Staff Profile

Introduction

My work explores how home and neighbourhood supports quality of life in later life. As an academic situated in Planning I am interested in the transactional relationship between people and their place that embraces how people individually and collectively may influence their environments. My work frequently uses an everyday life framework to explore strategies for survival or flourishing. I have considerable research experience in qualitative and participatory methods: interviews, focus groups, photo elicitation and visioning. I am committed to change and much of my work is action oriented. I am the founder of the Future Homes Alliance Community Interest Company that will be building inter generational dwellings on the Helix site. I welcome opportunities to work with industry such as in KTP collaborations

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Roles and Responsibilities

I have held a number of positions of responsibility in the School including Degree Programme Director of the Undergraduate Planning Programme; Director of Teaching and Learning; Director of Planning, Deputy Head of School and most recently Director of Engagement. I have been a member of the School Management Team for more than fifteen years. Beyond the school I have been a member of Senate twice; served on Faculty Promotions Committee; a member of Faculty Teaching and Learning Committee; and UTLC Panel member .  

In 2016 I brought together a quadruple helix working group of key Tyneside actors from Newcastle City Council, academia, third and community sectors; business and industry. Together we have developed new modes of housing that will make responses to an ageing population and deep green responses to sustainability with digital innovation informing both agendas. In April 2018 we became the Future Homes Alliance registered at Companies House as a Community Interest Company. We have won funding from Homes England ; from Newcastle University and Newcastle Building Society.

Beyond the University I am chair of Newcastle's Age Friendly City working group and a member of the British Society of Gerontology's Special Interest Group on Transport and Mobility; I am a trustee for Dunhill Medical Trust- the only age focused grant giving body.

Qualifications

I have a BA from Nottingham University and a MA by research from Exeter University. I have the Higher Education Teaching Qualification from Newcastle University.

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Housing 

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy 

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (by invitation)

Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences- nominated by BSG

Memberships

British Gerontology Society

International Society of Quality of Life Studies

Languages

Basic French

Informal Interests

I love to read - my idea of hell is having nothing to read. I love cinema, live music, travelling to new places and occasionally can be spotted rambling, bird watching and fishing. 

Research Interests

My research explores the impact of the ageing population, particularly in relation to planning and housing. My concerns embrace the home and the lines of attachment that radiate from it into neighbourhood, city, and region. In the wider arena I explore how place may support everyday life in later life. As a planner I am interested in the transactional relationship between people and their environment that embraces how people individually and collectively may influence their environments. I am interested in researching with industry to create change thrugh Knowledge Transfer Partrenships

 Postgraduate Supervision

I welcome applications from potential doctoral candidates who are interested in older people's (non medical) issues specifically perceptions of quality of life; experiences of housing and neighbourhood; activism in older age.

Currently Isaac Ayamba exploring housing affordability in Cambridge

Di Yang: `Energy use and comfort Analysis in Rural Chinese Dwellings: a Case Study of Low-income Older Populations in Shandong`, 

I lead two UG modules : A first year module on Social Worlds that explores current societal challenges and a stage 2 option that unpacks UK Housing Policy and Practice. i contrbute to a stage 2 option  Understanding cties, and a stage 3 module on Chinese Culture 

