4.1 Introduction

Neighbourhoods require public spaces: they are the focal point of a community, where people can socialise, play and access nature. Public spaces can take many forms, including village greens, garden squares, small parks, formal town squares, allotments, sports pitches and play areas.

This section sets out high-level principles for designing public space, in line with Policy SOC 6 (Open space, sport and recreation) and Policy DM 35 (Open space and new development) of the Cheshire West and Chester Local Plan. These policies define the type and amount of public and play space required in new development, which includes allotments, natural green space, parks, village greens, garden squares and play areas.

Public Space - Types of Public Square image

Fig 4.1 Typologies of public space, a village green, a town square and a garden square from (Credit: NMDC).

Abbey Square, Chester - an example of high-quality public space benefitting from a strong sense of enclosure and natural surveillance