Urban and Regional Planning

Core modules:

Spatial Planning Systems

This module provides an introduction to state-led planning and the key principles that underpin how spatial planning systems seek to shape the built environment. It considers the administrative, legal and political contexts in which planning decisions are made and the role of different groups in mediating land-use development. The module will focus around work to understand how spatial planning systems are constructed and contested by different actors. It will use practical scenarios to explore action surrounding development, the ways in which the state is talked about and organised, as well as the means by which the state makes and implements planning policies.

15 credits

Perspectives on Spatial Planning and Development

This module is seen as core in developing initial knowledge and understanding of planning and urban development. It critically explores the role of spatial ideas in planning policy and practice and plays a key part in developing critical skills and understanding of different contexts and environments relevant to that practice. The module covers urbanisation in a range of contexts and examines how spatial planning seeks to respond to key economic, environmental and social challenges.

15 credits

Values in Planning

This module explores the inter-relationships between theoretical debates within planning and everyday practice. An awareness of theoretical debates is crucial to understanding the assumptions implicit in spatial planning practice and the challenges confronting practitioners - what frameworks are available to help planners to decide how to act and to determine whether their actions have been appropriate or otherwise? This raises fundamental questions about the very nature of spatial planning and the way it is currently practised. The module, therefore, addresses such questions as: what are the justifications for spatial planning and what goals should it have? What methods should guide the work of practitioners? Is the spatial planning system fair and just? What constitutes ethical action in spatial planning? Particular emphasis is placed on the dilemmas faced by individual practitioners in conducting their day-to-day work. The English planning system forms the focus for the module but it also draws on personal experiences derived from other work environments and planning contexts during the seminars.

15 credits

Employability and Professional Skills

This module aims to provide a range of supporting skills for home and international students, which will help you get the most out of your learning in Sheffield, and to prepare you for professional employment and career development at the end of your studies. The module has two elements: 1. Cultures of Learning and Professional Skills - understanding how we teach at Sheffield, how to get the most out of your study and how to develop key generic professional/soft skills 2. Employability Skills - preparing you for careers within planning, design, real estate, GIS and related professional areas.

Optional modules - one from:

Urban Development in the Global South

This module explores the challenges of urban planning and development in the global South: how are conflicting imperatives of ecological sustainability, social inclusion and economic competitiveness being balanced by practitioners, and what implications does this have for those living there? The module will develop understanding of how urban planning systems are constructed and mediated by different actors. The unit will use a series of scenarios; representing some of the diversity of conditions that exist in the global South, to develop understandings of how planning systems shape and are shaped by the contexts in which they operate.

15 credits

Globalising Cities

Understanding how cities function is central to the role of planners, urban policy advisers, and other built environment professionals. Drawing on cities from different national contexts, this unit provides an introduction to the administrative, legal and political contexts in which decisions are made about planning, regeneration and development and the role different groups play in mediating and affecting development. The module explores how practitioners approach urban development challenges, define problems and frame policy interventions. Conceptual and practice-based perspectives are employed to encourage students to think critically about the tensions and trade-offs that confront those involved in planning and managing cities.

15 credits

Core modules for the 'Planning in the UK' pathway:

Planning and the Development Process

This module explores the development process and the various influences on the feasibility of successful development projects, including the planning process. It is designed to introduce planning and design students to core knowledge and skills, enabling them to understand how the development process shapes built environment outcomes. The module examines the structure of real estate development markets, the roles and objectives of the various stakeholders involved in development and planning, the main aspects of real estate development appraisal and the ways in which planning, design and risk influence profitability. Students will work towards recommending a course of action that offers the greatest likelihood of a successful outcome and in doing so, learn to balance the competing demands of planning, design and development.

15 credits

Plan Making

This module provides students with an introduction to the plan making process, focusing on the principles, methods and techniques underpinning plan preparation. The module will first introduce the history and theory of plan making. It then explores the various phases and elements of plan making including but not limited to concept design, evidence development, participation, techniques and analysis, strategy development, financing, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Parts one and two foreground the applied element of the module where students will apply newly acquired knowledge of the plan making process and knowledge accrued from autumn semester to develop a site specific area action plan for a part of a chosen urban site. In doing so, the module will develop both foundational knowledge of plan making and applied skills relevant to planning practice.

