PhD Studentship: Rooted in Resilience: Optimising the Plant-Soil System for Flood-Resilient Rain Gardens

About the Project

This studentship provides a tax-free annual living allowance £26,546 plus a research training support grant £20,000 and 100% fees paid.

Climate change is driving more intense storms, putting drainage systems under pressure. Rain gardens (vegetated basins that manage stormwater) are a sustainable solution, but their long-term performance often suffers due to generic design approaches that overlook plant ecology and the interaction with soil structure development. This PhD project will transform rain garden design by linking plant traits to hydrological and ecological outcomes, ensuring resilience under alternating drought and flood stress.

Working with the Royal Horticultural Society and Robert Bray Associates, you will combine field studies of mature rain gardens with controlled experiments to assess how traits such as canopy interception, transpiration, and rooting depth influence stormwater retention. Using these insights, you will develop a classification system and decision-support framework to guide practitioners in selecting plants and designing rain gardens tailored to site conditions and climate adaptation goals.

This research offers real-world impact, reducing flood risk, enhancing urban green infrastructure, and shaping future design standards. Ideal for candidates passionate about sustainability, plant science, and nature-based engineering innovation.

This PhD studentship is part of the Water Infrastructure & Resilience (WIRe) CDT funded by EPSRC and the Royal Horticultural Society.

Please apply here Postgraduate Funding Search | Newcastle University

Funding Notes

This studentship is open to UK/Home applicants only and the successful candidate would need to be based in (or around) Newcastle upon Tyne for the duration of the studentship (48 months), candidates must meet one of these criteria:

• be a UK national
• have settled status
• have pre-settled status
• have indefinite leave to remain or enter.