An Urban Room installation will be open to the public in the Penny School Gallery in Kingston College's Creative Industries Centre from 13 - 20 September.

What If?, which has been organised by The Kingston Society, is part of the London Design Festival, being the first time the borough has been included in the festival, and the Kingston 2025 celebrations.

As part of the installation, the Penny School Gallery will be transformed into five creative zones exploring place and possibilities.

In collaboration with local innovators, designers, artists and architects, these areas will cover heritage, art and design, architects, designers, and the future Urban Room.

During their visit, people will be invited to contribute ideas to an evolving physical map of Kingston, engage with members of the Kingston Society in open sessions and leave behind drawings, stories, or questions of their own to feed into the future Urban Room design.

Sharing the inspiration behind What If, Kingston Urban Room Project Lead Peter Karpinski said: "For many residents, development decisions seem to happen behind closed doors, so it's easy to feel shut out of the process or unaware there's even a way in. But it doesn't have to be that way.

"The built environment affects us all and good design is created with - not just for - people.

"Our What If installation will show how, instead of treating public input as a planning formality, an Urban Room would recognise residents as valued voices and put people and their priorities at the heart of decisions that shape our borough's future."

In an exclusive interview with Nub News, Tony Lancaster, Chairman of The Kingston Society explained that that "people interpret urban rooms in numbers of ways".

He added: "Some of them are pop ups, others are permanent structures, like in Cambridge and in Newcastle, where they have models of the town and a programme of events to engage the locals in caring about their town.

"But The Kingston Society's perspective is that it's a central place where the matters that concern the town can be centrally discussed.

"For example, whenever a developer comes to town, they will, usually either because they're obliged to or if they're decent because they want to, have a public consultation,like they did for the church hall in Norbiton and the regeneration of the Ancient Market.

"But, very often they don't last very long, sort of two days at most, and it's difficult for them to publicise them effectively.

"For example, none of the local civic groups knew about Between the Bridge's consultation for the Ancient Market House in Kingston."

Between the Bridges was appointed as the new operator for Kingston's Ancient Market in April (Credit: Tilly O'Brien)

Thus, Lancaster explained, The Kingston Society would like to see the Urban Room as a "a central place where people know that a developer will always be there when they've got a proposal" and that it will be a space for residents to navigate what is going on in our town.

He explained that he wants the installation to encourage Kingston residents to become more involved in the borough's town planning as often people are only interested in planning when it directly affects them, for example when "apartments are being built in their backyard".

Lancaster added: "But planning can be confusing. Planning documents are really hard to understand, and, very often for a large development, there's literally hundreds of documents online.

"And the problem with not getting involved with planning is that you lose the connection to placemaking. Placemaking sounds like a fancy term, but it's really just caring about the quality of the places where we live our lives."

Lancaster explained that Kingston "doesn't really have a policy on art" despite the borough having lots of art like the tumbling telephone boxes.

He added: "But we're not really calling for anything particularly heavy, we just want to debate the basis of how public art in urban spaces work."

To highlight the link between good design and local pride, and encourage people to connect with their surroundings, the free programme also includes themed walks and talks, including:

KINGS-TOWN TALK:

• Discussion exploring the role of public art in urban spaces: Thursday, 18 September (12.30pm -2pm)
• Lunchtime debate in the Kingston College Creative Industries Centre as key creative voices, including local artists, council officers and Kingston organisations - debate the connection between public art, heritage and communities.
• The panel discussion will be followed by a Q&A session, where the audience can contribute their thoughts and questions around the social function of creative works in the public realm.

GUIDED WALKS:

Public Trail - Art in the Open: Tues 16 Sept (10.30am - 12.30pm)

• With the town centre home to a wide range of outdoor art, this guided walk will reflect on around 20 artworks, each portraying a different side of Kingston's character and revealing how past and present Kingston are connected.
• Starting from the Penny School Gallery, and finishing at the Stanley Picker Gallery, the tour will cover the evolution of local art, from the newest additions to historic landmarks, including some that have been lost along the way.

Historic Kingston - Footsteps Through Time: Thursday, 18 September (2.30pm - 5pm)

• 2025 marks the 1100th anniversary of King Athelstan's coronation – a perfect moment to reflect on legacy, identity and change on a walk where every stop has a story to tell.
• This journey through the town's colourful past will start from the Coronation Stone at the Guildhall before taking in medieval bridges, coaching inns, and places once at the heart of local justice, from former prisons and correction houses to militia barracks and stocks.

Coombe Conduit - The Palace Pipeline: Saturday, 20 September (10am - 3pm)

• Follow the flow of history on this 3.5-mile walk tracing the ingenious Tudor route that channelled fresh water from Coombe to Court for 350 years; a route whose influence ensures it remains marked on Ordnance Survey maps today.
• The tour includes rare access to the hidden chambers of Coombe Conduit (where the walk starts), an hour's break for lunch (not provided) at All Saints Church, and free entry to Hampton Court Palace Gardens (where it ends).

You cand out more about What If? here.