Research Welcome to MORE 2024
THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE + CITIES was created in 2018 as part of a University-wide restructuring exercise. It is part of the College of Design, Creative and Digital Industries (DCDI), facilitating collaboration with the Westminster School of Arts, the School of Media and Communication, and the School of Computer Science. The School of A+C hosts a wide range of disciplines engaged in the design of urban environments. It includes architecture, interior architecture, tourism and events, transport studies, and urban design and planning. This diversity is taken as an opportunity for the cross-fertilisation of ideas between built environment disciplines in ways not possible at many institutions in the UK. In line with the University of Westminster, the school’s policy is to encourage research-informed teaching, with the aim of enriching the student learning experience.
The school has a strong international reputation for research, knowledge exchange and public engagement, and hosts several research centres and groups. These entities are organised around the school’s recognised strengths, values and areas of impact. ur research and knowledge exchange centres are the Active Travel Academy (ATA), the Centre for Air Traffic Management Research (ATM) and the Centre for the Production of the Built Environment, (PRoBE), the latter shared with the Westminster Business School. These centres are supported by grant funding and generate the major share of the school’s healthy research and knowledge exchange income. Our research and knowledge exchange groups are Architectural Humanities, Emerging Territories, Design Practices, Place and Experience, and Transport and Mobilities. Research active staff and doctoral researchers elect to join at least one of these groups, whose role is to develop the members’ capacities and activities, to provide research mentoring and to encourage collaborative research within the group and across groups. Research and knowledge exchange in the school is coordinated by a Research and Knowledge Exchange Committee chaired by Professor Lindsay Bremner and, since 2019, the school has also provided leadership for the university-wide Sustainable Cities and Urban Environments research community.
One of the most important cycles in the research calendar in the UK is the Research Excellence Framework (REF) evaluations that take place every six to seven years. The next REF will take place in 2029, when Dr Davide Deriu will co-ordinate the school’s submission. In 2021, the school submitted 77 members of staff, 159 research outputs and 5 impact case studies. It was rated 7th in the country for research power, a measure of the number of people submitted and overall quality of research. Our impact case studies were also assessed very highly. This reflects the excellent quality and quantity of research being undertaken in the school.
The RKE Committee runs a bi-weekly seminar series throughout the year and hosts inaugural professorial lectures. For more information about ongoing events and outputs by our research and knowledge exchange community visit:
Professor Lindsay Bremner, SA+C Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange
RESEARCH GROUPS
Architectural Humanities
Members of the Architectural Humanities Research Group address critical questions about architecture and its historical, social and cultural contexts by engaging with a range of humanities-based methods, including interdisciplinary approaches that bring together arts and sciences.
Convened by Davide Deriu and Kate Jordan
Emerging Territories
The Emerging Territories Research Group focuses on societal and environmental challenges faced by cities and territories in relation to evolving notions of sustainability and resilience, climate change, healthy cities, governance, diversity and social inclusion.
Convened by Krystallia Kamvasinou and Giulio Verdini
Making and Practice
The Making and Practice Research Group brings together award-winning design practitioners and leading academics who conduct innovative research through the process of practice and making. Collectively, their expertise spans the fields of representation, fabrication, experimental building projects, and environmental design.
Convened by Will McLean and Victoria Watson
Place and Experience
The Place and Experience Research Group focuses on tourism, events and leisure research with specialisms in: City Tourism, Mega Events, Urban Parks, Destination Experiences, and Sustainability.
Convened by Stroma Cole and Ilaria Pappalepore
Transport and Mobilities
The Transport and Mobilities Research Group covers a diverse range of aspects of urban movement, including: City Mobilities, Active Travel, Freight, Infrastructure Investment, Networks, Accessibility, and Transport Equity.
Convened by Gerald Gurtner and Enrica Papa
RESEARCH CENTRES
Active Travel Academy [ATA]
The ATA is an interdisciplinary research and knowledge exchange centre that currently leads projects funded by organisations including NIHR, DfT, and TfL. It hosts the Active Travel Studies journal and organises events including the regular Walking and Cycling@Teatime seminars.
Director: Rachel Aldred
Centre for Air Traffic Management Research
CATMR builds on more than 20 years of research into air traffic management, for which the University of Westminster is well known. Working with academia, industry and international organisations, the group is active in projects funded by Clean Sky 2, SESAR and Horizon Europe.
Director: Andrew Cook and Co-Director: Luis Delgado
Centre for the Study of Production
of the Built Environment
ProBE provides a research hub, a forum for debate and discussion, and a focus for interdisciplinary and international activity related to the Production of the Built Environment as a social, environmental and historical process.
Director: Rosa Schiano-Phan