Jolley, V., 2024.

Central Lancashire New Town: an urban vision for the North

In May 1974 the Central Lancashire Development Corporation published an outline plan for a new town in the Preston, Leyland and Chorley area (figure 3). Central Lancashire New Town was fundamental to Manchester's decentralisation strategy and its study area had been designated in 1970 under the 1965 New Town Act. Its outline plan was based on a series of feasibility studies prepared by the new town's initial consultants, Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall and Partners (RMJM) between 1966 and 1971. This research focuses on RMJM's preliminary designs, which propose a framework for a linear sub-regional polycentric 'super city' capable of accommodating 500,000 people. An abundance of diagrams by RMJM illustrate the preliminary design reports to explain the new town at a range of scales. To historically contextualise RMJM's scheme for Central Lancashire New Town, these diagrams are compared with drawings by local and international designers who progressed planned development from 1882. Different concepts, forms, scales and types are introduced, ranging from community cluster to regionalism; garden cities, satellites and linear settlements; and the Mark I, II and III British new towns. With reference to zoning, neighbourhood density, open space, infrastructure and communications, the composition of Central Lancashire New Town's framework is described and the origins of these ideas are traced by identifying the new town's designers' links with Percy Johnson-Marshall, Constantinos A. Doxiadis, the MARS group, CIAM and Team 10. The research concludes by noting the new town's architectural legacy across the sub-region, including built, un-built and demolished buildings and infrastructure.