Love Your Place Challenge Day: Botley as a Destination
On 11 March 2026, the Future Towns Innovation Hub had the pleasure of facilitating a Love Your Place Challenge Day for Botley.
The event brought together local businesses, parish councillors and key stakeholders to start shaping a shared vision for Botley’s future ahead of the new Botley Bypass opening in 2027. Working together, the group focused on one big question:
How do we make Botley a destination?
Why this matters
With the bypass set to open in summer 2027, Botley High Street is at a moment of transformation. As Cllr Chris Cooper, Chair of Botley Parish Council, highlighted:
This creates a rare opportunity. If we work together, we can transform Botley High Street from a car-dominated space into a people-focused place where businesses thrive and the community flourishes. But that outcome isn’t guaranteed - it depends on the choices we make now.
Who was involved
The day brought together a wide range of voices, including:
- Botley Parish Council members and staff.
- Eastleigh Borough Council and Hampshire County Council (project co-sponsors).
- Local businesses from the High Street and Botley Mills.
The session was facilitated by service designers Kathryn and Robert Woolf (Made Open), alongside Dr Tom Rushby and Professor Clint Styles from FTIH.
What we did
The day introduced participants to design thinking and the Double Diamond process, enabling them to explore ideas broadly before focusing on priorities. Activities included:
Visioning
Capturing ideas, ambitions, and opportunities for the village.
Prioritising
Voting on ideas with the strongest support and potential impact.
Reframing
Refining ideas into themes to guide future design briefs.
Participants explored user-centered research, problem framing and collaborative design; identifying key areas that will form the foundation for evidence-based design briefs aimed at enhancing Botley as a Destination.
Participants also heard more about updates on the High Street plans from Hampshire County Council including:
- Funding for improvements is now in place.
- Initial changes (such as a 20mph speed limit and temporary traffic calming) are expected when the bypass opens.
- Longer-term, permanent changes are likely to follow in 2027–28.
A business support package was also introduced to help local businesses adapt and make the most of future opportunities.
Key themes
Three core themes guided the day and will continue to shape the work ahead:
- The Business Community
- Visitor and Resident Experience
- Getting to and around Botley
What happens next
We’re now moving into the next phase: wider community engagement.
This means sharing what we’ve learned so far and inviting more residents, businesses and stakeholders to get involved in shaping Botley’s future. To support this, Botely has a dedicated online network and collaboration space at the hub.
Stakeholders are invited can join one of five team spaces, contribute ideas and help shape the design briefs that will guide future projects.