Urban Planning professor nominated for top UK research award

Politics, Planning and Housing Supply in Australia and Hong Kong by Nicole Gurran (the University of Sydney), Nick Gallent (Bartlett School of Planning (UCL) and Rebecca Chiu (Department of Urban Planning & Design (Hong Kong University) was nominated for a top national research award in the United Kingdom.

The 2016 publication is a finalist in the Academic Award category at the 2017 Royal Town Planning Institute’s (RTPI) Awards for Research Excellence.

Politics, Planning and Housing Supply in Australia, England and Hong Kong examines the politics and planning of new homes in three very different settings, but with shared political traditions: in Australia, in England and in Hong Kong.

It investigates the power-relationships and politics that underpin the allocation of land for large-scale residential schemes, and the processes and politics that lead to particular development outcomes. The book frames each case study in a comprehensive examination of national and territorial frameworks before dissecting key local cases. The research underpinning the book was funded by the University of Sydney and The Henry Halloran Trust.

“Housing supply and affordability is a problem affecting many countries throughout the world but policy responses are often ineffective. In this book we sought to shine a light on how three countries with shared traditions, but very different systems of urban governance and planning deliver new housing, and the roles played by government, planning authorities, developers, property owners and the public in this process. We also examined how the wider ‘politics of housing policy’, have contributed to the growing shortage of affordable homes and declining rates of ownership,” said Professor Nicole Gurran.

“We are very honoured to have the book recognised by the RTPI in this way as offering insights for policy makers, practitioners and industry beyond the academic community. We hope that it will help inform and further public policy debates around urban planning and affordable housing supply,” she added.   

The Awards for Research Excellence are run by the RTPI to recognise and promote high quality, impactful spatial planning research from RTPI accredited planning schools, and planning consultancies around the world.

Dr Michael Harris, RTPI’s Head of Research, said: “The growing body of high quality research work in planning is impressive but more importantly, it is a positive sign that more academic researchers want to reach out to practitioners and policymakers with insights and findings that can inform and influence their work. This is what the awards celebrate and I am pleased that RTPI planning schools and planning consultancies have responded.”

The winners were announced on 12 September during the 2017 UK-Ireland Planning Research Conference at Queen’s University, Belfast.