that