In April 2023, Otterpool Park LLP secured outline planning approval for a major new garden town providing 8,500 new homes within the Folkestone and Hythe district in Kent.

The decision was the culmination of years of work by the Otterpool Park LLP team with support from Pillory Barn, working alongside some of the UK’s biggest masterplanning and development specialists, including Quod, Arcadis, Tibbalds and Farrells.

Our involvement began in 2018, when we were tasked with defining the brand vision for a development that aims to answer the housing supply needs of the district for the next generation in an innovative, vibrant and sustainable new community.

Our initial brand research challenged the project team on their rationale for this location and consulted with local stakeholders with an interest in shaping what Otterpool Park could become. Workshops and presentations resulted in a visioning report that outlined typical resident personas, sharing a vision for the town and its supporting brand evolution.

A place narrative was developed, centring around three pillars – Countryside, Connected, Creative – clearly communicating the brand’s vision for the new community. These words have regularly formed a starting point to support conversations about Otterpool Park.

Pillory Barn delivered an extensive full brand toolkit and website which has become a rich resource of information, with regular project status updates and is a platform for community engagement activity.

Otterpool Park’s brand evolution

The brand today uses both environmental and historic references in its graphic style,  to reflect the site’s heritage and its relationship with Westenhanger Castle and the former Folkestone Racecourse site.

Taking inspiration from geometric shapes found in heraldic shields and jockey silks, unique and bold geometric pattern combinations are used in supporting assets, backgrounds, hoardings and more.

Otterpool Park is a landscape-led development, incorporating 50% green space – appropriately the brand textures and colours; contours and vistas and communicates the vibrancy that new development seeks to achieve.

Full-service marketing provision

Our digital services provision for Otterpool Park LLP has includes developing and maintaining the Otterpool Park website for the duration, including full content creation by our expert content writers. The brand continues to be used through a variety of designed assets we supply including brochures, signage, workwear, public consultation materials and impactful power point presentations to support in this extensive project better understood by stakeholders.

Written and visual content generation has supported this complex project and further activity included creating informative content, media relations, engaging with key audiences including members of the public, businesses and stakeholders.

All of this combined activity has been underpinned by marcomms strategies tailored to build brand awareness and deliver tangible results that are captured through ongoing evaluation.

Remaining at the heart of the activity, the Otterpool Park brand helps reinforce brand recognition, build trust, reinforce the vision and provide a visual reference point for one of the UK’s most exciting new garden town developments.