Queens Square

Formerly a small market town, Crawley now has a population of more than 100,000 people and strong transport links to London and nearby Gatwick Airport. At the heart of the town lies Queens Square - a pedestrianised zone with extensive shopping facilities.

In 1958, during the town’s rapid expansion, Queens Square was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II. In 2014 Crawley Borough Council, in partnership with West Sussex County Council and the Coast to Capital Local Economic Partnership decided to fund a multi-million-pound redevelopment of the area.
 

Designing a destination

The aim of the £3.2 million scheme was to rejuvenate Queens Square, transforming it into a modern, vibrant space that residents and visitors could enjoy all year round. Extensive research at the beginning of the project resulted in external lighting being one area many residents wanted to see improved.

In early 2015, Burns + Nice - the projects design consultants - invited Schréder to work on the project’s lighting design. After a short period of deliberation, the final design was formally agreed with planning application approved in August 2015.

The site would feature high-quality paving, new formal and informal seating, modern street furniture - including a water feature - and smart, decorative lighting.

Ten SHUFFLE smart poles were installed throughout the square to illuminate its key features and provide a safe and well-lit environment where people could spend time. The SHUFFLE - Britain’s first WiFi connected streetlight - is a smart, modular, and interactive lighting column designed to encourage social connectivity. The columns not only provide effective energy-efficient LED lighting, but also include high-definition CCTV cameras, WiFi connectivity and an anemometer.

By combining these features in one, unified column, the SHUFFLE’s minimalist design eliminated the need for extra street furniture, an aspect that the Council particularly appreciated.
 

Benching the old

Another key aspect of the design was to integrate modern seating throughout the square. Several new benches were manufactured and installed. We installed 260 metres of under bench lighting so that the new fittings conveyed a floating appearance. The LED luminaires were chosen for their small physical size and high-performance light distribution.
 

A brighter future

The installation of both the smart poles and feature lighting was carried out in stages, as part of the wider redevelopment of the area. The project was formally completed in October 2017 with the Council now reaping the benefits of implementing a smart lighting network:

• increased public safety;
• significant reduction in energy consumption and
• low maintenance requirements.