The Talbot Project

Providing a long term coherent strategy that will allow the universities to flourish and act as a stronger economic driver for the region

The Talbot Model Village was created on heathland near Bournemouth through the philanthropic endeavour of the Talbot sisters in the mid-19th Century. The model village was experimental and provided a model of living focused on self-sufficiency and responsibiity that other places could aspire to. This village has now been engulfed by the town however remnants of the former heathland remain and the adjacent land has become home to Bournemouth University and the Arts University Bournemouth. Both Universities have ambitions to transform the experience that they offer their students and have developed campus masterplans however a wider strategy for the land around Talbot Model Village had never been conceived.

Urban Initiatives Studio were appointed by a multi-headed client including the two universities, Bournemouth Borough Council, the Borough of Poole and the Talbot Village Trust (who own much of the land in the area and are custodians of the model village) to create a long-term vision and masterplan for the area.

The masterplan aims to ensure that the universities are able to flourish in the future and can act as stronger economic drivers for the region. It offers opportunity for the universities to grow and also promotes development of an Innovation Park adjacent to the campus which will provide incubator, grow on and business space harnessing the talent that emerges from the universities and retaining it within the region. The plan aims to build on the Talbot sisters’ legacy providing a new direction and purpose for the Talbot Village into the 21st Century.

Through a collaborative process we have prepared a masterplan that has support of all parties and that addresses the significant constraints presented by the protected landscapes, heritage and transport constraints. This plan has been adopted by Borough of Poole as a Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) and has helped to guide planning applications from both Bournemouth University and Arts University Bournemouth. We continue to advise the Talbot Village Trust and both universities.