Understanding how communities experience racial inequity is critical to empowering designers and planners to shape more inclusive urban environments. The lived experiences and needs of those we design and build for can too often differ from how decision makers, developers, contractors, architects, planners, and engineers may believe people live their lives.

Arup University has collaborated with Social Broadcasts, decosm, and residents from marginalised communities in two areas of London (Newham and Thamesmead) to undertake research exploring how communities experience, engage with, and are affected by the built environment. This research is presented in ‘Racial Equity and the City: Experiences of People of Colour in London’. It identifies the need to prioritise urban inclusion in the built environment, and it recommends working with communities guided by participatory design principles.

Extending beyond the built form, the report introduces a multifaceted and interconnected ‘layers of the city’ concept. These are the factors that influence and impact peoples’ experiences: narratives, agency and power, interactions, spaces and systems.

Download the report

Download the report.

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Working together

As part of Arup’s global programme focused on urban inclusion, we will expand on this research by applying the findings and insights to our projects, with the goal of positively affecting the lived experiences of communities impacted through our work. We are making this research publicly available so that other urban practitioners and stakeholders can understand it and, if they find it useful, build on its insights as we collectively learn how to shape more equitable spaces.

Please contact Arup University, to share your thoughts and insights or to explore how we might collaborate on applying this work to projects.  

Arup would like to thank our co-researchers on this project - Smart Women’s Group, Newham, the DOST Centre for Young Refugees and Migrants, Newham and individual Thamesmead residents who trusted us with their experiences and stories.

About our partners

Social Broadcasts combines contemporary radio programming, community engagement and participatory art practice, to document and present real, everyday experiences and conversations.

decosm is a London-based collective working to decolonise city-making. They sit within a growing network of micro, small scale and grassroots organisations striving to question mainstream methods of urban practice and co-produce alternatives.

The Smart Women's Group is a self-organised initiative that brings together women who share the need for a safe space where they can talk openly about their experiences, grow their confidence, and support one another.

The Dost Centre is an organisation that provides a safe space for young refugees and migrants. It runs educational and fun activities, sports, and social events.

Thamesmead residents interviewed for this work represent diverse views and are people of different generations, cultural backgrounds, genders, and occupations. These residents are not affiliated with a specific group or organisation.