We will create a 'Parklet' on Stoke Newington High St in conjunction with, and located outside, the Z-Bar café. Parklets are being rolled out across many UK High Streets to help provide desperately needed outdoor space for coffee shops, bars and restaurants or simply for safer, outdoor socialising. A Parklet is a small public pavement extension, usually extending two parking space lengths, combining elements like seating, trees, flowers and shrubs, bringing aesthetic enhancement to the overall streetscape. It will add some calm to this busy road and create an environment where locals, businesses and passers-by can sit, relax and enjoy the city around them, as well as the greenery of the Parklet . By not requiring a permanent concrete base, Parklets are a much faster and less expensive way to bring improvements to a neighbourhood high street. Parklets also provide vital food and homes for wildlife. So it will be great to see people, bees and butterflies using it!

What we'll deliver:

• A beautiful parklet with seating and planters

Why it's a great idea:

HEALTH & SOCIAL – parklets help people feel calm and relaxed; create a community space to increase social interaction; encourage active travel; and promote community engagement. More cyclists and pedestrians visit the area (impact studies have shown increased footfall and bicycle counts); and there is lower crime & antisocial behaviour (urban green space results in “more eyes on the street”). ENVIRONMENTAL – Parklets add greenery, encourage wildlife and revitalise the area by improving the street environment. And they promote a car-free culture by removing parking spaces. ECONOMIC - Parklets promote business growth, creating jobs, bringing higher footfall into economic zones and creating economic spill over effects into surrounding streets and neighbourhoods e.g. cafes located near parklets generated a 20%-30% growth in sales following parklet installation.

Steps to get it done:

• Work with the council to gain the necessary preliminary permissions
• Create the design and licensing documents and gain final permissions and parking suspensions
• Install the parklet