DE MONTFORT University has been collaboration with the City of Leicester on a series of real-world projects that are now making a difference at street level.
DMU academics and researchers during 2025 have been working with colleagues at the Leicester City Council on planning issues and development projects to make better use of urban spaces.
One of those projects which has just been completed is in the city's Beaumont Leys and Abbey areas - designed in the 1970s when all transport planning was based around the car.
Research by DMU academics was carried out in collaboration with council planners as part of the Local+ programme, a series of research projects aim at benefitting the city of Leicester.
Construction work followed the research that has seen new road and walkway layouts aimed at reducing the number of car journeys and increasing the number of pedestrians.
City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said: “Working together in this way will help to drive innovation so that we can make Leicester an even better place to work and live.
“De Montfort University is a major resource for Leicester and I’m impressed with how deeply involved the university has already become in the life of our city.”
DMU has also been working with Leicester City Council on its development plans for nine areas of the city, including within the university’s city centre campus.
Track record of working on affordable housing
The plan addresses planning and development issues within the area and establishes best practice around the historic campus as well as the rest of the city.
The work is important as the university is also a major housing providers with more than 20,000 students.
All these projects are an extension of the policy-focused research carried out by DMU’s long-established Local Governance Research Centre with a track record of work with government institutions, practitioner organisations and think-tanks.
It has also worked with individual councils across the country and abroad, particularly in the fields of ensuring local residents have access to enough affordable housing as well as general planning and development issues.
The work in these areas helped DMU secure the honour of being the global academic hub chair for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities in January 2025.
One of the key components of SDG 11 is ‘by 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums.’
DMU’s lead for the global academic hub for SDG 11, Dr Mark Charlton, said: “We have a proud record of working with the Leicester City Council on all aspects of sustainable cities.
“One of the most important aspects of sustainability for any city is ensuring affordable housing for all and this will be a focus for our work as the global academic hub for SDG 11.
"This work has to address planning and development issues within cities to ensure a supply of affordable housing to its citizens."