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How to brighten up your high street with banners, flags and bunting.

Is your high street, town, city or shopping centre looking to draw crowds, create a social media buzz or simply a more inviting and vibrant atmosphere? If so, you’re in the right place! Placemaking is the process of transforming public spaces into engaging, welcoming, and aesthetically pleasing areas that reflect the unique character and culture of your community.

Explore how banners, flags, and bunting can be powerful tools in place management. They are cost-effective, yet high impact options for enhancing your high street and all local authorities in the UK should consider them for their placemaking initiatives.

The power of placemaking

Placemaking is more than just urban planning; it’s about creating spaces that resonate with people on a personal level. Placemaking can help to foster a sense of belonging and identity within a local community. A well-executed local plan for implementing placemaking projects can breathe new life into your high street, boost local businesses, and make your town or city a destination of choice.

Here are some key placemaking ideas for high streets and town centres.

BANNERS

Banners are an effective tool for storytelling as they offer a great way to showcase the heritage of your local area. They can convey a sense of history, celebrate local events and heroes, or simply add a burst of colour to your high street.

Here's why banners are an essential element of placemaking:

Identity and place branding: Custom banners can be designed with local motifs, landmarks, and cultural references to help define your town’s identity and make it memorable to both residents and tourists.

Artist-led collaboration: Placemaking offers a great opportunity to collaborate with local people and get the wider community engaged with local businesses. During one of Field & Lawn’s recent placemaking projects, two public spaces in Bath were dressed with bespoke artwork to celebrate the city as part of a summer events programme. It featured overhead flags, decorated with designs created by local artist Zoë Power. The project aimed to increase footfall and support local businesses as part of a wider high street renewal project.

Promotion: Banners can be used to promote local businesses, events, and community initiatives. They’re a cost-effective way to support local businesses and increase the number of visitors to your local high streets. Collaborating with local businesses on placemaking projects can help to support your local economy.

Wayfinding: Well-placed banners can also be used as wayfinding signs, helping visitors navigate your high street more easily. This can attract a larger number of tourists to key landmarks in your area.

Flags

Flags can play a key role in placemaking by contributing to the identity, character, and sense of belonging in your local area. They often represent the identity and values of a place and are reflective of the community’s values and culture.

Flags can be a powerful tool in the placemaking process:

Community Cohesion: Flags representing different local groups, neighbourhoods, or cultures can create unity and belonging. This can even help develop a sense of pride that brings wider community groups together.

Celebration: Flags are often used during special occasions and events to create a festive atmosphere that brings people together. For example, Field & Lawn were able to provide a wide range of displays and features for the Coronation of King Charles III. This included Coronation flags on Regent St. Oxford St. Jermyn St. The Strand, Marylebone High St. Bond St. Sloan St. and various other streets across the West End.

Visual Appeal: A row of flags can really brighten up your high street, attracting photographers and influencers to the town centre. Creating a great photo opportunity is an excellent way to attract attention and increase visitors to local high streets.

Cultural Representation: Flags are a wonderful way to display the diversity of your local community. Flying flags from other nations or areas can highlight the unique diversity of your town or city.

Field and Lawn can supply and install a range of different sized banners or custom flags in PVC, fabric, and mesh materials. These can be erected as cross street displays, on lamp columns or attached to building façades. We can assist with your planning, permits and advertising consents, as well as take care of all infrastructure requirements from installation through to removal.

Bunting

Bunting, with its charming and nostalgic appearance, is key to making any public space look visually appealing. The colours and patterns can create a festive and inviting atmosphere, especially during special occasions or celebrations.

Bunting can be a great addition to your placemaking toolkit:

Street-Level Decoration: Hanging bunting along streets, shopfronts, or outdoor seating areas invites visitors to spend time in communal areas by creating a welcoming atmosphere.

Events and Festivals: Bunting is a must-have for street parties, parades, and festivals. It instantly adds a celebratory feel to any event.

Customisation: It’s very easy to customise bunting to create a bespoke design that reflects your town’s unique character. This provides an opportunity to involve local artists and craftspeople in the placemaking process.

A Collaborative Effort

To make placemaking truly successful, it’s important to collaborate with businesses, artists, the community and expert placemaking providers like Field and Lawn. Placemaking projects aim to benefit the wider community, so it is key to get local people involved.

