Spatial Policy and Analysis Laboratory
The Spatial Policy and Analysis Laboratory, formerly the Centre for Urban Policy Studies (CUPS), was established in The University of Manchester by Professor Brian Robson in 1983 to develop research on urban and regional policy.
About us
SPAL now has an established reputation for:
- policy-relevant research on the evaluation of area-based urban policy initiatives;
- regional development;
- spatial planning and housing; and
- the measurement of neighbourhood dynamics.
SPAL has a large output of published papers and reports, and extremely good links with practitioners and policy-makers in government and public and private agencies.
Our research draws both on quantitative and qualitative methodologies, and our work has developed a variety of innovative methods of analysing large datasets, making extensive use of surveys, questionnaires and interview methods.
