The aim of the project is to research and develop an innovatory approach to the design and management of open space in urban areas with particular reference to the Spring Gardens site in Vauxhall. Results foreseen is the development of a system which will be applicable both to the Vauxhall site and others around the world.

The project will develop a new concept of the urban park in which a framework of landscape, structures and amenities contains and facilities the promotion and management of an intense programme of diverse activities. Changes to the structure and layout will be built into the park's design and management enabling it to meet changing demands. To that end the project will research, develop and devise a system for evaluating activity requirements (the matrix system) and a system for putting the findings into practice (the technical, infrastructure and management systems). Such systems will be applicable to urban space universally, and adaptable to spaces of varying size and requirements.

The project is inspired by the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens which occupied the site of the pilot project from 1661 to 1859. The former gardens became the model for pleasure gardens throughout Europe. In contrast the Spring Gardens of the 1990s is typical of many urban open spaces - underused and lacking in facilities, bringing nothing to its environs. On the specific level this project aims to address this.