What is the problem? Habitat and biodiversity loss are a global nature emergency, and urbanisation is a key driver. With the UK now one of the most nature-depleted countries in Europe, governments have recently introduced policies for nature recovery that operate through spatial planning systems. We call this 'Nature Recovery Planning', and it employs new market-oriented logics to count, evaluate, and mitigate habitat and biodiversity loss. From Autumn 2023, the English government will introduce Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). Ecologists will assess the quality and quantity of the habitat destroyed due to development. Developers will then mitigate this loss either by creating areas set aside for nature recovery on the development site or by purchasing offsite biodiversity credits. In Scotland, recently introduced planning policies emphasise the need to consider 'natural capital' (the idea that nature has economic value and provides essential services to humans) but BNG is not mandatory. However, at present, we do not have data on the extent of habitat and biodiversity loss associated with planning decisions under the previous and new policy regimes in either nation, which makes it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of these new policies. We also do not know how much weight ecological considerations will hold compared to the other social, spatial, economic, and environmental objectives balanced by planning systems. Furthermore, it is unclear how the types and scales of mapping used for nature recovery and spatial planning relate to one another. Importantly, the introduction of new forms of ecological assessment raises wider theoretical questions about whose view of nature is conceptualised, counted and valued, and the democratic and social justice implications of these changes for key actors. What will the project achieve? This interdisciplinary project will provide the first analysis of Nature Recovery Planning in the context of wider spatial planning systems. It will generate: The first robust quantitative ecological assessment of habitat and biodiversity loss associated with planning decisions in England and Scotland, comparing the effectiveness of emerging nature recovery policies with previous policy regimes. A groundbreaking qualitative analysis of the weight and status granted to ecological considerations compared to other social, economic, and environmental objectives in spatial planning processes across England and Scotland. A detailed study of the mapping processes of nature recovery and spatial planning, comparing their logics, studying the degree of integration between them, and exploring their impact on the production of urban and natural space. The first in-depth understanding of the ways that emerging policy is changing the types of ecological knowledge and expertise that are valued in the planning system, exploring the social justice and democratic implications of the change for different actors in planning systems. A series of recommendations to improve planning policy and practice to better respond to habitat and biodiversity loss. We will produce robust interdisciplinary research that generates new, timely appraisals of this emerging policy approach, and is of academic relevance to scholars beyond planning studies, including environmental economists, conservation researchers, ecologists, geographers, and political ecologists. Findings will be of immediate interest to government policymakers, planning and ecology practitioners, conservation NGOs, and community groups, and the project has strong support from major national organisations in these areas. It will be supported by a match-funded Knowledge Exchange Associate, who will ensure findings inform policy and practice.

It is widely recognised that low density development is unsustainable and generates significant Green House Gases (GHGs). Nevertheless, most UK development is built on greenfield land where public transportation is poor and services are scarce. If the UK is serious about 'net zero', then new ways of planning and developing are urgently required. 'Urban retrofit' is defined as repairing existing places by adapting urban form to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, protect the environment and support sustainable lifestyles. Changes to the layout of neighbourhoods are starting to be delivered, including via infrastructure programmes such as separated bike lanes, planning policies that encourage high-densities, and community-based projects like urban greening. The problem is that implementation is slow, fragmented and increasingly controversial. Investment often flows to affluent places rather than communities in the greatest need of support, and the principal actors in the UK's planning and development systems face various delivery challenges. Planning authorities struggle with institutional inertia and time-limited funding meaning retrofitting is poorly coordinated. Property developers stick to tried and tested business models to reduce risk resulting in a preference for low density, mono-use greenfield development rather than mixed-use projects on brownfield land. Communities face capacity challenges and place adaptation is often contested. If the UK is to meet its net zero targets and achieve a just transition, then urban retrofitting must be prioritised, equitably directed and implemented more effectively. URBAN RETROFIT UK will be led by the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence and coproduced with international, national and local planning, property and community partners, including in five UK core cities - Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow and Sheffield. Its aim is to examine the barriers to urban retrofitting, challenge the prevailing growth-logic of planning and development, and coproduce a conceptual framework plotting the critical points of intervention needed to scale up retrofitting through planning and development systems. The objectives are to: Conduct a global evidence review on urban retrofit informed by international partners and a study tour. Identify and investigate a series of urban retrofit cases in collaboration with local authority partners to understand what is working and pinpoint where implementation gaps could be closed. Work with partners to understand where the spatial inequalities of current urban retrofit practice lie and how the barriers to 'scaling up' effective and equitable practices could be addressed. Establish an international URBAN RETROFIT HUBS network between UK and Global North cities facing comparable place-adaptation challenges and initiate new two-way learning partnerships with Global South cities where the context for urban retrofit is different but opportunities exist to explore lesson-sharing. To maximise knowledge exchange across sectoral boundaries and between places, URBAN RETROFIT UK's findings will be shared throughout the project at jointly delivered events with UK partners and internationally via the URBAN RETROFIT HUBS network. New theoretical perspectives on the UK's planning and development systems and coproduced empirical evidence on urban retrofit will be shared through an international symposium and evidence review, a report, film and magazine articles, and academic outputs including articles and an edited book.