ACTIVE TRAVEL / PUBLIC REALM

Old Hartley to Blyth

A living route along the Northumberland coast, connecting walking, wheeling and cycling with places to pause, gather and explore.

Proposed civic square at Manor Walks, Cramlington.

01 / THE PROJECT

Working with Northumberland County Council, Hyem is developing a sequence of Pocket Places along the Old Hartley to Blyth Sustainable Transport Route. Shaped by the coast’s ecology, stories and communities, these small interventions make the journey an opportunity to discover the landscape rather than simply pass through it.

Pioneer

Make the journey part of the place. Seating, planting, play and interpretation turn transport infrastructure into opportunities to discover the coast, giving each Pocket Place a story rooted in place.

Pioneer

Root

Learn from the people and species already here. Work with schools, residents and local experts to inform coastal habitat and natural play. Poet John Challis’s poem of place weaves through the route through local words, memories and stories.

Root

Adapt

Workshops and partial adoption of Pocket Places allows each space to respond to its setting, with planting, natural materials and evolving management allowing spaces to change over time.

Adapt

Workshops and partial adoption of Pocket Places allows each space to respond to its setting, with planting, natural materials and evolving management allowing spaces to change over time.

02 / DESIGN EXPLORATION