PhD Studentship: Co-creating Flood-Resilient Green Spaces: Understanding Health, Access and Equity in Leicestershire Communities

Loughborough University

This interdisciplinary PhD project explores the critical but underexamined intersection of environmental geography, public health, and urban resilience. Focusing on structurally disadvantaged populations in the UK, it investigates how flooding disrupts access to green spaces, key determinants of health and wellbeing, and how these disruptions are unevenly experienced across communities.

While green infrastructure is widely recognised for its role in mitigating urban stressors and promoting wellbeing, flooding can render these spaces unsafe or inaccessible, undermining their benefits. Using Leicestershire as a case study, the project will employ participatory methods to capture lived experiences of disrupted access among underrepresented groups including children, older adults, disabled people, transient communities, and low-income households.

By situating flooding within broader systems of inequity, the research will extend resilience frameworks to include spatial, social, and emotional dimensions of accessibility. It will:

• Examine how flooding affects green space access and engagement.
• Assess the health and wellbeing impacts of these disruptions.
• Co-create knowledge and solutions with residents to inform inclusive, climate-resilient planning and policy.

Entry requirements:

Applicants must already have, or expect to shortly graduate with, a very good undergraduate degree or Master’s degree (at least a UK 2:1 honours degree) – or an equivalent international qualification from a high ranking university – in a relevant subject. EU and Overseas applicants should achieve an IELTS score of 6.5 with at least 6.0 in each competency.

English language requirements:

Applicants must meet the minimum English language requirements. Further details are available on the International website.

Funding information:

Studentship type – UKRI through Flood-CDT (flood-cdt.ac.uk). The studentship is for 3.5 years and provides a tax-free stipend of £20,780 per annum plus tuition fees at the UK rate. Due to UKRI funding rules, no more than 30% of the studentships funded by this grant can be awarded to International candidates, but successful International candidates will have the difference between the UK and International tuition fees provided by the University.

How to apply:

All applications should be made online via the above ‘Apply’ button. Under programme name, select SSEHS. Please quote the advertised reference number: FCDT-26-LU6 in your application.

To avoid delays in processing your application, please ensure that you submit the minimum supporting documents.

This PhD is being advertised as part of the Centre for Doctoral Training for Resilient Flood Futures (FLOOD-CDT). Further details about FLOOD-CDT can be seen at https://flood-cdt.ac.uk.

Please note, that your application will be assessed upon: (1) Motivation and Career Aspirations; (2) Potential & Intellectual Excellence; (3) Suitability for specific project and (4) Fit to FLOOD-CDT. So please familiarise yourselves with FLOOD-CDT before applying.

During the application process candidates will need to upload:

• a 1 page statement of your research interests in flooding and FLOOD-CDT and your rationale for your choice of project;
• a curriculum vitae giving details of your academic record and stating your research interests;
• academic transcripts and degree certificates (translated if not in English)
• a IELTS/TOEFL certificate, if applicable.

You are encouraged to contact potential supervisors by email to discuss project specific aspects of the proposed project prior to submitting your application. If you have any general questions, please contact floodcdt@soton.ac.uk.