School of Geography and Planning 9th in UK for research power

Cardiff University’s School of Geography and Planning has been recognised by the Government’s Research Excellence Framework 2021 as producing research considered to have outstanding or very considerable impact in terms of reach and significance.

The school is 9^th in the UK for research power, reflecting its scale and the strength in breadth of its research and impact.

The school’s research focuses on the planning, governance and sustainability of cities, regions, and rural spaces. It covers a broad range of research expertise, from establishing global policy frameworks for research and intervention on sustainable urban food, to shaping homelessness legislation in England and Wales.

The school has an embedded interdisciplinary approach, coupled with a policy-facing research agenda. For REF 2021, the school almost doubled the number of researchers submitted to this unit compared with 2014.

The REF provides a robust and thorough assessment of the quality of universities’ research in all disciplines. In total, 157 UK universities participated, submitting over 76,000 academic staff.

Professor Gill Bristow, Head of the School of Geography and Planning, said: “I am delighted by the school’s results in the latest REF and the foundation this provides for the future. This achievement reflects the dedication and hard work of everyone at the school during a period of significant growth and development.

“We’re particularly proud of the recognised growth in our research power in our first ever submission to the Geography and Environmental Studies panel. We foster an inclusive, diverse and collaborative research community. Reflective of this, we submitted 100% of our eligible staff to this Unit of Assessment.

“Our strength in depth is also complemented by recognition of the strengthening policy relevance and impact of our research on the key challenges facing places. This augurs well for our future collaborative research and impact ambitions.”

Read more about our REF 2021 submission and our research.

Read more about the impact of our research.