Robert Rogerson - Sustainable Communities: Skills and Learning for Place Making

First published in Great Britain in 2011 by
University of Hertfordshire Press
College Lane
Hatfield
Hertfordshire
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Copyright the individual contributors 2011.

The right of Robert Rogerson, Sue Sadler, Anne Green and Cecilia Wong to be identified as the editors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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ISBN 978-1-907396-13-7

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A team of academics at three universities, led by Dr Robert Rogerson, coordinated research on skills and knowledge for sustainable communities across a range of disciplines and expertise across the UK. This book presents a reflective analysis of both the detailed individual research projects and a much broader view of what has been learned across the initiative. The coordination of the initiative enabled the contributors to meet and share their research orientations and the coordinating team continued a rigorous and ongoing debate about the conclusions that could be drawn across the initiative. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) jointly funded the research initiative in partnership with the HCA Academy, the skills arm of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

Robert Rogerson is Senior Lecturer in Geography at the University of Strathclyde where he leads research on communities and sustainability. His research interests include urban policy and community, the role of the third sector in community development and changing sustainable behaviour. He has published widely on urban quality of life studies.

Sue Sadler is a researcher at the University of Strathclyde and an independent evaluation consultant. Her research interests include rural and sustainable development, the third sector and social accounting.

Anne Green is Professorial Fellow at the Institute for Employment Research, University of Warwick. Her research interests include urban, rural and regional development; local and regional labour markets; trends in employment and non-employment; the demand for and supply of skills; mobility, migration and commuting; and evaluation studies - including area regeneration and welfare to work initiatives. She is a member of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills Expert Panel.

Cecilia Wong is Professor of Spatial Planning and Director of the Centre for Urban Policy Studies at the University of Manchester. Her research interests include urban quantitative indicators and policy monitoring, housing needs and demand associated with neighbourhood change.

The chapters in this book build on research funded through a joint initiative into Skills and Knowledge for Sustainable Communities by the Economic and Social Research Council and the Homes and Communities Agency. Notes on the leading authors and other contributors are given below, together with the reference for the final report for each project, which can be found at www.esrc.ac.uk.

Ann Hockey is Senior Lecturer in Spatial Planning at Anglia Ruskin University. Her research interests include workplace learning and skills for planning practice. She worked on this project with colleagues in the Department of the Built Environment: Ian Frame, Martin Spaul, Carlos Jimenez-Bescos and Janice Maclean. Inspire East was the principal external organisation engaged in the research. The project researched and developed web-based resources to support built environment professionals engaging with sustainable communities. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0009.

Sue Kidd is a chartered town planner and Head of Discipline for Civic Design at the University of Liverpool. Her research interests include strategic spatial planning and sustainable development. She collaborated in the preparation of the chapter with colleagues in the Department of Civic Design, Professor Thomas Fischer and Dr Urmila Jha-Thakur. Local authorities in Southampton, Ravenna and Brunswick collaborated in the research. The project examined the learning potential of appraisal in spatial planning and provided a framework for assessment. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0018.

Michael Leyshon is Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at the University of Exeter. His research interests include the ways in which young people become excluded from society. He worked with colleague Robert Fish (Senior Research Fellow in Politics) on this project, which examined what motivates young people to engage in voluntary conservation activities, the skills and values cultivated and the potential for impact on sustainable rural development. Key partners in the research included local authority youth and economic development services, Young Farmers Clubs, and the Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0007.

Brendan Murtagh is a chartered town planner and Reader at the School of Planning, Architecture and Civil Engineering at Queens University, Belfast. His research interests include urban regeneration, conflict and community participation. His departmental colleague Dr Geraint Ellis worked with him on this project, which examined regional planning practice in managing ethno-spatial diversity in Northern Ireland and proposed a skills framework for wider geographical application. Government departments in both Northern Ireland and the UK engaged with the research. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0019.

Barry Percy-Smith is Reader in Childhood and Participatory Practice at the SOLAR Centre for Action Research and Participatory Development at the University of the West of England. He collaborated with SOLAR colleague Professor Danny Burns for this research. The project examined how behaviour change in communities could be maximised through action research in sustainable development in schools. Key partners included schools, Peacechild International, Eco Schools, the WWF and Global to Local. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0038.

Sarah Sayce is Professor and Head of the School of Surveying & Planning at Kingston University. She also chairs the Centre for Sustainable Communities Achieved through Integrated Professional Education (C-SCAIPE), where her colleague Judith Farren-Bradley is Research Director. This research reviewed the generic skills developed and assessed in programmes leading to professional qualifications and in continuing professional development and investigated the views of practitioners and stakeholders about the application of such skills in practice. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0024.

Paul Selman is Emeritus Professor in the Department of Landscape at the University of Sheffield. He worked with colleague Rowena Bailey from the Department of Landscape, with Anna Lawrence and Claudia Carter from Forest Research and with Clare Morgan from Kellogg College, University of Oxford, on this research project. Creative writing was used to assist participants in learning about the history and environment of a local river and the approach was assessed for its contribution to long-term social learning and river catchment management. ESRC Grant Reference RES-182-25-0006.