Here's how to get started:

Engage the Community: Seek input from residents and local businesses to understand what they need from their local high street as well as key high street challenges. This involvement gives the community a sense of ownership over the project which can help create excitement about your installation.

Local Artists and Designers: Collaborate with local artists and designers to create unique and meaningful banners, flags, and bunting that demonstrate local talent and showcase the heritage of your town.

Maintenance: Regularly maintain and replace banners, flags, and bunting to ensure they always look their best.

Promotion: Use social media, local newspapers, and events to promote your placemaking efforts. Encourage residents and visitors to share their experiences. Social media is a great tool for increasing footfall.

If you need additional support with your latest placemaking project, reach out to one of your local Field & Lawn branches for advice from a placemaking expert.

Field and Lawn can support you with all aspects of the placemaking mix

About fIELD AND LAWN: Placemaing and City dRESSING

Field and Lawn are one of the leading placemaking and city dressing providers in the UK. With four regional branches across, we provide a nationwide service. Our experienced team can assist in a wide range of placemaking projects. Beyond placemaking, we also provide festive lighting services, event marquees and temporary buildings. We provide placemaking and city dressing for:

Events and activations
Performance art
Celebrations and gatherings
Urban greening
Large outdoor lettering
Signage and wayfinding
Experiential displays

Pop-up markets
Art installations and exhibitions
Lighting and illuminations
Architectural lighting
Flags, banners and bunting
Seasonal outdoor events
Outdoor beaches

artistic banner flags installed

London’s iconic Piccadilly Circus has been transformed by of a collection of bold geometric, large scale outdoor banner flags. Created by London-based artist Rana Begum in collaboration with Art of London and the Royal Academy of Arts. The display marks the start of the Art of London’s exciting outdoor event Summer Season, titled “The Art of Entertainment.”

Field and Lawn, supported the team with expert installation. The flags feature tiled mosaic patterns that bring a sense of movement and energy to the streets of the West End. Rana Begum’s designs aim to capture the theme of “Art of Entertainment”. The flags will hang high above Piccadilly until the end of August.

The flags play a crucial role in placemaking and city dressing. Placemaking involves transforming public spaces into vibrant, engaging, and inclusive areas that reflect the identity and character of the community. Banners, flags, and bunting can be a colourful and cost-effective way of promoting your brand or event or enhancing the local area.

Field and lawn banner flag installation

Field and Lawn are experts in city dressing. We can supply and install a range of different sized banners or custom flags in PVC, fabric, and mesh materials. These can be erected as cross street displays, on lamp columns or attached to building façades. We can assist with your planning, permits and advertising consents, as well as take care of all infrastructure requirements from installation through to removal.

By incorporating public art installations like the flags in Piccadilly, Art of London aims to create a sense of place that delivers community engagement, cultural expression and enhanced footfall and dwell time in the city.

Artistic Flags

Art of London’s commitment to showcasing art in every form is exemplified by their Gallery Without Walls project. This initiative transforms the West End into a hub of creative expression, seamlessly integrating art into various facets of urban life, including institutions, theatres, retail spaces, and even the streets themselves. The flags in Piccadilly are a testament to the power of art in transforming public spaces into dynamic and visually stimulating environments.

Moreover, the flag installation aligns with London’s Art After Dark program, which promotes evening access to art institutions and independent galleries. This program allows art enthusiasts to explore exhibitions beyond regular opening hours, creating opportunities for a broader audience to engage with art and culture.They give a platform for artists to showcase work and deliver an instant press and publicity opportunity. The benefits of art installations like this is long term, providing a long-lasting social media opportunity.

Field and Lawn can support with complex outdoor art installation.

The response to Rana Begum’s flags has been overwhelmingly positive, with Jo Prosser, a director at the Royal Academy of Arts, praising the installation as a fantastic welcome to the West End. By infusing the cityscape with art, these flags not only enhance the visual appeal of Piccadilly Circus but also contribute to a vibrant and culturally rich atmosphere.

About Field and Lawn

Field and Lawn are one of the leading placemaking and city dressing providers in the UK. With four regional branches across, we provide a nationwide service. Our experienced team can assist in a wide range of placemaking projects. In addition to the artistic flags, we have recently installed Coronation flags and Pride flags in key locations. Beyond placemaking, we also provide festive lighting services, event marquees and temporary buildings.

Tag: banner flags

Placemaking: Banners, Flags and Bunting