We are pioneers in digital placemaking, helping over 20 towns across Wales harness technology and data to create thriving, sustainable places. Our award-winning approach connects people, places, technology and data to deliver meaningful results for communities
Award-Winning Excellence
Winner of the RTPI Award for Excellence in Plan Making Practice (2024) for the Wrexham Digital Place Plan
This pilot Digital Place Plan was one of the catalysts for Wrexham becoming Wales’ leading Smart place and demonstrates our innovative approach to digital placemaking.
Our Services
- Strategic digital reviews
- Digital place assessments
- Digital Placemaking Plans and strategies
- Digital project design and costing
- Digital skills development support
- Implementation guidance and support
What is Digital Placemaking?
Digital placemaking is a new way of thinking about places in a data-driven world. It ensures the social, cultural, environmental, and economic goals of an area are thought of and designed with technology and data in mind.
Digital placemaking helps local authorities, developers, businesses, and communities to consider the opportunities provided by digital and data when working to create more successful, liveable and attractive places.
Fundamentally, it helps stakeholders work out how best to collect, analyse and share high-quality data about their place, which they can then use to make decisions, whether around how to support local economic development, how to improve the management of the public realm, how to increase the efficiency with which they deliver services, or how to respond to environmental changes. Places in which this happens are often described as being ‘smart’.
Examples of smart solutions include:
- Environmental monitoring (air quality, temperature, humidity)
- Footfall analytics and visitor insights
- Smart parking management
- Digital high street platforms
- Smart green infrastructure monitoring
- Real-time data dashboards for decision-making
Our Process
Digital Place Plans Delivered
Abergavenny – Ammanford – Bangor – Caldicot – Carmarthen – Chepstow – Crickhowell – Fishguard and Goodwick – Haverfordwest – Hay-on-Wye – Kidwelly – Llandudno – Llanelli -Llanfair Caereinion – Monmouth – Milford Haven – Newtown – Pembroke – Pembroke Dock – Pontypridd – Port Talbot – Tenby – Treorchy – Usk – Welshpool – Wrexham – Ystradgynlais
Success Story: Wrexham
From our pilot Digital Place Plan in 2022 to becoming Wales’s leading Smart City, Wrexham demonstrates the transformative power of digital placemaking. The plan led to:
- Appointment of a Smart City Development Officer
- Implementation of environmental sensors and data dashboard
- Smart parking and digital signage systems
- Launch of VZTA digital high-street app with 69 local businesses
From this:
To this:
Proven Impact
Our digital placemaking approach has helped towns across Wales:
- Secure funding from Transforming Towns and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund
- Implement smart city infrastructure
- Develop data-driven decision-making cultures
- Create more sustainable and liveable places
Why Digital Placemaking Matters
The process of digital placemaking supports the successful delivery of wider digital infrastructure improvements in a place by discouraging the adoption of often fragmented, expensive and unsustainable digital solutions that do not address a place’s specific strengths and weaknesses.
And, last but by no means least, adopting a digital placemaking approach and putting in place a Digital Placemaking Plan helps places access funding, whether through the Digital Towns intervention within the Transforming Towns Placemaking Grant framework, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund or elsewhere.
Client Testimonial
“Your user-friendly Digital Placemaking Plan took a pragmatic short-term view identifying the immediate and affordable actions that helped us build our confidence and understanding of digital”
Our Expertise is Recognised By:
- Smart Towns Wales programme, funded by Welsh Government
- Royal Town Planning Institute
- Design Commission for Wales
- Local authorities across Wales
Resources and Publications
– Digital Placemaking article for Design Commission Wales
[Read the Article]
– Smart Towns Delivery Manual (produced for Smart Towns Wales)
[View the Delivery Manual]
– Case Studies of co-designed Smart Towns projects
[View Case Studies]
– Digital Placemaking Introduction (video)
[Watch the Video]
– Masterclasses and training materials available through Smart Towns Wales
Get Started
To discuss how taking a Digital Placemaking approach can help your place become more Smart and achieve your strategic goals, get in touch with our team:
Adam Greenwood
Digital Placemaking Lead
adam@owendaviesconsulting.co.uk
07480 063761
