Just neighbourhoods? Under-representation in UK community-led planning

This project will investigate community-led planning across all four nations of the UK, focusing on local areas where take-up of these initiatives is less common. 

Why is this research important? 

Community-led planning refers to land-use or spatial planning activities led by community members rather than planning professionals. It is aimed at mobilising local communities to help shape the future of their neighbourhood.

Despite the urgent need for greater social and environmental justice, the connection between democratising planning in this way and delivering just outcomes is unclear. Concerns have been raised about representation, inclusion and accountability, particularly in places where community-led planning has generally been less successful. 

Research objectives 

The project will address five key objectives: 

• Explore understandings of social and environmental justice among selected communities across the UK. 
• Examine the nature of representation and inclusivity within community-led planning (CLP) spaces and its relationship with outcomes.  
• Understand how the design, process, and practice of CLP shapes the forms and outcomes of activity. 
• Assess the added value CLP exhibits in relation to social and environmental justice outcomes. 
• Disseminate best practice guidance to communities, government, and others involved in shaping and practising CLP. 

How the research will be carried out 

The research will be completed in three phases. The team will: 

1. Co-create a theoretical framework; review the UK and international CLP literature; review the content of all CLPs produced in the 20% most deprived wards across the four UK nations; and select five local authorities (two in England, one in Scotland, one in Wales, and one in Northern Ireland) as case study areas for the second phase of the project. 

2. Use a range of ethnographic methods, including documentary analysis, direct observation of community meetings, and semi-structured interviews, to investigate the complex power dynamics of participation within 10 local communities (two per case study authority): one community participating in CLP and a second community not participating in CLP but active in other voluntary arenas. 

3. Convene eight stakeholder workshops to: synthesise the case study findings using the theoretical framework developed in the first two phases; consolidate and validate the findings; and discuss policy options.  

How this research will make a difference 

The findings will raise awareness of the potential impacts and limitations of community-led planning, and inform the development of best practice guidance for communities, policymakers, and others involved in shaping and practising it across the UK.

It is hoped this will increase the potential of community-led planning to produce more just outcomes.

The project outputs will include:

• a report and synopsis at the end of each phase of work
• a final report
• and a toolkit for policy at the neighbourhood scale.