September 2026
Place+
A digital placemaking platform by Prior + Partners
Fragmented
Siloed
Rarely spatial
Inconsistent formats
Hard to benchmark
Insight buried
Why we built it
Planning has been held back not by lack of information, but by the way it’s locked away and hard to use.
What this costs us
Teams spend significant time navigating fragmented sources and reconciling inconsistent formats — slowing the move from evidence to action.
Planning shouldn’t be a data-gathering exercise; it should be a creative, strategic one.
So we built a digital placemaking platform — launched May 2026
What is Place+?
A digital placemaking platform that supports more informed, collaborative and strategic decision-making in shaping towns, cities and regions.
Developed by placemakers and digital innovators at Prior + Partners, it brings together spatial intelligence, data science, and placemaking expertise within a single integrated environment.
Our guiding principle
Tools to
think with.
For every team, regardless of their technical resources.
Platform design principles
01
Intuitive interface & experience
Zero-training entry — if it needs a manual, it stays on the shelf.
02
Rapid iteration
Ask, see, re-ask — at the speed of a conversation, not a commission.
03
Transparent, evidence-backed results
Every number traceable to its source — trust is a feature.
04
Scalable framework
One platform, from national patterns down to a single plot.
→ steps through each principle
One platform · a growing suite of tools
01 · Understand
Place Portrait
The evidence base — a free national dataset, adapted to local and client conditions.
02 · Analyse
Place Analytics
Capacity, constraints, opportunity and infrastructure — answered analytically.
03 · Design
Place Composer
Create, develop and test plans and masterplans in one dynamic environment.
04 · Communicate
Place Storyteller
Publish and present plans — a platform for engagement and consultation.
Component 01 · Understand
Place Portrait
A free-to-access view of the forces shaping places across England and Wales
The National Place Portrait · placeplus.priorandpartners.com
01/05Move between themes, scales and locations in one interface
02/05Explore place, your way
03/05Cross-sector analysis, one joined-up picture
04/05Tell your compelling, data-driven stories
05/05People-driven analysis, AI-powered insights
Component 01 · Place Portrait
The evidence base
The offer
A single, intuitive interface bringing hundreds of open datasets together — then adapted into local, client-specific Portraits with bespoke data, as the basis for design and planning.
Who it’s for
Everyone — the shop window and the entry point. Public sector organisations informing policy and prioritising interventions; private sector teams identifying opportunities and supporting masterplanning.
What it solves
Previously siloed datasets, consolidated into a single source of truth — enabling faster, more confident, evidence-led decision-making.
Component 02 · Place Analytics
The analytical engine
The offer
Analytical tools for land capacity, environmental and physical constraints, opportunities and infrastructure provision — including hex-based land capacity and syntax analysis.
Who it’s for
Authorities and masterplanning teams with technical questions: spatial development strategies, local plans, strategic sites.
What it solves
Answers that traditionally need specialist commissions and months of work — produced in-platform, repeatably, at any scale.
01Hex constraints map
02Developability potential
03Growth area identification
04Masterplan capacity variations
05Capacity assumptions
06Land use & open space
01Hex constraints map
02Developability potential
03Growth area identification
04Masterplan capacity variations
05Capacity assumptions
06Land use & open space
Component 03 · Place Composer
The design environment
The offer
A digital environment to create, develop and test plans and masterplans — existing conditions, analytics and propositional concepts together, at multiple scales.
Who it’s for
Plan-makers and masterplanners, from statutory plans through to new town masterplans.
What it solves
Static plans divorced from their evidence, and slow, expensive design iteration.
01The masterplan in 3D
02Movement & connectivity
03Land use & programme
04Experience routes
05Existing vs proposed
01The masterplan in 3D
02Movement & connectivity
03Land use & programme
04Experience routes
05Existing vs proposed
Component 04 · Place Storyteller
The public face
The offer
A web platform to organise, publish and present plans and masterplans to the public and stakeholders — and a channel for community engagement.
Who it’s for
Authorities and developers who need plans seen, understood and responded to — from consultation through to adoption.
What it solves
Plans locked in static PDFs, and engagement that reaches only the same few voices.
Who it serves · to target marks markets to develop
UK strategic & local authorities
SDS — Essex, Tees Valley · Local plans — Basildon · Place visions — Cambridge Growth Company
PortraitAnalyticsComposerStoryteller
Strategic development masterplans
New Towns — Crews Hill, Addlington · Private sector — to target
PortraitAnalyticsComposerStoryteller
Site promoters & applicants
Land search · Local plan promotion · Planning applications — all to target
PortraitAnalytics
International authorities
City-scale plans — Benghazi · Site masterplans — to target
PortraitAnalyticsComposerStoryteller
Toward the digital twin
Real-estate asset management · DevCo programme co-ordination · Hosted-plan licensing — emerging
Platform extensions
Commercial model · plausible draft, for discussion
Model today
Potential
National Place Portrait
Free — brand & funnel
Stays free
Client Place Portraits
Consultancy commission
Subscription — data-refresh retainer
Place Analytics
Consultancy-led, tool-assisted
Subscription / seat licences
Place Composer
Bundled with plan & masterplan commissions
Licences for DevCos & master developers
Place Storyteller
Setup fee + hosting per plan
Standalone licensing — authorities & private sector
Place+
One platform.
Four components.
Every scale.
A digital placemaking platform by Prior + Partners