In starting this blog 1, I will share my journey of developing further understanding of the purpose and role of the public space. In this first post I will explore what could be considered as a definition and meaning of the public space. Following some research of what UK law and public institutions in Wales define as a public (or open) space I found and summarise the following:
Video by author: selection of public spaces and narration of the categories outlined in this post.
Summary of definitions
| Source | Definition |
| British Standard BS ISO 6707‑4:2021 | A “space for use by the public or to which they have right of access”. |
| The Criminal Justice Act (1972) | Includes “any highway and any other premises or place to which at the material time the public have or are permitted to have access, whether on payment or otherwise”. |
| Planning Policy Wales’ technical advice note. 16: Sport, recreation, and open space . | An Open Space “as all open space of public value, including not just land, but also areas of water such as rivers, canals, lakes and reservoirs which offer important opportunities for sport, recreation and tourism, and can also act as a visual amenity, and may have conservation and biodiversity importance. Areas which are privately owned may have amenity value, although access will not be possible without the agreement of the land owner. Areas like domestic gardens are relevant, since places without or with few gardens, are likely to be more reliant upon the provision of public spaces”. |
| Open Spaces Act 1906 2. | “means any land, whether inclosed or not, on which there are no buildings or of which not more than one-twentieth part is covered with buildings, and the whole or the remainder of which is laid out as a garden or is used for purposes of recreation, or lies waste and unoccupied”. |
| Caerphilly Council’s protection of Open Space: local development plan up to 2021 . | “An area of open space … within the settlement boundary that can be used formally or informally for leisure purposes (irrespective of land ownership)”. |
The different definitions are similar in where they state that the space is accessible, but they are inconsistent regarding ownership of the space. Some of the definitions mention types of spaces (weighted bold) as relevant.
Categories
| Source | Category/ies |
| From the table above | Highway. Premises. Not just land, but rivers, canals, lakes and reservoirs. Domestic gardens. Where there are no buildings. Not more than one-twentieth part is covered with buildings. For leisure purposes. |
| Guidance page of the Welsh Government report: Technical advice note (TAN) 16: sport, recreation and open space . | Public parks and gardens. Outdoor sports facilities. Play areas. Allotments. Water, for example ponds, rivers, and reservoirs. |
| A consultation by the UK Government: Protect Duty . | “Publicly accessible locations include: Sports stadiums. Festivals. Music venues. Hotels. Pubs. Clubs. Bars. Casinos. High streets. Retail stores. Shopping centres and markets. Schools and universities. Medical centres and hospitals. Places of worship. Government offices. Job centres. Transport hubs. Parks. Beaches. Public squares and other open spaces”. |
| The London Assembly: the London Plan 2016 . | “Open space categorisation: Regional parks. Metropolitan parks. District parks. Local parks and open spaces. Pocket parks. Linear open spaces”. |
Reflections
In reflecting on this research, the British Standard definition is appealing because it is concise. A public space can be anywhere that one has access . There are spaces (including others’ dwellings) which we do not have access.
With the definition, we each have a different level of access to public spaces. Person A may have access to a larger public space than Person B because of their social capital (they have more connections) .
Public (or open) spaces are protected in Wales by legislation that gives power mostly to the local authority . This includes recent inclusion of provision to intervene anti-social behaviour and possibly to protect against terrorism .
The different definitions and categories are insightful, however, for future posts. I will take these, and include a few of my own, and compare the different uses.
Notes
Note 1: Blog (noun): “a regular record of your thoughts, opinions, or experiences that you put on the internet for other people to read” .
Note 2: Although this legislation has been superseded, I have included it to be relevant as it seems to be an early or first law in the UK which recognises a public space and allows and protects a public institution to own and maintain a space, such as a pathway. A useful timeline of legislation can be found on the Safer Communities website.
Note 3: this post was included as part of an assignment for my Masters. It includes amendments made on 4 February 2025.