Developing the principles of designing a child-friendly neighborhood with the approach of improving children’s sense of community (case study: Rushdiyeh neighborhood of Tabriz)

Introduction
Children, as a significant part of the urban population, play a major role in the use of urban spaces. Nowadays, paying attention to this part of society has been considered by urban planners and stakeholders since the number of children in urban areas of the world is growing (Kiani and Esmailzadeh, 2012: 51). Children in urban areas have problems such as lack of safe, creative, and lively spaces, environmental pollution, high density of buildings, and lack of security and clearance. Besides, due to lifestyle changes in recent decades, children often live in small residential units, and have no option for entertainment except watching television, playing computer games, playing with siblings or neighbors’ children, and sometimes reading books in the dark or noisy space of the building (Shia, 1391: 44). These issues reduce the presence of children in the urban spaces, leading to serious damage in their growth and social development. Based on a common and widespread belief, the child is defined as a member of society who still does not have an effective role in social organization due to not being equipped with the social skills (Kermani and Ebrahimabadi, 2014: 7). Children have four growth dimensions: physical development, emotional development, cognitive development and social development (Nowruz and Nastaran quoted by Rice, 2014: 5). This study tried to deal more accurately with the issue of children's social development in urban spaces in the neighborhood scale along with the importance of other aspects of children's development. The neighborhood is the first scale of public space in which children experience life and extend their learnings to larger urban environments. Social development is related to the process of socializing a child for communicating with others, from family members to friends and peers. The presence of children in the public environment can have further benefits such as social understanding, the sense of trust, and mutual support (Tranter and Pawson, 2001). In the first step, this research tried to compile a guide for the design or renewal of neighborhoods that "social sense" can be promoted. Therefore, the main question of the research was: "Which characteristics of a neighborhood can promote the children's social sense?" In the second step, a neighborhood in Tabriz city (Rushdiyeh neighborhood) was selected to examine that guide. The current study aimed to develop a guide for designing child-friendly urban neighborhoods focusing on the sense of community development.
Research methodology
The methodology of this research, which was based on the paradigm of realism, deals with the objective characteristics of the environment to advance the goals of the research. Regarding the qualitative research method, questionnaire techniques, interviews (individual and group), and cognitive maps were used to extract more information. The statistical population included preschool children (5-7) and primary school children (7-12) and their parents in Rushdiyeh neighborhood. A total of 60 children and 25 parents were surveyed as a statistical sample from the neighborhood. The method of collecting information is documentary and field. In order to know the case sample, first, the required maps were prepared based on the subject and after a complete knowledge of the range, the case sample was analyzed. Then, based on the research problem and the points we obtained from the theoretical foundations, the knowledge and analysis of the scope, design, and presentation of the proposal was done. Finally, based on the findings and theoretical framework of the research, an urban design guideline was developed to strengthen the sense of community of children in the neighborhood.
Discussion
According to the theoretical foundations and studies of child development and child-friendly city, the concept of sense of community and the development of this concept for children, we summarized, concluded, and developed a framework for designing a child-friendly neighborhood based on the sense of community; We also tried to answer the research questions by recognizing and analyzing the case study. In the context of the child-friendly city, more has been done to meet the basic needs and rights of children and to keep their social and emotional development low. In modern cities, it has caused less interaction between residents and people by eliminating or reducing public spaces, and this in itself has reduced the sense of community among communities, which also applies to children. Children need to be part of the group and influence this group and establish a common emotional bond with them and try to meet the needs of the group. If they can experience social sense during this period, they will build a better society in the future, which will lower social norms in the future and strengthen the social and emotional development of children. In today's modern cities, children have little presence and interaction in the neighborhood and urban space, which in turn causes psychological and social harm to children, which may lead to various anomalies in the city community in the future. Children currently have to be with their parents to attend the neighborhood or city, and this allows parents to accompany their children only on holidays due to their busy schedules, and on other days of the week, children are either at home or in kindergarten. Also, they spend the day at school and have fewer games and social interactions at the neighborhood and city level. In this regard, the following fifteen principles were argued to create a child-friendly neighborhood for the development of the sense of community:
Principle 1: In designing neighborhood spaces, informal spaces for the presence of children (alleys, streets, etc.) are as important as the designed formal spaces (for example, play spaces in parks).
Principle 2: The design should be based on passive supervision to ensure the safety of children when in public.
Principle 3: Children use the potential of any activity to engage in social interactions, so it is important to pay attention to all three types of activity (necessary, social, and selective).
Principle 4: Public walkways in the neighborhood should be designed based on speed C (traffic calming) to provide the necessary safety for the presence of children.
Principle 5: Designing special traffic lines that end in primary schools provides sufficient security for children to have personal access to school.
Principle 6: Public spaces, especially alleys, provide physical flexibility for a variety of children's play.
Principle 7: Children's play spaces should be combined with other spaces such as the elderly to sit to improve social sense by understanding other cycles of life.
Principle 8: Design of retail activities in the special movement paths of children to schools.
Principle 9: Combining children's spaces with green spaces.
Principle 10: Design a neighborhood based on specific (implicit or obvious) edges to better understand boundaries.
Principle 11: The existence of spaces in which children can interact with children in other neighborhoods through play.
Principle 12: Designing a neighborhood center based on the scale of the child and the presence of the child in it as one of the basic neighborhoods for socialization.
Principle 13: The existence of institutions such as libraries and cultural centers with appropriate functions for children in the neighborhood.
Principle 14: Climatically protected play spaces for attendance at different times of the year.
Principle 15: Organizational management of the neighborhood for greater participation of children in the neighborhood and matters related to their management.
On the other hand, assuming the desired principles and based on different dimensions of child development, it is possible to provide a suitable urban design guide for the child-friendly neighborhood.
Based on the fifteen principles and also the design guide, the necessary arrangements regarding Rushdiyeh neighborhood are as follows:
1. Creating a sidewalk and bicycle path for children on the way to school; 2. Equipping parks and green spaces to create official play spaces and their appropriate distribution in the neighborhood, as well as creating new parks such as adventure and intellectual parks; 3. Creating an excuse for children to be together, such as a wall for children to paint; 4. Planting plants in places built by children; 5. Creating a library for children; 6. Creating sports and cultural spaces; 7. Creating sports fields for group sports; 8. Placing urban furniture for children in spaces; 9. Adaptation of public spaces for the presence of children in them; 10. Increasing the education per capita in the area; 11. Locating small businesses near and along the school route.