IN a city which has produced its fair share of grand plans but only a limited number of concrete results, a degree of cynicism about a scheme which hopes to bring derelict sites back to life may be understandable.

After all, with the country only just beginning to climb out of recession, there's little likelihood of major development soon.

That is exactly why Nottingham Regeneration is right to put some effort into coming up with good ideas for blighted sites.

We don't yet know when the economy will be strong enough for those in Basford, Bulwell, The Meadows and Radford to attract development. But we can say with certainty that nothing will happen if there's nothing on the drawing board.

The team behind the Design 10 programme makes an important point: the lull in the economy gives them time to put some serious effort into clever solutions to the problems which have left these locations lying empty.

Better still, it looks like these ideas might form a blueprint for the way to tackle all sorts of derelict sites in and around Nottingham.

These ideas have to look beyond what could be built and find out instead what would most benefit the people nearby. That then has to be married to commercial reality – these ideas have to do more than look good on the drawing board.

There are reasons to be optimistic about what Design 10 might achieve. The involvement of talented professionals and the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment means some real brainpower is being brought to bear.

Genuine landmarks do more than look good. They make a lasting contribution to people's lives.