The annual ADH Crook Prize for Contributions towards Social Justice in Planning was founded in 2011 by Professor Emeritus ADH Tony Crook CBE upon his retirement from the University, and the award reflects his commitment to promoting social justice through research and public service. Chloe Young was awarded the ADH Crook Prize for her thoughtful contributions to social justice in planning over the course of her four year Urban Studies and Planning MPlan degree.
“It has been an absolute privilege to receive two incredible prizes for my work during university,” said Chloe. “This period is such an uncertain point in our lives, and so it is utterly heartwarming to be singled out by receiving these prizes and such kind words from such a high performing university and such a prestigious institution.
“For this reason I must express how fortunate I am that my circumstances allowed me the time and security to be the best student I could have been. I cannot put into words how extremely grateful I am to have so many people rooting for me, from close family and friends, to wonderful lecturers and institutions.”
Professor Tony Crook said, “I endowed this prize so that the university could celebrate the achievements of graduates who have shown how planning can be a force for good and help to create and nurture more socially just societies, ones that foster environmentally sustainable, economically resilient and socially inclusive communities.
“It is also important in our work that planners come from all sections of our community so I was absolutely delighted when Chloe won not only the Crook prize but also one of the RTPI Trust Bursaries that celebrates and supports diversity in our discipline and profession.”
Chloe had only recently found out about her RTPI Trust Bursary success when she received the news about the ADH Crook Prize. The RTPI Trust Bursary nomination required students to think about current issues impacting high streets, and how the planning sector should respond.
“Upon reading I found vast amounts of literature mentioning the convenience culture we have today, where out of town infrastructure was preferred by many, in addition to people spending more time shopping online and working from home,” said Chloe.
“For me, however, as someone who has lived in suburban places as well as close to city centres, I felt in some ways it was not sheer convenience as such, but that in many ways the access to high streets has deteriorated due to our spatial structure in recent decades. In reality, it is expensive, and timely to get into city centres, no matter the transit taken.”
The deserved awards for Chloe come at a good time for planning at the University of Sheffield. The Department of Urban Studies and Planning was recently named the top planning school in the Russell Group for student satisfaction in the latest National Student Survey (NSS), which gives all final year undergraduate students the opportunity to reflect on their course.