15 credits

Urban Design: Principles and Processes

This module aims to introduce and explore the fundamentals of urban design through the evaluation of urban design masterplans and design/planning policy. It is intended to develop core urban design knowledge and understanding for Urban and Regional Planning and Real Estate Planning and Development students. The module will introduce students to the vocabulary of urban design as part of the development process and provide an overview of the key physical components of the spatial environment, the role of urban design in shaping the built environment, and core principles in interpreting and appraising urban design processes and practices. The module will equip students with design evaluation skills to explore, make sense of and evaluate planning and design policy including design codes, masterplans and strategic development frameworks. Teaching will draw on practical examples, lectures, workshops and external speakers/practitioners to develop skills in the evaluation of spaces, their design and the use of planning, development/design policy.

15 credits

Core modules for the 'Planning in Europe' pathway:

Planning in Europe

This 60credit module enables students to study for semester 2 in either UvA Amsterdam; Aalborg, Denmark; or Milan, Italy under the UK Governments Turing Programme. The module is taken in a planning department at an overseas university which offers professional courses. The module consists of practical work under the supervision of staff at the host university and it is assessed at the host institution and grades converted/verified by the University of Sheffield. The aims of the module are to develop an extensive understanding of the process of developing sites, the nature of professional work and the importance of interdisciplinary working, within a particular European context and its culture of planning and development decision-making.

60 credits

Optional modules for the 'Planning in the UK' pathway only. A student will take one of the following modules:

Behaviour in the Built Environment

The urban/built environment influences the behaviour of people; equally, people’s behaviour can shape the environment. Understanding the interaction between people and their environment promotes the design of spaces and buildings that meet the needs of the people who occupy them. This module will discuss principles of behavioural and environmental psychology in the context of the design and management of indoor and outdoor spaces, including the application and interpretation of behavioural research methods. A key objective is for students to be better equipped to deliver a sustainable environment that meets user requirements.

15 credits

PropTech and Real Estate Innovations

This module introduces innovations in real estate with an emphasis on PropTech tools and platforms. It provides students with an understanding of the evolution of real estate digital systems and platforms through computing, internet, cloud, IoT, blockchain, virtual reality, AI, drones etc. The module will develop students' foundational knowledge and understanding of the theory and application of data science and analytics and how these can be applied to a variety of real estate operations and practice areas. The module will also enable students to appreciate and develop other soft skills such as creativity, communication, strategic thinking, ethics, entrepreneurship, and problem solving which have underpinned PropTech and other contemporary real estate innovations. The module will be delivered through a combination of problem-oriented, collaborative and project-based learning approaches and students will be encouraged to critically analyse existing real estate operations and practice enablers. The ultimate aim of the module is to enable students to develop innovative systems to further enhance the economic, physical, environmental and social efficiency of real estate operations and practice. Students will gain perspectives on different digital tools in commercial, residential and operational real estate and across the core real estate practice areas and sectors such as land management, development, construction, finance, investment, valuation, portfolio management, asset and property management, agency and brokerage. Students will also gain insight on other real estate innovative systems such as flexible, shared and third spaces, and the role of technology as enablers of these advancements.

15 credits

Cities of Diversity

Acknowledging diversity within cities is increasingly regarded as central to successful planning, urban development and city making and is a very hotly debated issue currently, particularly with #MeToo, Brexit and Trump! But what do we mean by diversity and what theories exist to help us understand it? This module will focus on various aspects of diversity in the form of differing social identities (such as age, ethnicity, sexuality, disability and gender – including focusing on masculinity within cities) but also critically explore the ways in which diversity is understood by policy makers and city managers. The module will focus on cities in both the global South and North and consider the significance of migration in relation to diversity in both contexts. The module will rely on a critical engagement with literature from the discipline of geography, planning, urban studies and development studies.

15 credits

Citizen Participation in Planning and Development

Recent decades have seen a proliferation of initiatives to involve citizens in policy-making, planning and urban governance. There is widespread agreement that 'citizen engagement' can play a positive role in democratizing urban development. However, public participation raises a range of significant challenges for urban professional practice. This module will draw on critical debates about the roles citizens and publics can and should play in shaping the city to reflect on the theory and practice of participation. The module is taught through seminars which structure learning, and help students to research case studies of participatory initiatives.

