In this blog, we meet Louise Hall, a volunteer who has been supporting the Play Park Survey – finding out what children think of their local play parks. Louise, a digital designer at Scottish Enterprise, grew up in the Highlands and now lives in Glasgow. She has a strong sense of community and enjoys cycling and live music.

Tell us a bit about yourself

I currently stay in Glasgow but I’m originally from the Highlands, so I’m always striving to get a good balance of an outdoor lifestyle and having everything accessible on my doorstep.

I’ve spent most of my career as a digital designer and I’ve been at Scottish Enterprise for just over eight years now – working across their three websites and collaborating with colleagues to create better experiences online.

One area I’m particularly proud of is helping to reduce the carbon emissions of our websites by round about 57%. Every online interaction has an environmental impact, but we can reduce it through thoughtful design and technology choices.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I like getting out on my bike. I live in the north of the city, and I love that I can cycle to the south side almost all on cycle and canal paths.

I always try to get on a bike in any new city I visit. I think it’s a great way to navigate and get a good feel of a place. Copenhagen, unsurprisingly, is very easy to cycle in. I’m going to Paris in a few weeks, so I’m looking forward to cycling there. I’ve heard they have done a lot to improve the infrastructure.

I like going to gigs – Glasgow is amazing for live music. My favourite venue is the Barrowlands. I also take part in various musical communities, Bishopbriggs Community Choir and Glasgow Folk-Music Workshop. Being part of a community is important to me and helps me feel a sense of place.

How did you get involved with Planning Aid Scotland?

I’m always chatting to friends and family about my interest in regeneration. I think that coming from such a small village on the west coast of the Highlands, community spirit is ingrained in me and I’m always looking for that.

Last year, I finally joined a community walk in the East End with Glasgow Women’s Library, hosted by May East. She’s the author of What If Women Designed the City, exploring urban regeneration, safety and belonging from the perspective of women.

I found the walk really inspiring and decided to research volunteering opportunities to get involved in helping shape these communities.

I found Planning Aid Scotland and was impressed with the work that you do. You’ve got a great community with an emphasis on supporting and training volunteers.

What has been your favourite experience as a volunteer?

I really liked the Digital Mapping Hackathon – it was good fun. It was interesting to work with different data sets, and pairing up with a graduate planner created some really interesting conversations and insights.

Since the hackathon, I’ve completed an ArcGIS course, but I think I’ll need about 10 years of practice to get a full understanding of it!

I also really enjoyed the facilitation and community engagement workshop that you ran earlier in the year, looking at managing power dynamics and creating inclusive spaces that allow everybody to come together.

Any top tips you’ve learnt from volunteering with Planning Aid Scotland?

I’ve just finished an engagement session in Twechar for Play Scotland’s Play Park Survey to hear what children thought of the park. I asked questions and let them give me a guided tour to observe how they use the space.

It was a good chance to use the skills I learnt at the workshop – managing conversations with very excitable children and their parents. The children really appreciated having an opportunity to voice any concerns. I was impressed with how engaged they were in the wider community, and I learnt a lot from them.

What interested you in the Play Park Survey volunteer role?

I think it’s important for children to have the freedom of play and creativity. I grew up in a rural area and we were out playing all the time. My daughter grew up in the countryside and was lucky too. Some children don’t have that same opportunity. I’ve learnt new skills from Planning Aid Scotland and wanted to put them into practice.

Was there anything that surprised you about the experience?

I was surprised by how engaged the children were.

There was a new piece of equipment – a small trampoline. They were delighted with it but a bit annoyed about its size. While we were talking about it, one of the younger children (around six years old) noticed that there were two little ramps going onto the trampoline. He said that even though the trampoline is smaller than he would like, it’s good because people can get onto it with wheelchairs. I thought it was cool that he had noticed that.

What do you find inspiring about planning in Scotland?

Glasgow is an interesting place for planning regeneration, but there are a couple of areas that I find particularly inspiring.

To the north of the city, there’s a new, low-carbon neighbourhood, called Dundas Hill. It’s a great space – they’ve landscaped the area with accessible streets and pathways. It’s nice to walk around, nice to cycle to, and it connects to the canal and the city. I’ve heard there are some complaints about not having local amenities and the transport connections not being great from there, so I’m hoping that will improve in the future.

The Barclays campus on the riverside is an asset to Glasgow, and I think it looks great. It’s got strong community links and plays an important role in the local economy. Again, I love the landscaping around it and the connection to the river. It’s a favourite place of mine to sit at lunchtime and enjoy the surroundings.

On the river, I’m excited about plans to create a vibrant neighbourhood at Govan Graving Docks and the possibility of repurposing one of the docks for recreational use for paddle sports and swimming. It will be amazing if they pull it off!

Any fun facts about planning?

I have zero fun facts about planning, but I do have a hope for the future of planning!

I hope that co-housing becomes a feasible way of living in Scotland. I think shared community space and facilities are a great way to create social neighbourhoods and a balanced lifestyle, combat loneliness, and reduce pressure on health and care services. It’s the norm in many other countries, so I’d really like to see this emerge successfully in Scotland!

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