Includes bibliographical references and index.

Foreword by HRH the Prince of Wales -- Preface: Consensus design in context by Rosie Parnell -- Part one: Introduction -- 1. Architecture as a social art: a journey -- Part two: Consensus design: why? -- 2. Why: community design and place -- What shapes places? -- Design by the community: why? -- What design involvement does for the community -- 3. Why not: shouldn't professionals lead design? -- 4. Consensus versus democracy -- 5. Community and player -- Surviving change -- Community and non -community -- Players -- Players, community and non-community -- 6. Design process for sustainability -- Proprietary stewardship -- Development within time-continuum -- Elemental sustainabilities -- Part three: Consensus design: how? -- 7. The principles behind the process -- Ideas and aspirations -- Spirit-of-place -- Science and art: understanding and creating -- Levels of place: beneath the surface -- 8. How in practice: place-study -- Place and project -- Working with place -- Processes of change: visible and invisible -- Place-study -- 9. How in practice: outline design -- Matching project to place -- Spirit-of-project -- Mood of place -- Time and life related -- Physical -- Growing places -- 10. How in practice: consensual building design -- Building and place -- Rough design -- Moving into three dimensions -- Organizing diagrams -- Detail design -- Prat four: Process development: two projects -- 11. From experimental method to built project: Goethean Science Centre, Scotland -- Two stages: one process -- Reflections -- 12. Socially shaped process: eco-village, Sweden -- Reflections -- Part-five: making it work -- 13. Leadership and teamship -- Leadership: a new model -- Knowledge: power or fertilizing enabler -- 14. Social technique -- Social technique with unequal groups -- Group process -- Confirming decisions -- Recapitulation: anchoring where we've got to -- 15. Technique and non-technique -- Dead technique, live technique -- The demands of circumstance -- Thinking the process versus doing the process -- Taking time -- Understanding behind doing -- 16. What can go wrong? What can go right? -- Part six: Projects -- 17. Reversing moods: lunatic asylum to Steiner school, Brighton -- One-day process -- Reflections -- 18. Redeeming buildings: East bay Waldorf school, California -- Short-, medium- and long-term development -- Rescuing the existing building -- Reflections -- 19. Future growth: East bay Waldorf school, California -- Site development strategy -- High-school building -- Reflections -- 20. Working with a developer: mixed-use urban development, California -- A different climate, project -- Reflections -- 21. Multiple viewpoints: multi-cultural, multi-faith centre, London -- Project launch -- Site development strategy -- The buildings -- Reflections -- 22. Desert ranch: single-family house, Arizone -- Place-study -- Outline design -- Design development -- Reflections -- 23. Science centre revisited: Goethean science centre, Scotland -- Residential building -- The social centre -- Reflections -- Part seven: Broader implications -- 24. Social process as artistic method -- Part eight: Useful practicalities -- 25. What you need -- 26. Sample timetables -- Healing centre -- Community centre -- 27 Sample participation structure -- 28. Assessment matrix.

Co-design is an increasingly important consideration for architects as they compete for work, and this text moves from identifying the methodology of the process to developing a series of principles and practical steps which illustrate how consensus design can be established.