Course Enquiries - UK
Tel: 0207 815 7500
Mode: Full-time
Shaping the future
Do you want to directly shape a better future? Then Urban Environmental Planning is for you. With this degree, you’ll develop the skills you need to design the needs of coming generations, turning your dreams of how the future should look into a reality. Learn how geography, society and sustainability intersect in town planning from our expert faculty, as well as from inspiring guest lecturers. Study in the heart of London, one of the world’s most exciting cities and one that’s constantly evolving to meet its citizens’ needs. Plus, benefit from visits to real projects in Cornwall and another European city to see it in action. There is currently a national shortage of professional planners and an unsatisfied demand from both the public and private sector after over a decade of public sector austerity - you’ll graduate with the expertise and experience to jump right in.
If you already work in town planning, or are about to take up employment, your employer may like to take advantage of our Chartered Town Planning Apprenticeship.
Mode | Duration | Start date | Location |
---|---|---|---|
Mode Full-time |
Duration 3 years |
Start Date September |
Location
Southwark Campus
|
Mode Part-time |
Duration 4 years |
Start Date September |
Location
Southwark Campus
|
The degree is offered as a three-year full-time course, or five-year course over two semesters per year.
There is currently a national shortage of professional planners and a demand from both the public and private sector after over a decade of public sector austerity. There is also demand for planners on the international scene. As the world struggles with climate change, urbanisation, population growth and changing work and living patterns, it will be crucial to our futures to plan for these eventualities if we are to avoid major environment and social disturbances.
Employment prospects are excellent especially in London and the South East of England. Successful planning students may find jobs in central government, local government, non-governmental organisations, housing associations and quangos. Given our extensive links with public, private and voluntary sector employers we find that employers often approach us first seeking suitably qualified and motivated applicants
A high proportion of our graduates find employment in the field within six months of graduation in the public, private and voluntary sectors. Some students take up jobs towards the end of the course. Local authorities and private consultancies are major employers as are companies and other organisations with large land and property assets and our alumni can be found in senior positions particularly in London and the South East of England. That said a significant proportion of alumni now practice (teach and research) across the UK and overseas.
Our alumni include three Past Presidents of the RTPI, and many senior planners in local authorities, government agencies and private sector consultancies, developers and housing providers. These regularly return to provide talks to our current students and have donated prizes for students on graduation. Many alumni now occupy influential professional positions in the UK and internationally.
At LSBU, we want to set you up for a successful career. During your studies – and for two years after you graduate – you’ll have access to our Employability Service, which includes:
Our Student Enterprise team can also help you start your own business and develop valuable entrepreneurial skills.
We have been successfully running professionally accredited planning courses for over 50 years, the second oldest planning school to be doing so in the UK.
This degree has full accreditation from the RTPI.
All members of the academic team are research active, participating in local, national and international projects and publishing academic books and peer reviewed journal articles. This ensures that staff remain at the cutting edge of their specific areas of expertise, providing students with the benefit of access to new insights and debates.
The course is delivered in a variety of ways. Most modules have traditional formal lectures alongside seminars, tutorials, group discussions, individual and group presentations and role play exercises (such as a mock planning enquiry). Many modules also include guest speakers and visits to live projects in and around London.
The course is assessed entirely by coursework, there are no exams. The assessments include traditional essays and professional reports, site analysis, development proposals, viability assessments, portfolios, research proposals, visual poster displays and group / individual presentations.
As an undergraduate Law and Social Science student, you will be allocated a named tutor during your first semester at LSBU. The role of your tutor is to be your primary contact for academic and professional development support.
Your tutor will support you to get the most of your time at LSBU, providing advice and signposting to other sources of support in the University. They should be the first person at the university that you speak to if you are having any difficulties that are affecting your work. These could be academic, financial, health-related or another type of problem.
You will have appointments with your personal academic tutor at least three times a year for up to 30 minutes throughout your course. You can contact your tutor for additional support by email.
To be considered for entry to the course applicants will normally be required to have the following qualifications:
Applicants without these qualifications will be considered on a case by case basis if they have relevant work experience in the Town Planning environment.
