Urban Regeneration in the UK: Theory and Practice

Jones & Evans (as they will surely soon be known) have written a textbook that will become ubiquitous in the biographies of future scholars of UK urban regeneration: a comprehensive introduction to the subject with plenty of leads to future research. Briskly written, the book covers policy governance, competition, sustainability, design and cultural aspects of regeneration... Deftly stepping through a thicket of acronyms, the authors examine the roles and origins of LSVTs, SRBs, UDCs and RDAs, not to mention the LLDC, ODPM, DETR, CPRE and many, many others...A thread running through all the chapters is the way that successive Labour governments have continued Thatcherite principles, without significant debate or challenge. Indeed, it could be argued that New Labour has pursued Conservative principles more effectively than their predecessors, untroubled by militant unions or the left in general... The book concentrates on the macho area of redevelopment rather than the softer arts of community regeneration, with the authors concluding that the programmes that support communities were intrinsically weak, with the exception of Northern Ireland. One result is that England has become a paradise of property speculation, with the newest purchasers scrabbling to buy even a grubby shoebox flat on a 105% interest-only mortgage over 45 years. Indeed, Jones & Evans question the notion of regeneration where (as in the case of the London Docklands and Shoreditch) the end result is an increase in social polarisation with little 'trickle down' to local residents.. It includes a useful but all-to-brief listing of UK regeneration websites (that omits for example The Prince's Foundation, INTBAU and other NGOs), a superb bibliography and a handy glossary of terms that introduces basic concepts ...The book is a timely introduction to the maze of urban regeneration for students and a useful aide memoire for people who have worked in, for, with, or against urban regeneration in the United Kingdom. Useful as a handbook, a guidebook, or a cheatbook, it will undoubtedly find a home on shelves around the country.

Matthew Hardy
INTBAU

The area of urban regeneration has long been popular with students from a number of disciplines but has tended to lack a student-friendly overview. This is a solid attempt to address this omission.

Times Higher Education Handbook