London

• Socio-economic Opportunities

  • Recreation and entertainment
  • Employment
• Recreation and entertainment

  • Range of foods available
  • Sporting events-Oxford and Cambridge boat race, London Marathon, Wimbledon, Olympic Park, many football teams
  • Integrated transport systems
• Employment

  Jobs in Parliament, Tower of London and Tower Bridge, London Eye
• London generates 22% of the UK's GDP
• 54% of London workers are managerial, professional, associate professional and technical (UK average is 45%)
• London's unemployment rate is 6.1% compared to the UK average of 5%
• Integrated transport systems

  • Underground/Overground
  • Trains
  • Buses
  • Trams
  • Motorways
  • Airports
  • Coach station
  • Cycle network and bike hire schemes
• 1 million Londoners own bikes, but only 2% of all journeys are by bike, although this is rising
• Environmental Opportunities-Urban Greening

  • Creating areas for water
  • Olympic Park
  • Hampstead Heath, Queens Park, Hyde Park
  • London's Green Belt
• 64% of London is greenspace, gardens or open water
• Challenges of Urban Change in London

  • Housing shortage
  • High cost of living
  • Inequality
  • Life expectancy gap
  • Unemployment
• London's population is expected to rise 12.7% between 2015 and 2025, increasing demand for housing
• Deindustrialisation and derelict sites

  • Decline of port industry in the 1980s
  • Redevelopment of Docklands area
  • Docklands Light Railway introduced
• Waste disposal

  • London has high levels of waste and e-waste
  • London's waste management strategy aims to reduce waste to landfill and increase recycling
• Urban sprawl

  • Growth of commuter settlements around London
  • Contested rural-urban fringe under pressure for development
  • Uncontrolled growth leading to 'agglomeration'
• Combating urban sprawl: Green Belts

  • Intended to stop city spreading outwards
  • Development has 'leapfrogged' the Green Belt
• Age of commuting

  • Upward trend of people moving to suburbs rather than city centre
  • Can lead to 'spiral of deprivation' in inner city areas
• Example Urban Regeneration Project: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Stratford

  • Reasons for regeneration: high deprivation, unemployment, poor infrastructure and environment
  • Advantages: new homes, school, jobs, improved transport, sustainability features
  • Challenges: high rents, displacement of local residents, cost overruns
• The Olympic Park development cost an estimated £2bn more than the original £9.3bn budget forecast