In addition, applicants must normally hold 5 GCSE at grade A-C including Maths and English, or equivalent (reformed GCSEs grade 4 or above).
If you have already completed some studies at another university, we may be able to consider you for advanced entry. Please see our advanced entry page for more information.
International (non Home/EU) applicants should follow our international how to apply guide.
Mode | Duration | Start date | Application code | Application method |
---|---|---|---|---|
Mode Full-time |
Duration 3 years |
Start date September |
Application code K440 |
Application method |
Mode Part-time |
Duration 4 years |
Start date September |
Application code 1233 |
Application method |
Once we have made you an offer, you can apply for accommodation. You can rent from LSBU and you’ll deal directly with the university, not third party providers. That means we can guarantee you options to suit all budgets, with clear tenancy agreements and all-inclusive rents that include insurance for your personal belongings, internet access in each bedroom and on-site laundry facilities.
Or, if you’d rather rent privately, we can give you a list of landlords – just ask our Accommodation Service.
Read more about applying for accommodation at LSBU.
You don't need to wait for a confirmed place on a course to start applying for student finance. Read how to pay your fees as an undergraduate student.
Home/EU postgraduate students and research students should apply through our dedicated application system.
Full details of how to do this are supplied on our How to apply section for postgraduate students and our How to apply section for research students.
International applicants should use our international application system. Full details can be found on our How to apply section for international students.
See our admissions policy (PDF File 1,043 KB) and complaints policy (PDF File 516 KB).
Your application will be circulated to a number of potential supervisors who will look at your academic qualifications, experience and the research proposal to decide whether your research interest is something that could be supervised at LSBU.
There will also be an interview either by telephone or at the University. If you are successful you will be offered a place on a course and informed of the next enrolment date. The whole process normally takes between six to eight weeks, from receipt of your application to a decision being made about your application at the School.
After you’ve received your offer we’ll send you emails about events we run to help you prepare for your course.
Before you start your course we’ll send you information on what you’ll need to do before you arrive and during your first few days on campus. You can read about the process on our Enrolment pages.
Familiarise yourself with the basics of the planning system and a professional planning career.
Much relevant information can be found on:
Read the local newspaper for insights into journalistic opinions about planning.
It is valuable to do some background reading before starting the course. We suggest:
We help our students prepare for university even before the semester starts. To find out when you should apply for your LSBU accommodation or student finance read the How to apply tab for this course.
Before you start your course we’ll send you information on what you’ll need to do before you arrive and during your first few days on campus. You can read about the process on our Enrolment pages.
Fees are shown for new entrants to courses, for each individual year of a course, together with the total fee for all the years of a course. Continuing LSBU students should refer to the Finance section of our student portal, MyLSBU. Queries regarding fees should be directed to the Fees and Bursaries Team on: +44 (0)20 7815 6181.
UK fee: £9250 | International fee: £15400 |
AOS/LSBU code: 1232 | Session code: 1FS00 |
Total course fee: |
UK £27750 |
International £46200 |
For more information, including how and when to pay, see our fees and funding section for undergraduate students.
Please check your fee status and whether you are considered a Home, EU or International student for fee-paying purposes and for our regulatory returns, by reading the UKCISA regulations.
See our Tuition Fees Regulations (PDF File 226 KB) and Refund Policy (PDF File 775 KB).
The University reserves the right to increase its fees in line with changes to legislation, regulation and any government guidance or decisions.
The fees for international students are reviewed annually and the University reserves the right to increase the tuition fees in line with the RPIX measure of inflation up to 4 per cent.
We offer several types of fee reduction through our scholarships and bursaries. Find the full list and other useful information on our scholarships page.
The individual fee for this course is shown above. For more information, including how and when to pay, see our fees and funding section for postgraduate students.
See our Tuition Fees Regulations (PDF File 226 KB) and Refund Policy (PDF File 775 KB).
We have a range of PhD Scholarships available in partnership with businesses and organisations; read notices of PhD studentships.
Course Enquiries - UK
Tel: 0207 815 7500
Order a prospectus