To ask the Minister for Communities, pursuant to recommendation two of the Delivering a 21st Century High Street report, to detail what engagement he has had with local councils to implement a Living High Streets approach to high street regeneration, working in partnership with local communities to design the vibrant spaces that they need.

The Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) for Architecture and the Built Environment led on the development of the Living High Streets approach and both NILGA and SOLACE took part in this.

To assist the use of the craft kit, MAG published a complementary starter pack in February 2024, which includes additional guidance, presentation slides and guidance notes for use in workshops. A training session was held on April 2024 to train placemaking facilitators to guide the process in different places and help deliver using the Living High Streets Craft Kit locally. Representatives from councils were invited and several attended this session.

The first pilot, in Downpatrick, was conducted between November 2022 and September 2023 with the close involvement of the local council and resulted in the launch of the Downpatrick Living High Streets Framework.

DfC is also working with Belfast City Council, the Greater Shankill Partnership, BUILD, other key statutory organisations and stakeholders in the Greater Shankill area to take forward a further pilot of the Craft Kit to demonstrate its use in a setting such as an arterial route into Belfast. MAG facilitated a workshop in September and provided a training session for all those involved in October.

MAG are also planning a further training session for placemaking facilitators in January 2025 in response to a request from Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. This is to ensure that councils are upskilled in the delivery of the Living High Streets Craft Kit. It is hoped that other Councils who haven’t previously participated in the training, will also take part.