The Exchange #16 People Centred Planning
On Monday, November 17, 2025, NTB will be hosting The Exchange #16: People Centred Planning at Silk Mill Studios, Frome.
This time, we’re excited to welcome Veronica Barbaro, Planning Director at Avalon Planning, who will lead the workshop and bring her expertise in planning strategy and community engagement. She’ll guide us in exploring how national policy shapes local outcomes and how community-led change can influence planning decisions.
The morning will begin with a talk on national policy and local practice, considering how the National Planning Policy Framework and recent New Towns policy affect small practices and community-scale projects. After a short break, we’ll take a site walk and workshop into Frome town centre, learning how to gather and map on-the-ground insights about place and people. These insights will form the foundation for the afternoon session.
After lunch, we’ll return for a practical session on mapping and analysis tools, using the data collected during the site walk to explore how community and open-source information can support site understanding, masterplanning, and design work.
We can’t wait!
The agenda for the day:
9.45 – 10.00 | Arrivals, Tea and Coffee
10.00 – 10.15 | Intros and NTB updates
10.15 – 11.00 | National change, Local impact | Veronica Barbaro
11.00 – 11.15 | Tea Break
11.15 – 12.15 | Walking Workshop: Site Analysis and Qualitative Mapping | Veronica Barbaro
12.30 – 13.30 | Lunch
13.30 – 14.30 | Mapping & Analysis: Open Source Tools and Data | Veronica Barbaro
14.30 | Workshop End