MA Urban Design

Class 2012Leeds Metropolitan University

Edwin Knightoncourse leader

Urban Design is an expanding design-based profession. Traditional professional disciplines often fail to address issues concerned with the design of the urban environment. This course is designed to fill that gap.

Our analytical and creative design-based course seeks to enhance individuals’ personal and professional qualities. It helps those who plan, design and manage urban environments to develop creativity, acquire knowledge and skills beyond their existing professional discipline. A flexible course design enables each student to customise learning according to their needs, interests and career aspirations.

Practitioners highly regard this design-based course as it provides them with opportunities to study for a postgraduate qualification and respond to contemporary trends and design issues of urban environments. The course is actively involved with urban design initiatives in the region, assisting local communities and urban design practitioners in live projects and competitions.

2012 Student Cohort

Nicola RamsdenLaura JagotaRichard James MacCowanChinelo EnemuoNicholas AthertonBryan HarrisonDavid Hooley

Landscape Buff er & Trees

SUDS and rain water collection

Residential Plots

Offi ces & Retail Units

Open green space

Pedestrian & Cycle Route

Landscaped green space

Proposed Masterplan - Snow Hill, Wakefi eld

Property Mix:

* 3 Bed Semi Detached* 2 Bed Apartments* 1 Bed Apartments* 4 Bed Detached* 2 Bed Terrace* 3 Bed Terrace

Nicola Ramsden

Hi! My name is Nicola and I have just finished studying my second year part-time on the MA in Urban Design course at Leeds Metropolitan University. I applied for this course because I have always had an interest in spatial planning and built form. I wanted to develop my design skills further and to also benefit me in my current employment.

My Bachelors degree is in Interior Design/Architecture, which I studied in Liverpool John Moores University. This course developed my creative skills in designing, planning spaces and creating built forms and I believe these skills were applicable to the planning of urban spaces. My interests and passions revolve around architecture, sustainability, interiors, landscaping and urban design in no specific order.

Throughout my life I have always been creative and enjoyed drawing, painting and designing and excelled in these at school, college and university.In my current role at a house builder I get involved with land appraisals, land purchase exercises and developing new housing schemes. My aim now that I have completed the MA in Urban Design is to apply these skills in my current role and hopefully become more hands on with the layouts for new housing developments. In the next few years my goal is to develop on the skills I have learnt on the MA in Urban Design course and follow a career path where I can make best use of my design skills and knowledge. In the distant

future I hope to have my own multidisciplinary design business.

In my spare time I love to be outdoors running, biking, swimming and surfing with my partner, family and friends. Travelling is another interest of mine and each year I look to visit somewhere different and experience a new culture.

Landscape Buff er & Trees

SUDS and rain water collection

Residential Plots

Offi ces & Retail Units

Open green space

Pedestrian & Cycle Route

Landscaped green space

Proposed Masterplan - Snow Hill, Wakefi eld

Property Mix:

* 3 Bed Semi Detached* 2 Bed Apartments* 1 Bed Apartments* 4 Bed Detached* 2 Bed Terrace* 3 Bed Terrace

Laura Jagota

I have successfully completed the MA in Urban Design at Leeds Metropolitan University. In addition, I am a graduate in Geography from the University of Manchester and have a diverse background in the environmental sector, with experience ranging from community engagement and historical interpretation, to landscape planning and the project management of regeneration projects. Much of my work has involved engaging with community groups and other stakeholders to bring about change to their neighbourhoods. The completion of the MA in Urban Design will allow me to better facilitate that engagement.

Working for Countryscape I have facilitated a variety of consultation events, such as those for the Manchester Climate Change Action Plan and for the proposed extensions to the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks. These involved the facilitation of meetings with a wide range of stakeholders, including transport planners, building developers and green space experts. I have contributed to the writing of landscape guidelines for the Malvern Hills AONB Landscape Strategy, administered the Landscape Character Network (LCN) on behalf of Natural England and currently working on a Building Design Guide for the Malvern Hills AONB.

Prior to joining Countryscape, I worked as a Senior Community Link Officer for the Groundwork Trust, where I managed a wide variety of

regeneration projects. This role was to understand a place both socially and economically, and to creatively engage the whole community. This work has included coordinating activities as part of the government-funded Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder scheme, as well as helping to deliver the first Newlands Project in North Manchester: a £1.7million land reclamation scheme, working in partnership with local communities and a range of public sector partners. I have coordinated stakeholder meetings, carried out on the ground consultation, including door-to-door and street interviews, and has effectively organised and facilitated engagement events with a wide variety of audiences in the public and private sectors.

