BA (Hons) Urban and Environmental Planning

Program Overview

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This three-year BA (Hons) Urban and Environmental Planning program focuses on the intersection of geography, society, and sustainability in town planning. It aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge to design better futures for communities, emphasizing research, evidence-based planning, and innovative placemaking approaches. Graduates will be well-prepared for careers in the public and private sectors, addressing pressing urban challenges and shaping livable and sustainable environments. Accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), the program boasts a strong reputation and extensive connections with industry professionals.

Program Outline

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BA (Hons) Urban and Environmental Planning - Detailed Extraction

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Degree Overview:

This program aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to design a better future, focusing on the intersection of geography, society, and sustainability in town planning.

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Objectives:

• Develop skills to design for the needs of future generations.
• Understand the intersection of geography, society, and sustainability in town planning.
• Gain expertise in the legal, policy, and political framework of Development Management.
• Learn about sustainable development practices and challenges.
• Develop skills in geographical information systems (GIS) and data analysis.
• Understand the role of planning in local economic development and housing delivery.
• Gain insights into regeneration strategies and challenges.
• Develop research skills and the ability to conduct evidence-based planning.
• Explore international planning perspectives and practices.
• Analyze the representation of cities in various media.

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Outline:

The program is structured as a three-year full-time course, delivered over two semesters per year.

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Year 1:

• Development Management: Focuses on the legal, policy, and political framework of Development Management, including pre-application, validation, applications, public consultation, decision making, planning obligations, appeals, and enforcement.
• Making Sustainable Places: Examines the challenges of creating sustainable places and encourages appropriate future development.
• Plans, People and Processes: Explores the creative aspects of "spatial planning" and the principles of urban design as a process of placemaking.
Introduces students to the assessment of place character and qualities and visual communication through plans and other media.
• Planning History and Principles: Provides an introduction to the evolution of the planning system and practices in the UK, focusing on the key attributes of the planning system since the Town and Country Planning Act 1947.
• Society, Space and Place: Introduces students to the structures, networks, and relationships that underpin contemporary society and how these are reflected geographically.
Examines processes of economic, social, and cultural change.
• Geographical Investigations: Examines the production and communication of geographical information, with an emphasis on developing students' skills in GIS and data analysis.

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Year 2:

• Environmental Change: Issues and Impacts: Focuses on environmental issues and potential responses to secure sustainable development, resource efficiency, and adaptation to climate change.
• Strategies Visions and Design: Examines the importance of transportation modes for land-use patterns and the construction of a sustainable future.
Explores the relationship between power, equality, and mobility.
• Local Economic Development: Explores economic development at a local level, considering internal and external factors influencing local economies.
Students will consider research and policy responses to local economic change, particularly with regard to the role of planning in local economic development.
• Planning for Housing: Focuses on the role of the planning system in delivering housing, considering the interrelationships between national, regional, and local housing strategies.
• Geographies of Regeneration: Focuses on the challenges of regenerating urban and rural environments facing decline and restructuring.
Examines the role of local scale interventions and strategies through planning and regeneration agencies.
• Work Experience: Enables students to reflect critically upon a period of work experience to enhance their future employability.
Students receive support from the University's Employability Service.

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Year 3:

• Evidence Based Planning: Investigates the role, nature, benefits, and disadvantages of evidence-based planning and policy making.
Equips students with the ability to choose and employ appropriate planning research techniques and methodologies.
• Real Estate Valuation: Develops understandings of real estate knowledge, focusing on the development process, markets, and valuation.
Examines the economics of land and property markets and the development process.
• International Planning Perspectives: Compares and contrasts key challenges facing spatial planners across international settings and the extent to which both the challenges and the policy responses are mobile across international borders.
Examines diverse approaches to planning in different contexts.
• Cities and Representations: Explores the ways in which the changing geographies of cities have been conceptualised and represented across a range of written and visual media through history.
Examines the implications of such representations for policy and practice, particularly for spatial planning.
• Dissertation: A double-weighted module that runs over two semesters.
Students carry out an independent academic research project supported by supervisions and seminars. This is an opportunity for students to develop their own specialist interests and exhibit their individual expertise, knowledge, and research skills. Students are encouraged to gather and analyze primary data.

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Assessment:

The program is assessed entirely by coursework, with no exams. Assessment methods include:

• Traditional essays and professional reports
• Site analysis
• Development proposals
• Viability assessments
• Portfolios
• Research proposals
• Visual poster displays
• Group and individual presentations

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Teaching:

• The course is delivered through a variety of methods, including formal lectures, seminars, tutorials, group discussions, individual and group presentations, and role play exercises (such as a mock planning enquiry).
• Many modules include guest speakers and visits to live projects in and around London.
• All members of the academic team are research active, participating in local, national, and international projects and publishing academic books and peer-reviewed journal articles.
This ensures that staff remain at the cutting edge of their specific areas of expertise, providing students with access to new insights and debates.
• Students are allocated a named personal tutor during their first semester to provide academic and professional development support.

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Careers:

• There is a national shortage of professional planners and a demand from both the public and private sector.
• Employment prospects are excellent, especially in London and the South East of England.
• Successful planning students may find jobs in central government, local government, non-governmental organizations, housing associations, and quangos.
• The program has extensive links with public, private, and voluntary sector employers, and employers often approach the university seeking suitably qualified and motivated applicants.
• A high proportion of graduates find employment in the field within six months of graduation.
• Alumni include three Past Presidents of the RTPI, and many senior planners in local authorities, government agencies, and private sector consultancies, developers, and housing providers.
• Alumni occupy influential professional positions in the UK and internationally.

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Other:

• The degree is accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).
• The program has been running for over 50 years, making it one of the oldest planning schools in the UK.
• The program offers optional "work placement" modules and a volunteering program.
• Students have access to a global alumni network of over 80,000 members.
• The program features an inspiring schedule of guest speakers, events, volunteering opportunities, and exchange of ideas.

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UK Fees £9250 Int. Fees £14900