The University of Sheffield
Town and Regional Planning

Research Ethics

The Department of Town and Regional Planning adheres to the University of Sheffield’s Research Ethics and Good Research and Innovation Practice policies. All staff and supervised students undertaking research on human participants, their data or tissue are required to ensure that their proposed research has been ethically approved.

Ethics Procedures

Ethics procedures are overseen by our Director of Research (Dr Aidan While) who acts as the Principal Ethics Contact. Our Departmental Ethics Administrators are:

Applications for ethical approval are reviewed by a pool of academic staff within the department. The Department Research Committee, chaired by the Director of Research, operates as the department’s Ethics Review Panel and reviews contentious or high risk applications.

Ethics Applications

Application forms are available from Research and Innovation Services. There are two different forms - one for undergraduate and postgraduate taught student projects, and one for staff and postgraduate research student projects. In some cases, Application forms may also need to be accompanied by an Information Sheet and Consent Form, which would be used to engage human participants in research projects.

Student ethics applications are completed in consultation with PhD supervisors, who are expected to act as a first point of contact for student enquiries about ethics approval processes.

Specific approval procedures apply to all ESRC-funded research, including postgraduate research student projects, and relevant ethics approval applications should always state that they are ESRC funded.

Academic staff are responsible for completing and submitting ethics approval forms required for their own research.

Further Information and Support

Further information about University policies, good practice and guidance is available via Research and Innovation Services webpages: