Bradford Reimagined

Year Long Academic Project, Collaborative Placemaking and Exhibition, 2021

Bradford Reimagined was a year long academic project looking at the ‘Top of Town’ area of Bradford, which I ran as the Atelier Leader of Continuity in Architecture at the Manchester School of Architecture. The project was developed in collaboration with Bradford Civic Society and the Townscape Heritage Team and was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Architectural Heritage Fund.

Our work focused on the cultural heritage of Bradford, not just as a collection of historic buildings, but as a living city shaped by how people have used and will continue to use its spaces. Building on John Lloyd’s idea that the Historic High Street was a ‘theatre of human interaction’ (2020), we wanted students to understand both the tangible and the intangible qualities of the area.

Key findings of the project included ideas about how public space might be redesigned in the ‘Top of Town’; this included proposals to create larger squares to connect monuments such as the Bradford Central Mosque to the city, as well as smaller nooks, pockets and enclaves to bring people together. We also proposed new residential communities in the area and considered the different type of homes that would be needed in this inner-city location; from co housing to family housing, affordable housing and multi-generational living. Many of the projects also focussed on the adaptive reuse of existing buildings, including some which explored how new businesses might share a single larger unit without the need for subdivision, thus celebrating collaboration, co-working, encounter and exchange.

The work at the end of the project was displayed in an exhibition located both in the City Centre and in the windows of the ‘Top of Town’. Our approach to the project led to proposal which were deeply rooted in Bradford’s identity, giving residents and stakeholders creative visions for a much loved, but undervalued area.