Manchester Urban Institute blog

Catch up on the most recent posts from our 'Urban' and 'Growth and Inclusion' blogs located on the Policy@Manchester website.

• Expert reaction – Environmental Audit Committee report

  30 July 2018

  The Environmental Audit Committee launched its report on heat-related deaths and included a series of recommendations for the Government. Dr Claire Hoolohan Research Fellow at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, considers how suitable recommendations in this report around water use are, and what additions she’d like to see. Claire’s current project, working with […]

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• UK modern slavery policy: the structure of the problem and government commitment

  27 June 2018

  In the context of renewed criticism of the 2015 UK Modern Slavery Act, Rose Broad and Nick Turnbull discuss human trafficking and modern slavery policy development. They find continuities in policy that, despite being repackaged as ‘slavery’ have resulted in unintended consequences and implementation difficulties leading to recently highlighted failures. In the last 12 months, […]

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• Beyond ‘Older Age’: A Photo and Story Collection to Illuminate the Individual

  26 June 2018

  Amy Barron, a postgraduate researcher in Human Geography examines why it’s important to understand older people’s individual experiences when creating age-friendly policies. Across the Greater Manchester region, older people have different histories and different lives; policies focused on improving the lives of older-citizens must keep sight of these differences and individualities. Through my research I […]

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• Online mental health services for children and young people: One size does not fit all!

  12 June 2018

  In this blog Dr Terry Hanley, Senior Lecturer in Counselling Psychology at The University of Manchester examines how his experience of developing an online counselling service for children and young people led him to research into the benefits and drawbacks of online mental health services. The ease of accessing online counselling services often makes them […]

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• Cohesion again? Learning lessons from the ‘between’

  17 May 2018

  As part of a preview to our new publication ‘OnCohesion’ read Dr Necla Acik and Dr Ajmal Hussain’s blog on why the renewed focus on social cohesion represented in the Mayor’s Independent Commission matters. Manchester’s Commission to tackle violent extremism and promote social cohesion was established because of the Manchester attack in May last year. […]

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• Youth engagement: can we afford not to invest in what works?

  17 May 2018

  As part of a preview to our new publication ‘OnCohesion’ read Dr James Laurence’s blog from the collection which examines how effective youth social and civic engagement schemes can be in cultivating and strengthening social cohesion, especially among young people. Youth social and civic participation schemes create positive social mixing where young people are working […]

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• Manchester has its housing problems – but comparisons to London are off the mark

  26 March 2018

  Tom Arnold, a postgraduate researcher of economic development in Northern England, examines current housing policy in Greater Manchester and the challenge to develop a housing strategy which supports its growing economy whilst simultaneously tackling homelessness and deprivation. Housing policy in Manchester is under scrutiny and campaign groups are concerned that the city centre is becoming […]

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• Little – if any – evidence to suggest increased stop and search can reduce levels of violent crime

  14 February 2018

  The use of stop and search has reduced in recent years in London, but there have been recent calls to increase its use. Matteo Tiratelli argues that a new study finds little, if any evidence, to suggest increased stop and search can reduce levels of violent crime. As violent crime has risen, there’s been a […]

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• Shared parental leave: Opportunities and barriers and the #sharethejoy campaign

  12 February 2018

  As the Government launches a new drive to raise awareness about Shared Parental Leave, Dr Emma Banister looks at the issues dogging this flagship gender equality initiative. Success of the Shared Parental Leave scheme remains a challenge due to a lack of awareness and understanding as well as a range of barriers and constraints associated […]

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• Why closing the gender pay gap requires a new debate on fair pay

  6 February 2018

  Professor Jill Rubery, Director of the Work and Equalities Institute at Alliance Manchester Business School examines why progress on closing the gender pay gap within organisations requires a new debate on the principles and practices of fair pay. Similar pay gaps, to those at the BBC, can be expected to be found across the public […]

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• Gender inequalities and sexual harassment in global value chains

  5 February 2018

  Dr Lara Bianchi is Research Associate and Coordinator at the Business and Human Rights Catalyst at the Alliance Manchester Business School.  With Professor Stephanie Barrientos, Dr Bianchi wrote a briefing paper for the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights 2017 titled ‘Women Workers in Global Supply Chains: Rights and Remedy’. In this blog she […]

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• Are some fathers being ignored in family friendly policy initiatives?

  17 January 2018

  Dr Emma Banister from Alliance Manchester Business School and Dr Helen Norman from The University of Manchester examine the need for policy makers to include fathers in family policy initiatives. The introduction of Shared Parental Leave aimed to support and encourage fathers to be more involved in their child’s upbringing. Debates and initiatives surrounding fatherhood […]

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• What’s not to like about regeneration?

  8 January 2018

  Appraisals of regeneration have previously focused on the benefits such schemes bring, rather than also looking at costs and risks. Here Dr Julia Kasmire and Matjaz Vidmar use Glasgow as a case study to ask who stands to benefit the most from regeneration. Glasgow’s regeneration scheme has promised 15,000 new jobs but it is not […]

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• Discover Society blog

  13 December 2017

  On the ‘meat edge’? Meat consumption and reduction in middle class urban China     

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• Official Statistics are a public good – they need to be richer

  6 December 2017

  This week, the Office for National Statistics held its Economic Forum at The University of Manchester. Here, Professor Diane Coyle reflects on the event and the case for more regional statistics. The city devolution deals mean the new combined authorities around the country have a pressing need for the statistics relevant to their geographies The […]

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• What is the smart city for? Understanding the needs of cities

  28 November 2017

  A blog post by Professor James Evans, Manchester Urban Institute, University of Manchester and Steve Turner, Smart Cities Lead, Arup. The term smart cities conjures up futuristic visions of drone-ports and self-driving cars set amongst shiny high-rise buildings and green landscapes. But do such visions reflect the actual needs of cities? In England over half […]

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• Charting a course to better jobs in Greater Manchester

  26 October 2017

  Resolution Foundation research reveals five key challenges: halting the region’s relative decline, addressing the growth in ‘atypical’ work, ending the pay squeeze, encouraging progression and ensuring young people can access well-paid work. Getting people into work should be a priority, but more attention needs to be paid to the types of jobs. People on zero […]

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• Learning from the draft Greater Manchester Spatial Framework process

  6 September 2017

  Graham Haughton, Professor of Urban Planning at The University of Manchester outlines 12 lessons from the recent debates around a new Spatial Framework for Greater Manchester. The Greater Manchester Spatial Framework (GMSF) is a 20 year strategic plan for the city region. The draft GMSF was planned for what should have been an election free […]

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• Where next for green architecture: How will the demise of London’s Garden Bridge impact future investment in urban greening? by Dr Ian Mell

  18 August 2017

  London’s proposed “Garden Bridge” is no more. After years of controversy, Sadiq Khan, the city’s mayor, has finally sunk the idea into the Thames.

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• Devo stories – Kevin Ward and Sarah Butler

  18 August 2017

  Kevin writes … Francesca Gains (Politics) and I secured the ESRC IAA in early 2016. Our application was made on behalf of academic colleagues from across campus. At the time a growing number of research projects were emerging into the different aspects into what was then known colloquial as “Devo Manc”. It was clear that […]

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