4^th August 2006

NEW COURSE TO TACKLE PLANNING DEFICIENCY

The University of Lincoln’s School of Architecture has established a new Masters course in Planning and Urban Design to tackle the shortage of town planners in the East Midlands.

This will be the only such course offered in the region and is supported by funding from the Department for Communities and local government

According to Senior Academic in Architecture, Derek Cottrell, the course was developed in response to the Governments concerns about the lack of urban design skills necessary to improve towns and cities in the region.

“The intention is to boost the capacity for design-led planning in the region,” said Derek. “Eventually, provided we achieve Royal Town Planning Institute accreditation, any suitably qualified graduate wishing to qualify as a chartered town planner will be able to study full-time or part-time in the Lincoln School of Architecture.”

The programme builds on strengths in teaching urban design within the School of Architecture and subscribes to the CABE (Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment) agenda for improving urban design skills within the planning profession.

A planning conference held at the University of Lincoln in February revealed strong support for this initiative from chairs and vice chairs of planning committees across the East Midlands.

The programme starts in September and can be studied for one year on a full-time basis and two years on a part-time basis.

Further information on the programme is available at www.lincoln.ac.uk. Alternatively you may contact Dr Kathleen Watt (kawatt@lincoln.ac.uk, telephone 01522 837138) or Derek Cottrell (dcottrell@lincoln.ac.uk telephone 01522 837130).

For more information contact:

Kate Strawson Press Officer

(01522) 886244 kstrawson@lincoln.ac.uk

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