Reclaiming spaces: child inclusive urban design

Abstract

This paper outlines the role of urban design in the relationship between public space and families with children. The quality of outside play in urban and suburban spaces is crucial for the physical, social and cognitive development of young children. By analysing three important daily living domainsstreet, green spaces and play spacesthrough observations, surveys, workshops and interviews in the city of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, the paper discusses the increasing need for family-and child-directed consumption spaces in city areas. The data also reflect that though there are processes in place that are progressively contributing towards the inclusion of changing urban lifestyles, concerns on importance of outside play, public green spaces, and safety remain high. It is argued that the role of design along with child-friendly indicators and locally important factors need to be better strengthened when planning future family-friendly city spaces. Initiatives such as co-creative design of public space with children and parents, bottom-up neighbourhood design initiatives (e.g. child friendly routes) are some examples. This paper points out the wider significance of spatial transformation of the city's needs to accommodate various demographics and requirements.

Children and Urban Green Infrastructure in the Digital Age: A Systematic Literature Review

“…If the playing equipment are designed to be adventurous and challenging (some to be used with a certain guidance level), they can become one of children's favourite elements in the UGI, attracting them to free play or exploration [2,39,47,48]. A study shows that the majority of kids mostly interact with the designed and organized UGI (such as playgrounds, sports fields, schoolyards and parks) rather than undesigned and disorganized places like streets and sidewalks [54]. Loukaitou-Sideris and Sideris (2010) [39] find that park equipment is used more frequently by girls than boys due to significant gender, racial and ethnic differences in preferences for playground equipment in the UGI.…”

Children's Green Infrastructure: Children and Their Rights to Nature and the City

“…Given the ineffectiveness of traditional urban planning (Rittel and Webber, 1973 ; Rakodi, 2001 ; Campos, 2015 ;, the design of the cities by children can be a solution for promoting inclusive values (Krishnamurthy, 2019 ). However, that may not happen if, as stated before, these are planned as restricted and over-structured places.…”

Research on acceptance of child-rearing environment from the viewpoint of parent-child route selection and recognition of walking space in various urban environments in Japan

“…In the city of Eindhoven in the Netherlands, a relatively child-friendly place, observations, workshops, and interviews have revealed great concerns about outdoor play and safety. There is also a need for a wide range of research to meet various demographic requirements in the future (Krishnamurthy 2019). Further, the research concludes that for an improved built environment, a separate place that is child-friendly should be created as a safe place (Elshater 2018).…”