In this month’s edition we speak to the man known within Planit simply as ‘Uncle Rob’.  

From discovering antiquities in Libya to helping Wirral Council prepare the recent World Heritage application for Birkenhead Park, Rob Burns is a true polymath. 

Trained originally as an archaeologist, moving into historic buildings through his time at English Heritage, then helping guide the transformation of Liverpool city centre through Liverpool One and Mann Island, Rob has left his mark in many ways and many forms, but never credited as ‘the designer’. 

Latterly in his career, as leading on Heritage and Urban Design for Liverpool City Council, to now operating as a consultant, he brings a unique perspective on change and development, one we have embraced and woven into our work. We collaborate so closely, so regularly, Rob even has a Planit CV! 

You will hear him talk poetically about history, progress, the psychology, and character of place – giving some golden quotes, in particular about the difference between Urban Designers and Architects.  

 As we have grown, so Rob has worked alongside us, not just to collaborate on project work, but to listen to and mentor our team, inputting to bids and pitches for projects across the UK. 

He is, to us, the ‘Obi-wan Kenobi’ of city-shaping and we hope you enjoy listening to just a few of his stories of how he has worked and why we consider his greatest contribution to Planit to be him sharing his immense wisdom. 

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Created by Planit, produced by Goldbean Studios.

See podcast.co/privacy for privacy information.

In this month’s edition of ‘The Start of Something…’ we speak to our dear friend and collaborator, the artist Stephen Broadbent.

Stephen and his studio enable and create award-winning art in the public realm for cities across the UK, and we’ve been working together for over 30 years – before the start of Planit. 

What unites all of Stephen’s projects is where he begins – with the context. His work, with us and others, begins with creating a vision for a place and how it can make you feel right there, in that place; his passion for delving deep into local identity, history and storytelling acts as the catalyst to bringing members of the community alongside our collective work and into our city’s squares, parks and gardens.

His care, spirituality and passion are clear to hear. 

Planit and Stephen continue to work on numerous projects of differing scales across a variety of geographies and media. We began together in Sheffield and along the way have collaborated around stadia, research facilities, market squares and streets - including our home town of Altrincham and its now famous Market. 

broadbent.studio

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Created by Planit, produced by Goldbean Studios.

See podcast.co/privacy for privacy information.

For our very first episode we're going to hear from our long-standing client and very good friend the Revd Adam Thomas; currently the director of Whalley Abbey, but with a journey to that point most of us will never get close to.

Adam is a deeply spiritual and committed individual, and his wisdom to us focusses around the importance of adaptability.

To find out more, head over to our website, planit-ie.com, where you can find our news, discover our team, and learn why we do what we do.

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Created by Planit, produced by Goldbean Studios.

See podcast.co/privacy for privacy information.

Welcome to the Planit podcast; which shares a title with our book, ‘The Start of Something’.

The title reflects the way we look at our work and the part we can play in fixing the world around us. 

We don’t ‘finish’ places when a project of ours completes. This marks the beginning of something. 

This is why we don’t feel comfortable with the familiar words of our industry – ‘placemaking’ and ‘masterplanning’ suggest a level of imposition, control, and rigidity at odds with our worldview.

We want to introduce a more generous, gentle language to the craft of change and the movement towards regenerative practice. We will always be ‘starters’ despite our projects taking years or decades to realise and mature. We have a saying that gets used in our work: ‘Plan for the life of an Oak tree’.

This podcast series speaks to everyone interested in positive change, generous leadership and, through business, the drive to leave the world better than we found it.

This point marks a time to celebrate – what we’ve learned, our successes, our failures, and to recognise those we’ve met along the way.

In each episode, we’ll introduce you to some great thinkers, creators, and leaders. We have completed the first year of content – thanks to those people who feature in the book.

Tune in every month to find out more, and head over to our website, planit-ie.com, where you can find our news, discover our team, and learn why we do what we do.

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Created by Planit, produced by Goldbean Studios.

See podcast.co/privacy for privacy information.