Public Art Research Archive, Sheffield Hallam University, UK

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PUBLIC ART IN THAMESDOWN

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The following document is an Introductory letter - sent by the Planning Department to developers.
This document comes from an Information Pack supplied by the Public Arts Unit at Thamesdown Borough Council (to be renamed Swindon Borough Council in April 1997)
It is reprinted by kind permission of Thamesdown Borough Council.

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DEPARTMENT OF TOWN PLANNING, CIVIC OFFICES, EUCLID STREET,
SWINDON, WILTSHIRE SN1 2JH. TEL: (01793) 526161

CONTACT: Lorraine Cox - Public Arts Officer
Tel: (01793) 493196/ 493486

Our Ref: LTR124.PL
Your Ref: ............
Date: ...........

Dear Sir/Madam
Introductory Information Letter
PUBLIC ARTS POLICY FOR THAMESDOWN

In accompanying the formal acknowledgement of receipt of your application for planning permission, this letter is intended to introduce the Borough Council's Public Arts policy, which seeks to encourage private sector funding for public art within Thamesdown. Public Art may take many forms, and may be outside or inside buildings in situations where it can be seen and enjoyed by either the general public, or internally by the client public for whom the building may be intended to cater.

The Council's Planning Committee, in August 1988, has endorsed a resolution of the Policy & Resources Committee in July 1988 that:

• (a) "in future development, redevelopment and improvement schemes carried out by the Council, proper consideration be given at an early stage of planning to a percentage of the overall cost of the development being made available to the arts;
• (b) in similar schemes carried out by the private sector, the officers advocate the benefits of the public arts policy and seek to obtain an involvement in and/or contributions from developers for the arts".

Good public art adds greatly to the public enjoyment of a development and to its sense of place and identity, and could be beneficial therefore both commercially or operationally to the development as well as more generally to the Borough as a whole. However the Planning Committee would emphasise that it views public art as being complementary to good building design or as amelioration of poor design.

Colour leaflets are produced by the Borough Council to illustrate examples to date within Thamesdown of murals, sculpture and other artworks: copies are enclosed. However, I would stress that a contribution to public art need not necessarily be in this form and could well be, for example, an innovating type of landscape scheme.

The Council's Public Arts Officer, Ms Lorraine Cox, will be very pleased to discuss further with you any opportunities which your development may offer or present, should it receive planning permission, and to give any assistance as may be appropriate including any useful further 'contacts'. Ms Cox may be reached at the PUBLIC ARTS UNIT THAMESDOWN, Tel - 01793 493196, or the officer dealing with the planning application could make the necessary introductions.

I would be grateful for your Company's views on this matter and in particular would welcome an indication that you support the principle and that you would be prepared to consider it positively at the detailed design stage of your development, should it be acceptable in outline to the Planning Committee.

Yours faithfully



Borough Planning Officer

PLEASE TELEPHONE AFTER 10.00AM ADDRESS ALL CORRESPONDENCE TO:
THE BOROUGH PLANNING OFFICER, N.H.DAVIES, Dip TP MTRPI MBIM

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