International award for OWL planners

One World Link has been recognised in a major international award for town planning work as “a model for others to follow”.

One World Link’s work was “Highly Commended” by the Commonwealth Association of Planners (CAP) in its 2019 Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement in the Commonwealth announced in Ghana on Saturday 9th November.  Entries for this award were received from around the world but One World Link was the only UK entry to be even shortlisted.

One World Link, the friendship link between Warwick District and the city of Bo in Sierra Leone, has been working with Bo City Council for several years to develop a plan to guide the growth of the city.  Town planners from Warwick and Leamington teamed up with Prince Charles’ Prince’s Foundation and planning consultants Turley to deliver training and support for colleagues in Sierra Leone and have run several joint training workshops to help develop a plan for the city.  

Philip Clarke from One World Link said: “It is a great honour for our work to be recognised in this way.  Bo is currently a city of 175,000 people but, like many middle-sized African cities, is likely to grow massively in the next few years to three times this size by 2045.  Sierra Leone does not have an effective planning system, so developing any type of meaningful plan for the city is challenging to say the least.  We were, however, hugely encouraged by the way that local people in Bo, with no planning training, embraced the ideas behind developing their own plan.  It was really important that the ideas for how Bo should grow should come from them.  Hopefully the recognition from this award will give them further encouragement to take this important work forward.”

One World Link will be travelling to Sierra Leone in January to undertake further training and continue to support this work.

Clive Harridge, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Association of Planners and a Warwickshire resident, presented the Award to Philip Clarke and John Archer at the Town Hall, Leamington Spa and said:

The Commonwealth Association of Planners Awards champion the very best of planning from across the Commonwealth. The Award winners were selected by an eminent independent panel of judges and I am hugely delighted that the work One World Link and its partners have been undertaking in Bo has been Highly Commended.  It was a real privilege for me to present the Award in person to Philip Clarke and John Archer.  The planning work in Bo which is ongoing is of the highest standard and is being used as a model for others to follow across the Commonwealth.”

The Commonwealth Association of Planners (CAP) represents over 40,000 town planners from 28 countries throughout the Commonwealth.  The annual CAP Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement in the Commonwealth champion the very best examples of planning practice in the Commonwealth.   

One World Link’s work was “Highly Commended” by the Commonwealth Association of Planners (CAP) in its 2019 Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement in the Commonwealth announced in Ghana on Saturday 9th November.  Entries for this award were received from around the world but One World Link was the only UK entry to be even shortlisted.

The photos above show:
– Members of One World Link together with councillors and officers of Bo City Council at the end of the Planning workshop
– Clive Harridge (Secretary-General, Commonwealth Association of Planners and Warwickshire resident) presents the Award certificate to John Archer and Philip Clarke from One World Link at the Town Hall, Leamington Spa.
– Prince Charles with Tom Perry (Prince’s Foundation) and John Archer and Philip Clarke (One World Link) discussing One World Link’s work in Bo

One World Link, the friendship link between Warwick District and the city of Bo in Sierra Leone, has been working with Bo City Council for several years to develop a plan to guide the growth of the city.  Town planners from Warwick and Leamington teamed up with Prince Charles’ Prince’s Foundation and planning consultants Turley to deliver training and support for colleagues in Sierra Leone and have run several joint training workshops to help develop a plan for the city.  

Philip Clarke from One World Link said: “It is a great honour for our work to be recognised in this way.  Bo is currently a city of 175,000 people but, like many middle-sized African cities, is likely to grow massively in the next few years to three times this size by 2045.  Sierra Leone does not have an effective planning system, so developing any type of meaningful plan for the city is challenging to say the least.  We were, however, hugely encouraged by the way that local people in Bo, with no planning training, embraced the ideas behind developing their own plan.  It was really important that the ideas for how Bo should grow should come from them.  Hopefully the recognition from this award will give them further encouragement to take this important work forward.”

One World Link will be travelling to Sierra Leone in January to undertake further training and continue to support this work.

Clive Harridge, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Association of Planners and a Warwickshire resident, presented the Award to Philip Clarke and John Archer at the Town Hall, Leamington Spa and said:

The Commonwealth Association of Planners Awards champion the very best of planning from across the Commonwealth. The Award winners were selected by an eminent independent panel of judges and I am hugely delighted that the work One World Link and its partners have been undertaking in Bo has been Highly Commended.  It was a real privilege for me to present the Award in person to Philip Clarke and John Archer.  The planning work in Bo which is ongoing is of the highest standard and is being used as a model for others to follow across the Commonwealth.”

The Commonwealth Association of Planners (CAP) represents over 40,000 town planners from 28 countries throughout the Commonwealth.  The annual CAP Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement in the Commonwealth champion the very best examples of planning practice in the Commonwealth.