Environment and Planning

Environment and planning is a discipline concerned with how land, resources and infrastructure are managed and governed, and with the decisions that shape the built and natural environments in which people live. Planning addresses the regulatory, policy and design frameworks through which cities, towns and rural areas are developed and changed, asking how communities can be served by the places they inhabit and how competing demands on land can be resolved equitably. Environmental study brings the natural sciences, sustainability thinking and ecological understanding to bear on these questions, addressing the ways in which human activity affects the environment and how planning and policy can help to protect and restore it.

At the University of Liverpool this three-year full-time programme develops your understanding of both environmental systems and planning processes. You will study land use policy, urban and regional planning, housing, transport, climate adaptation and the governance frameworks within which development takes place. The environmental strand introduces you to ecology, environmental impact assessment, sustainability and the science of the systems that planning must take into account.

You will develop skills in spatial analysis, GIS, report writing and stakeholder engagement, all of which are central to professional practice. The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad and work placement opportunities, ensuring that you graduate with substantial professional experience alongside your academic qualification.

Graduates go on to work as town planners in local authorities, national park authorities, government agencies and private consultancies, as well as in environmental consultancy, sustainability management, transport planning, housing policy and international development. Many pursue the professional qualifications required for chartered status in town planning or environmental management. The combination of planning and environmental knowledge is particularly valued as the planning system increasingly has to address climate change, biodiversity loss and the sustainability challenges of the built environment.