Co-design: Design Future London

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This year the Planning for London Programme embedded the Design Future London design challenge as a co-design opportunity with young Londoners.

Valuable insights were gathered from young people on their priorities for London through a schools competition programme as well as structured workshops.

See our live dashboard of feedback from young Londoners.

What questions did we ask?

  • Do you think it is important that young people have a say in the future of their city?
  • What should we prioritise when we plan for London?
  • What changes would make your neighbourhood more sustainable?
  • What would make the homes you live in better?

Structured workshops:

7 - 8 December 2023

Live conversations with young people as part of structured workshops centred around key themes impacting our city. See the report that summarises the findings from the 2 days.

Report - Bringing the youth voice into the London Plan - December 2023

11 - 15 December 2023

Young people were asked about priorities for the future for both their neighbourhood and their home. These were embedded into lesson plans were delivered in classrooms in primary schools, secondary schools and further education colleges.

Report - Local Village Network Report: Amplify Me: Design Future London 2023/24

Public Exhibition at the Building Centre:

The Building Centre programme in 2023/2024 was focussed on youth engagement in the built environment. As part of the programme, we were invited to showcase the Design Future London programme and co-design and actively engage young people in the space. The above workshops were held and other events which sought to bring young people into the space and engage in conversation on the what the future priority for London should be.

The exhibition incorporated several elements summarising:

  • Three years of youth engagement within the programme, highlighting the key outcomes and the priorities expressed by young people about the future of their city.
  • Physical models produced by students for their entries and also those built in the space as part of the active engagement and conversations
  • Video interviews from young people and views from teachers, parents and mentors on the programme and its impact.

The boards can be viewed here.



What is Design Future London?

The Mayor of London is committed to supporting young Londoners from all and any background access and benefit from opportunities that will allow them to fulfil their potential.

The Design Future London challenge is in its third year and seeks to encourage a greater diversity of young Londoners to enter the built environment sector (covering planning, architecture, urban design, surveying, property, real estate management and construction). In addition to responding creatively to the design brief that is set, the previous competitions have shown that the challenge helps students develop soft skills that are transferrable across subject areas, learn about career opportunities in the built environment sector, and grow in self-belief.

Working with partners such as C40 Cities, Minecraft Education, MOBIE, Esri and Local Village Network, the Design Future London Challenge offers opportunities to:

  • inspire young people to think about where they live, how places are shaped and influenced and how they could be involved;
  • raise the profile of careers in the built environment sector and inspire a future talent pipeline;
  • engage young Londoners to share their vision for the future of our city and to design solutions for the city’s future which will inform the Greater London Authority’s review of a future London Plan;
  • promote digital skills through the offer of Minecraft Education and ArcGIS licences;
  • support diverse learning styles by offering a range of resources to help students such as free model-making materials;
  • access to a programme of events that will be hosted in a dedicated space at the Building Centre.
  • support schools with a mentorship programme.

What’s in it for students?

  • Opportunity to develop core skills - communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking in responding to a design brief.
  • Access to mentors who include professionals from the built environment sector. Whatever your students are passionate about, interested in or good at, there will be a place for them in creating and improving London’s built environment in future.
  • Prizes for winners and runners-up in each age group.


This year the Planning for London Programme embedded the Design Future London design challenge as a co-design opportunity with young Londoners.

Valuable insights were gathered from young people on their priorities for London through a schools competition programme as well as structured workshops.

See our live dashboard of feedback from young Londoners.

What questions did we ask?

  • Do you think it is important that young people have a say in the future of their city?
  • What should we prioritise when we plan for London?
  • What changes would make your neighbourhood more sustainable?
  • What would make the homes you live in better?

Structured workshops:

7 - 8 December 2023

Live conversations with young people as part of structured workshops centred around key themes impacting our city. See the report that summarises the findings from the 2 days.

Report - Bringing the youth voice into the London Plan - December 2023

11 - 15 December 2023

Young people were asked about priorities for the future for both their neighbourhood and their home. These were embedded into lesson plans were delivered in classrooms in primary schools, secondary schools and further education colleges.

Report - Local Village Network Report: Amplify Me: Design Future London 2023/24

Public Exhibition at the Building Centre:

The Building Centre programme in 2023/2024 was focussed on youth engagement in the built environment. As part of the programme, we were invited to showcase the Design Future London programme and co-design and actively engage young people in the space. The above workshops were held and other events which sought to bring young people into the space and engage in conversation on the what the future priority for London should be.

The exhibition incorporated several elements summarising:

  • Three years of youth engagement within the programme, highlighting the key outcomes and the priorities expressed by young people about the future of their city.
  • Physical models produced by students for their entries and also those built in the space as part of the active engagement and conversations
  • Video interviews from young people and views from teachers, parents and mentors on the programme and its impact.

The boards can be viewed here.



What is Design Future London?

The Mayor of London is committed to supporting young Londoners from all and any background access and benefit from opportunities that will allow them to fulfil their potential.

The Design Future London challenge is in its third year and seeks to encourage a greater diversity of young Londoners to enter the built environment sector (covering planning, architecture, urban design, surveying, property, real estate management and construction). In addition to responding creatively to the design brief that is set, the previous competitions have shown that the challenge helps students develop soft skills that are transferrable across subject areas, learn about career opportunities in the built environment sector, and grow in self-belief.

Working with partners such as C40 Cities, Minecraft Education, MOBIE, Esri and Local Village Network, the Design Future London Challenge offers opportunities to:

  • inspire young people to think about where they live, how places are shaped and influenced and how they could be involved;
  • raise the profile of careers in the built environment sector and inspire a future talent pipeline;
  • engage young Londoners to share their vision for the future of our city and to design solutions for the city’s future which will inform the Greater London Authority’s review of a future London Plan;
  • promote digital skills through the offer of Minecraft Education and ArcGIS licences;
  • support diverse learning styles by offering a range of resources to help students such as free model-making materials;
  • access to a programme of events that will be hosted in a dedicated space at the Building Centre.
  • support schools with a mentorship programme.

What’s in it for students?

  • Opportunity to develop core skills - communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking in responding to a design brief.
  • Access to mentors who include professionals from the built environment sector. Whatever your students are passionate about, interested in or good at, there will be a place for them in creating and improving London’s built environment in future.
  • Prizes for winners and runners-up in each age group.


Page last updated: 12 Dec 2024, 02:33 PM