Digital Placemaking: How Smart Towns Are Transforming Welsh Places

Adam Greenwood, Digital Placemaking Lead at Owen Davies Consulting

At the recent DCFW Placemaking for Town Centres conference, the convergence of two once-separate ideas - placemaking and digital - was discussed. In Wales, we are genuinely leading the way in digital placemaking.

Over the past few years, towns across Wales have been exploring digital placemaking. From footfall analytics to environmental monitoring, these places are using data and technology not for their own sake, but to better understand how towns function - and how they can function better. This momentum is helping local leaders, businesses and communities tackle long-standing challenges: high street vitality, service delivery, visitor engagement, and the complex business of managing places with finite resources.

Small Interventions, Significant Impact

Digital placemaking doesn't require major capital projects. It often begins with simple interventions: tracking footfall patterns, measuring environmental factors, or monitoring soil conditions to improve sustainability.

Abergavenny has implemented a sensor network that monitors soil moisture and temperature in the town centre, enabling more efficient watering and better planting decisions. This innovative approach helped the town win a Discretionary Award for Sustainable Gardening from the Royal Horticultural Society in the 2023 Britain in Bloom UK Finals.

A soil moisture sensor in a street planter in Abergavenny and the green infrastructure scheme data dashboard

Data-Driven Decision Making

The fundamental principle is straightforward: better information leads to better decisions. High-quality data allows councils and placemakers to understand real-time conditions and plan more effectively.

Wrexham's story is particularly notable. Since being awarded city status, and with growing global interest fuelled by its football club and 2029 City of Culture ambitions, the city has embraced digital placemaking as part of its wider transformation strategy. Its Digital Place Plan, which won RTPI Cymru's Excellence in Plan Making Practice award in 2024, has guided investment decisions, business support initiatives, and efforts to reduce costs and carbon emissions. The city has used sensor data to modify maintenance regimes and footfall insights to support high street development. This isn't about flashy technology - it's about using the right tools to understand a place more clearly.

Accessible for Towns of All Sizes

For places beginning their Smart Towns journey, digital placemaking might seem costly or technical. However, the process follows placemaking fundamentals: understanding local priorities, engaging communities, and developing practical action plans.

A digital placemaking approach begins with strategic context and infrastructure assessment, proceeds through stakeholder engagement, and culminates in place-based actions. This approach demystifies the technology, allowing towns to focus on outcomes rather than complexity.

A Digital Placemaking Approach

Importantly, these approaches aren't limited to large urban areas. The technology is typically affordable and easy to maintain, making it accessible for communities of all sizes.

Wales as a Leader

Wales is establishing itself as a leader in digital placemaking. The Smart Towns Cymru programme has fostered a community of place practitioners and tech SMEs contributing to this growing ecosystem. Workshops, conferences, and resources like the Smart Towns Delivery Manual are empowering local authorities with the tools and confidence to implement these strategies.

With funding support through Welsh Government's Transforming Towns Placemaking Grant, integrating Smart Towns thinking into everyday practice is becoming increasingly accessible.

Future Outlook

As Welsh towns face shrinking budgets, climate pressures, and changing public expectations, digital placemaking offers a way to work smarter and make more informed choices.

For many communities, the journey begins by exploring how data might support existing priorities: greener parks, livelier high streets, or better-managed markets. These aren't futuristic ambitions but everyday needs that digital placemaking is increasingly addressing.

Further Reading

Digital Placemaking, Owen Davies Consulting: https://owendaviesconsulting.co.uk/portfolio/digital-placemaking/

Smart Towns Cymru programme: https://www.smarttowns.cymru/en/home

Smart Towns Delivery Manual: https://www.smarttowns.cymru/en/smart-towns-delivery-manual.html

Get in touch to find out more about our Digital Placemaking approach

Adam Greenwood, Digital Placemaking Lead, Owen Davies Consulting

adam@owendaviesconsulting.co.uk