Urban Studies & Social Policy
About the Division
In the Division of Urban Studies and Social Policy we conduct world-leading research on the most pressing urban, social and public policy challenges globally. Our research explores important and complex issues pertaining to big data, children and families, communities, disability, education, energy and environmental justice, governance, health, housing, inequalities, migration, place, planning, poverty, social security, southern urbanism, transport, and real estate.
We focus on how governments, institutions and societies produce and reproduce inequalities through their structures and administration. By working closely with policymakers and practitioners, we ensure our innovative, multidisciplinary research and knowledge exchange leads to significant impacts on policy and practice locally, nationally and internationally. Our UKRI funded research centres are the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence (CaCHE) and the Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC).
In REF 2021, we submitted to Unit of Assessment 13 (Architecture, Built environment and Planning). The panel found that 96% of our research was internationally excellent or world leading in terms of its originality, significance and rigour.
Research & Scholarship Clusters
In order to keep our research at the leading edge of academic debate, we organise our work into three Research and Scholarship Clusters:
The clusters are inter - and multi - discplinary and have both a UK and international focus. All academic-related staff and postgraduate research students hold a primary affiliation to one cluster, but the cumulative nature of our work means that many are also involved in some of the activities of one or more additional cluster.
Research Centres
Centre for Sustainable, Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods
The aim of the GCRF Centre for Sustainable, Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods (SHLC) is to understand - and strengthen capacity to address - urban, health and education challenges in neighbourhoods across fast-growing cities in Africa and Asia.
UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence
The UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence (CaCHE) is a consortium of 14 institutions led by the University of Glasgow. The centre, which was established in August 2017, is a multidisciplinary partnership between academia, housing policy and practice. Over the course of the five-year programme, CaCHE resesearchers will produce evidence and new research which will contribute to tackling the UK's housing problems at a national, devolved, regional and local level.
Urban Big Data Centre
The Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC) is a research centre and part of the UK's national data infrastructure. It promotes the use of new and emerging forms of data and innovative methods to address complex urban challenges.
Postgraduate Study
- Learn more about postgraduate research and information for prospective students
- Explore postgraduate taught programmmes in the School of Social & Political Sciences