15 credits

The Urban Climate Emergency (PGT)

Climate change is one of the most significant and urgent challenges of the 21st century. Cities generate over 70% of the world's CO2 and consume 60% of global energy, they will therefore play an important part in mitigating the extent of climate change and in adapting to the effects of the climate crisis and its impacts on societies and the global environment. This unit will explore the drivers of climate change and their implications for urban systems, critically considering how urban professionals can respond to these challenges in ways that promote just and sustainable transitions.

15 credits

Urban Regeneration (PGT)

Urban regeneration is common practice in the governance of urban change worldwide. Proponents make positive claims about its impacts on the urban economy, society and landscape, critics point to its negative outcomes. Drawing on Global experiences, we will consider the role of the state and other actors in the formulation and implementation of urban regeneration policy in its multi-scalar governance context, and the extent to which communities are engaged in and benefit from these processes. Through critical review of 'real world' cases, we identify the tensions, vulnerabilities and varied impacts of such approaches and consider alternative governance and policy responses.

15 credits

Transport Planning

This module will provide students with an introduction to transport planning and policy. The module develops students' ability to think critically about the framing of transport policy using UK transport planning as an example. It will focus on how planners in localities give shape to effective transport strategies, which balance a range of environmental, social and economic objectives.

15 credits

Issues in Housing

The aims of the module are twofold: to build both on substantive knowledge, theory and skills about housing gained in earlier parts of both the UG and PG courses, with an emphasis on policy analysis; and to look more closely at the links between housing and planning (in its widest sense) at the local and regional level.

15 credits

International Real Estate Market Analysis

This module will provide a comprehensive introduction to key concepts and approaches to the analysis of international real estate markets. This module makes a simple operational distinction between mature, emergent and transitional markets as a first step towards a systematic framework for analysis. It gives an introduction to specific real estate markets and the ways in which they function, and offers generalizable conclusions about the wider operation of global real estate markets. Students will develop knowledge and understanding of global political economy as a context for interpreting real estate markets.

15 credits

GIS for Built Environment Professionals

This module aims to introduce key Geographical Information Systems (GIS) principles and techniques to students in fields where GIS is becoming an increasingly relevant tool. The focus is on enabling students to develop an understanding of the potential of GIS and some fundamental GIS skills, through a series of workshops using a range of common software. Assessment is through a written report incorporating visualisations and analysis.

15 credits

Urban Informality

The overall aim of this module is to critically examine informality, with a particular but not exclusive focus on cities of the Global South. The module relies on a mixture of lectures, seminars and student-led group work, with the latter focusing on an in-depth case study of a selected city. It explores patterns and causes of informality and discusses the strengths and limitations of a range of theoretical approaches. It also analyses the success of different real-world urban planning responses (understood in broad terms), including government-led, donor-led and community-focused ones, in addressing key urban issues in the context of informality.

15 credits

Planning Law

The course is intended to develop students' expertise in the legal framework for the planning system and to set that legal framework within the wider context of law in the United Kingdom. It considers the origins of planning law and seeks to provide explanations for the powers that the law confers on decision makers. The course focuses particularly on the development control aspects of planning law and looks at the rights and duties of applicants, local authorities and the Secretary of State in making and determining planning applications. It considers the criteria for decision making and the possibilities for the redress of grievance. It considers planning law in the light of wider discussions about human rights and planning gain.

15 credits

Health, Wellbeing and the City

This module explores the urban environment as a determinant of health and well-being and examines how planning and urban design can contribute to improvements in health. Beginning with an exploration of the historic relationship between planning and public health, the module focuses on how the urban environments support or undermine health in relation to mental health, ageing, obesity, air quality and noise pollution. The module also introduces the notion of health impact assessment and further reflects on the contribution of planning to environmental justice and the reduction of inequalities in health.

15 credits

Core module:

Dissertation

This is a core module which allows students to develop and manage an individual research project. The module aims to help students to develop and apply research skills and an appreciation of the issues involved in managing a research project; to develop an understanding of the role of research in relation to theoretical and practical dimensions of the chosen discipline; and to further and deepen knowledge in their chosen field of planning, real estate, urban design, development, or related interests.

60 credits