The Royal Town Planning Institute is an international professional body for town planners with over 27,000 members in 88 countries. We are responsible for maintaining professional standards and accrediting world class planning courses both in the UK and internationally. We have offices in London, Edinburgh and Cardiff. The Town Planning Institute was founded in 1914. In 1970 a supplemental Royal Charter was granted, and the Institute became the Royal Town Planning Institute.
We are the voice of the profession. We engage with governments, experts, advocates and international bodies to promote good planning, lead on policy development and research, and promote planning in the long-term public interest. We support our members to deliver outstanding placemaking that creates inclusive, healthy, prosperous, sustainable and happy communities.
We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive profession and we have a dedicated action plan setting out how we will achieve this. We are also committed to advancing the art and science of planning. Through our corporate strategy we work for the long-term common good and wellbeing of current and future generations.
Throughout the year we offer a comprehensive programme of events and training for our members as well as an awards programme. We promote an ethos of lifelong learning and continuing professional development. We ensure that the planning profession is exemplary, upholding the highest ethics and professional standards.
We also support young people looking for pathways into the profession through apprenticeships and RTPI accredited university courses as well as actively engaging with students and teachers.
Additionally, we fund Planning Aid England, a service that provides planning advice and support to help individuals and communities engage with the planning system.
The Patsy Healey Award for Academic Excellence
Prof Malcolm Tait (University of Sheffield) and co-authors
The Future for Planners
Prof Malcolm Tait (University of Sheffield) and co-authors
The Future for Planners
Co-authors
Ben Clifford (University College London); Susannah Gunn, Abigail Schoneboom, Geoff Vigar (Newcastle University); Andy Inch, Jason Slade.
Research description
Spatial planning is at a crossroads, with government reform undermining the traditional vision of state-employed planners making decisions about development in a unified public interest. Half of UK planners are now employed in the private sector, with complex inter-relations between the sectors including supplying outsourced services to local authorities struggling with budget cuts. Drawing on new empirical data from a major research project, Working in the Public Interest this book reveals what it's like to be a UK planner in the early 21st century, and how the profession can fulfil its potential for the benefit of society and the environment.
The Sir Peter Hall Award for Wider Engagement
Prof Matthew Carmona (UCL) and co-authors
Tacking Inequality in Housing Design Quality
Prof Matthew Carmona (UCL) and co-authors
Tacking Inequality in Housing Design Quality
Co-authors
Dr Jingyi Zhu and Wendy Clarke, The Bartlett School of Planning, UCL
Research description
This two-year project demonstrated that high-quality, sustainable housing is achievable in disadvantaged communities. 20 exemplary developments were identified and studied via site audits and interviews, leading to ten routes to success across planning, design, engagement, funding and regulatory domains. The findings were widely shared through a guide, online case studies, a research summary, and a series of events. Further outreach included blogs, articles and a methodologically focussed academic paper. The project offers a range of practical models for delivering high quality housing development in areas of inequality.
Tackling Inequality in Housing Design Quality | Place Alliance
The Tony Crook Award for Early Career Research
Dongsheng He (The University of Hong Kong) and co-authors
Ambiguity in state-owned land property rights increases transaction costs in China's transit-oriented development projects
Dongsheng He (The University of Hong Kong) and co-authors
Ambiguity in state-owned land property rights increases transaction costs in China's transit-oriented development projects
Co-authors
Dr. Jinshuo Wang (Israel Institute of Technology, Israel); Dr. Guibo Sun (Department of Planning, Property and Environmental Management, The University of Manchester, UK)
Research description
This study provides compelling evidence that the ambiguity in state-owned land property rights increases transaction costs in China's transit-oriented development (TOD) projects. Ambiguous property rights and unsupportive institutional arrangements in land development processes result in development sites far from metro stations, housing adjacent to industrial areas, and oversized commercial spaces on urban fringes. This study extended the debates of ambiguous land property rights to the public-owned land realm, and showed that ambiguity in -owned land property rights is rooted in China's historical and institutional contexts, driving high transaction costs in land development and undermining urban infrastructure development.
The Student Dissertation Award
Giuseppe Bonomo (Oxford Brookes University)
A Framework for Mobility Hub Networks in the UK. How can a holistic approach to planning and design shape mobility hub networks in the UK?
Giuseppe Bonomo (Oxford Brookes University)
A Framework for Mobility Hub Networks in the UK. How can a holistic approach to planning and design shape mobility hub networks in the UK?
Mobility hubs have evolved over the past 20 years, responding to a need to change travel behaviours and reduce the impacts private vehicles impose on their environments. Mobility hubs are increasingly being integrated into local policy; however, there is currently a lack of understanding within industry about what constitutes a mobility hub and what they aim to achieve. Giuseppe's research looks to identify transferable strategies from national and international case studies, as well as interviews with industry professionals, and translate this into a framework for the planning, design and delivery of mobility hub networks in the UK.
The Practitioner Research Award
Sarah Curnow (Stephenson Halliday)
Review of the implementation of the NPPF para 186 (c) in applications and appeals in or within 15 metres of ancient woodlands or near ancient and veteran trees.
Sarah Curnow (Stephenson Halliday)
Review of the implementation of the NPPF para 186 (c) in applications and appeals in or within 15 metres of ancient woodlands or near ancient and veteran trees.
In 2021, the government committed to reviewing the National Planning Policy Framework as it applied to development near ancient woodlands. It agreed to strengthen guidance if the review found that implementation of relevant policies could be improved. Stephenson Halliday and ADAS analysed planning applications and appeals in England over a four year period. They also interviewed planning officers and inspectors to gain insight into the factors influencing the decision-making process. The results showed implementation was not as expected, suggesting the issue was not with the policy wording as such, but with the process itself.