Richard James MacCowan

I am about to embark on the next stage of my design career, setting up my own company PLACE+SPACE whilst carrying out research into biomimicry in urban design as part of a PhD at Leeds Metropolitan University.

Prior to coming into the design sector, I have worked with various private practices on projects across the UK and Europe.

Two notable projects included working with designers to produce a masterplan for a city extension in Denmark and a $1 billion dollar portfolio valuation of property and assets in Norway and Belgium.

My background is as a property consultant and with research interests in behavioural economics. This background in the built environment has allowed me to understand the property markets and produce designs that not only achieve a ‘sense of place’ but provide building blocks to benefits tenants and owners alike.

Away from my design work I have worked as a photographer for a number of Yorkshire-based charities alongside carrying events photography. My passion is street photography and hope to continue to exhibit on a more regular basis, combining this with other interests.

Finally, I really really enjoy cooking and like nothing more than expanding my range of skills trying out new recipes and improving those I already can make.

Main vehicular route/linkExisting vehicular route/linkMain shared routeShared routePedestrian route/linkBridge

Green spaceExisting green spaceBeachWaterTree

Mixed use development

Mixed use development - green roof

Potential development

NORTH

Chinelo Enemuo

Greetings. My name is Chinelo Jenifer Enemuo and I completed my Masters program in Urban Design at Leeds Metropolitan University for the 2011/2012 academic year. After getting a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, I applied for this Masters program upon realisation that I was more fascinated with spatial configuration and how different forms fit together with appropriate networking and linkages, as opposed the workings of a single building.

As I went through the course I grew to focus my design on the people perspective...designing to acknowledge, improve and sustain the lifestyle of those who will eventually use the space. Grand, robust and aesthetically-focused forms, which were my drive during my Architecture days, have gradually been replaced with more sustainable and human-scale sensitive designs. Thanks to the supervision and guidance of the wonderful tutors at Leeds Met, in one year I have grown to become a better Architect and I hope to strive, through work experience and practice, to become an even better Urban Designer.

Having been born and bred in Africa (Nigeria) I am more inclined to proposing interventions that are sympathetic to the development and urbanisation scale of developing countries, especially in combating the challenges they face as regards poverty, infrastructure and sustainability. I dream to be part of those who help build and move Nigeria, and Africa as a whole

to become the potentially great continent that it can be. My hobbies include sketching, comedy script writing (which I do as part-time work), watching TV, Road trips, and hanging out with friends.

Nicholas Atherton

I am a chartered landscape architect with over twelve years’ experience of urban masterplanning and landscape design in both public and private sectors.

I have worked extensively in multidisciplinary teams on major town centre, park and open space design and development including an award winning redevelopment of close park in Bury. My experience gives me in depth knowledge of project / contract management, production of design strategy reports, supervision for all hard and soft work implementation and public art provision.

Two years ago I started work as a self-employed consultant with my own small business ‘Natural Dimensions’. I have undertaken work for a large range of clients which include Morrisons and a number of planning and architectural firms. I have also started to incorporate garden design into my portfolio and have recently completed designs for a listed hall in Sheffield.

I have also recently started work as a part time university lecturer at Leeds Metropolitan University teaching various design modules and Adobe and AutoCAD software. During my Urban Design Masters course I have tried to combine the composition of urban elements with fresh geometries and spatial forms. My approach embraces sustainable technologies and principles creating cityscapes which fuse natural and architectural elements.

Contact Details

Students

Nicola Ramsden nsramsden@googlemail.comLaura Jagota laurajagota@hotmail.comRichard James MacCowan rmaccowan@hotmail.comChinelo Enemuo enemuo_chinelo@yahoo.co.ukNick Atherton nick@naturaldimensions.co.ukBryan Harrison bryanflw@hotmail.comDavid Hooley dexhooley@me.com

Staff

Edwin Knighton e.knighton@leedsmet.ac.ukLindsay Smales l.smales@leedsmet.ac.ukMark Burgess m.burgess@leedsmet.ac.ukChris Royffe c.royffe@leedsmet.ac.ukAndy Millard a.millard@leedsmet.ac.uk

designed + edited by richard james maccowan

University website: courses.leedsmet.ac.uk/urbandesign_ma

CAGD site: cagd.leedsmet.ac.uk/MAUD/

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Twitter: @UrbanismLMU

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