experience of place and a particular kind of expertise that provides
insights into public spaces that are inaccessible to others.
THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
The project began with a series of workshops, involving people living with dementia and carers in prioritising routes and venues for inclusion in the project,
developing methods for data-gathering and designing suitable tools. We created a menu of activities that allowed participants to decide the level and extent of their involvement. We initially shared examples of existing EATs designed for public venues, but these were rejected on grounds of pre-determining what we would look for in too much detail, being largely word and text-based and too narrowly focused on the
built environment. The workshops allowed us to try out different types of technology and other creative methods for data-gathering. We quickly recognised the value of generating audio and visual data, as a way to support people with dementia to participate in the analysis and arrive at a set of priorities. We focused on accessible and affordable technology including the recording and filming facilities on smartphones, Go-Pro cameras, and even selfie-sticks, that didn’t require specialist technical know-how.
During these early workshops it was quickly concluded that we were interested in more than the physical environment and wanted to engage with the broader experience of ‘place’. This meant looking at the social as well as material properties of the environment and considering the feel or ‘affective’ aspects of each setting. Workshop participants talked of the importance of a sense of comfort and of the atmosphere of
different kinds of public space.
Discussions led to the creation of two tools for capturing place-based experiences. The first was a Recording Sheet with questions linked to a numbered scale focusing on participants’ affective response to the setting under scrutiny. The second tool allowed for note-taking and/or sketching under a series of headings that combined attention to the material, social and embodied experience of place. The tools were intended to structure and facilitate dialogue rather than being a focus for the audit, and participants were encouraged to select and use tools as suited the conversation. We decided to use walking interviews and other forms of mobile discussion as a way to tap into the situated insights of participants. This approach shifted the emphasis from recall and memory onto observation and live encounters. We used Google Street View to provide visual cues while planning a series of walks and held a series of debriefing video conferences between the walks, as a chance to reflect on what we had learned.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork involved a series of weekly gatherings. Arriving at a venue, we would begin by discussing our respective journeys there. We then took an observational walk around while discussing the uses of the venue, the facilities and access using the recording sheets, video, audio-recordings and notetaking or sketching. Citizen auditors often led the conversations with staff at the venues, asking questions linked to the audit but also focussing on their own concerns. Stories and memories of the venue were shared and design solutions
proposed. The second half of the session would follow an agreed route, often stopping off at a coffee shop,
Capturingexperiencesofplace: Stirlingcitycentre
sometimes one of the team would divert the route to take in something important. Social opportunities occurred spontaneously as we bumped into friends, and neighbours. The informal social aspects of the audits proved important for generating discussion, testing theories and ideas and sustaining interest.
As the project progressed our level of comfort and familiarity with the process increased, people’s confidence appeared to build, evidenced by sustained and increased engagement and participation. Their observations began to refer to comparable examples from other routes, patterns and themes emerged, prompted by the tools and gradually a shared language and priorities evolved amongst the team.
The Audit Journey Sketch and Scribble Sheet: One of two tools co-created during the project
The perspective of a citizen auditor / person living with dementia (Vibeke):
Vibeke began the project feeling a little uncertain, but after participating in the workshops and being an integral part of the team, she felt she grew into the role of citizen auditor. She had been a little reticent at recording her feedback through sketches and notes, so appreciated the opportunity to verbalise her views instead, and feels that offering a flexible approach with a range of data-gathering methods was vital to the overall process. Vibeke has a dream
‘that something will happen’ as a result of her input to the project. She talked of sometimes feeling ignored following her diagnosis with dementia, but the experience of the participatory audit led her to a view that this type of involvement should extend to ongoing representation in council business for people living with dementia. She found it particularly fulfilling to be involved in a project with tangible outcomes and the possibility that, in the months to come, there will be changes made around the city that she “had seen the birth of”. Vibeke continued:
“I really, really hope something will come out of it”. On reflection, the audits have helped Vibeke to see parts of Stirling in a new light. Areas she previously under-appreciated or simply passed through en route to other destinations have been given new meaning. She also better appreciates the importance of design, continuing to actively note spaces and settings that will benefit her peers.
vi https://www.ageing-better.org.uk/outdoor-spaces-and-buildings