Design Guidance for Women and Girls

There is a legal requirement to consider people with protected characteristics through the Equalities Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. The consideration of gender is one of these protected characteristics and therefore when plan making and decision making, we have a responsibility to consider their impacts on women and girls.

 

The UK planning system was historically set up by men and the Local Authority image of men “with maps and models” is the reality of the time period in which the system was created. Unfortunately, this has resulted in an unconscious bias within data and policies that lends itself to how men use and interact with the built environment. Academic research (resources below) has emphasised the importance of Gender Mainstreaming since the early 2000s, which looks at embedding an acknowledgement of the different experiences of women in the planning system and examining planning policies through a gendered lens.

 

In addition, to the legal requirements to consider women and girls, it is one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and is a cornerstone of the NPPF (paragraph 96, December 2024).

 

As a result, a number of guidance documents have been produced which provide advice on how to design built environments which are inclusive for women and girls:

• UN HER City – This document supports urban development from a girl’s perspective. It aims to support actors and cities globally to mainstream girls’ participation in planning.

• ARUP Cities Alive: Designing cities that work for women – This report identifies four key areas of focus for improving women’s lives in cities and outlines a gender responsive approach to panning.

• Make Space for Girls – Their website contains a series of research which includes specific advice for Councils, developers and designers on how to include women in the built environment. There is a specific focus on public open space and play areas.

 

When plan-making and decision-making, LPA officers should take account of this guidance (amongst others, including local design guidance where it is available) to ensure they exercise their duty as set out by the Equalities Act.