Rethinking Cities Ltd in collaboration with MFAtech Ltd have been shortlisted as Finalists in the 2015 Ordnance Survey and Land Registry’s GeoVation Housing Challenge.
Their proposal, “Beyond the Red Line” is a compelling proposal to answer the Challenge set: “How can we enable people in Britain to live in better places?”
Beyond the Red Line will provide a first stop resource that brings clarity to the built environment – for both infill developments and extensions. Using routing and spatial analysis of OS, land registry and other sources of data – e.g. best area in terms of connectivity, access to green space, affordability and access to employment and services, the tool will provide clear recommendations on development viability.
Beyond the Red Line will provide a showcase and platform for good practice regarding interventions that promote better places to live resulting in cost efficiencies, to be shared between individual professionals, organisations, practices and authorities
Beyond the Red Line will have two parts:
- a mapping resource that provides would be housing developers a means to establish how well connected and the level of service provision within a walk or short cycle ride is a development plot; so offering an indication of the viability for development any potential plot might have
- an e-learning platform to signpost advice, effective interventions, good practice and case studies (drawn from developments within a 50 mile radius of the plot) that reveal how a housing development can be a better place to live.
Andrew Stuck – Founding Director of Rethinking Cities Ltd. sees “this is a very exciting opportunity to step up our work in improving places for people to live. Our collaboration with MFAtech Ltd, is all about using their digital mapping expertise in journey planning, and their ability to adapt it more widely. Our combined expertise, harnessing OS & LR open data, and a significant pot of funding that the Challenge brings, will enable us to provide a tool that will benefit developers, local authorities and residents too.”
“Beyond the Red Line is a truly innovative solution to an age old problem, namely the need for easily accessed information, which we hope is really going to make a real difference to the way housing development evolves in the UK over the next decade.” Marcus Ambler – Founding Director of MFAtech Ltd.
There are 10 Finalists who will attend a GeoVation Camp (16-18 January 2015) at Ordnance Survey in Southampton during which they will work alongside experts in open data and digital mapping from Ordnance Survey and Land Registry, with a ‘Dragon’s Den’ -like finale after which on 19 February, the winning proposals will receive a share of the £101,000 funding pot.
Finalists announced by Ordnance Survey – https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/blog/2014/12/latest-geovation-challenge-finalists-announced/
This article first appeared on the Rethinking Cities website