• Articles

  • Yazdanpanahi M, Pantelaki E, Holland C, Gilroy R, Spencer B, Weston R, Rogers A. Understanding older adults' travel behaviour and mobility needs during the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of the hierarchy of travel needs: a systematic review. Ageing and Society 2024, epub ahead of print.
  • Aitken D, Willis K, Gilroy R. Do older homebuyers prefer dwellings with accessibility and adaptability features? Findings from an exploratory study. Housing Studies 2024, 39(3), 608-630.
  • Gilroy R, Townshend T. Avoiding ‘bungalow legs’: active ageing and the built environment. Journal of Urban Design 2024, epub ahead of print.
  • Rogers A, Pantelaki E, Gilroy R, Weston R, Spencer B, Holland C, Yazdanpanahi M. A systematic review of older adults' travel behaviour and mobility during Covid 19 pandemic: Lessons learned for sustainable transport provision and healthy ageing. Transport Reviews 2024, 44(2), 405-433.
  • Wang L, Gilroy R, Law A. Shifting elder care practices in Chinese middle-class families. Plos One 2023, 18(3), e0283533.
  • Wang L, Gilroy R. The Role of Housing in Facilitating Middle-Class Family Practices in China: A Case Study of Tianjin. Sustainability 2021, 13(23), 13031.
  • Croucher K, Gilroy R, Bevan M, Attuyer K. The mobilities of care in later life: exploring the relationship between caring and mobility in the lives of older people. Ageing and Society 2021, 41(8), 1788-1809.
  • Forster F, Tullo E, Wakeling l, Gilroy R. Involving older people in inclusive educational research. Journal of Aging Studies 2021, 56, 100906.
  • Attuyer K, Gilroy R, Croucher K. Establishing long-term research relationships with older people: exploring care practices in longitudinal studies. Ageing and Society 2020, 40(5), 1064-1083.
  • Jeffries JM, Gilroy R, Townshend TG. Challenging the visual: Learning from the mobility narratives of visually impaired persons. Journal of Urban Design 2020, 25(2), 254-274.
  • Aitken D, Gilroy R, Willis K. A home for life or a home for now? Understanding indifference towards accessibility and adaptability features among some older homebuyers. Journal of Aging and Environment 2020, 34(4), 417-434.
  • Cinderby S, Cambridge H, Bevan M, Croucher K, Attuyer K, Gilroy R, Swallow D. Co-designing Urban Living Solutions to Improve Older People’s Mobility and Well-Being. Journal of Urban Health 2018, 95(3), 409-422.
  • Xu Z, Gao X, Wang Z, Gilroy R, Wu H. An investigation of non-local-governed urban villages in China from the perspective of the administrative system. Habitat International 2018, 74, 27-35.
  • Banks S, Armstrong A, Booth M, Brown G, Carter K, Clarkson M, Corner L, Genus A, Gilroy R, Henfrey T, Hudson K, Jenner A, Moss R, Roddy D, Russell A. Using Co-Inquiry to Study Co-Inquiry: Community-University Perspectives on Research. Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship 2014, 7(1), 37-47.
  • Gilroy R. Changing landscapes of support in the lives of Chinese urban elders: voices from Wuhan neighbourhoods. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 2013, 31(3), 428-443.
  • Gilroy R. Physical threats to older people's social worlds: findings from a pilot study in Wuhan, China. Environment and Planning A 2012, 44(2), 458-476.
  • Hamza N, Gilroy R. The challenge to UK energy policy: An ageing population perspective on energy saving measures and consumption. Energy Policy 2011, 39(2), 782-789.
  • Willis K, Scarpa R, Gilroy R, Hamza N. Renewable energy adoption in an ageing population: Heterogeneity in preferences for micro-generation technology adoption. Energy Policy 2011, 39(10), 6021-6029.
  • Murakami K, Gilroy R, Atterton J. The benefits of an ageing population: case studies from rural Hokkaido, Japan. Local Economy 2009, 24(6-7), 555-567.
  • Murakami K, Gilroy R, Atterton J. Planning for the Ageing Countryside in Japan: The Potential Impact of Multi-habitation. Planning, Practice and Research 2009, 24(3), 285-299.
  • Gilroy R. Places that support human flourishing: lessons from later life. Planning Theory & Practice 2008, 9(2), 145-163.
  • Van Wezemael JE, Gilroy R. The significance of demographic change in the Swiss approach to private rented housing: A potential for ageing in place?. Housing Studies 2007, 22(4), 597-614.
  • Gilroy R. Taking a capabilities approach to evaluating supportive environments for older people. Applied Research in Quality of Life 2006, 1(3-4), 343-356.
  • Gilroy RC. The role of housing space in determining freedom and flourishing in older people. Social Indicators Research 2005, 74(1), 141-158.
  • Gilroy R. Meeting the information needs of older people: A challenge for local governance. Local Government Studies 2005, 31(1), 39-51.
  • Gilroy R. The Older Person Friendly City. Town and Country Planning 2004, (publication unknown).
  • Townshend T, Gilroy RC, Pendlebury JR. The conservation of English cultural built heritage: a force for social inclusion?. International Journal of Heritage Studies 2004, 10(1), 11-31.
  • Gilroy R. Making cities friendly to older people. Town and Country Planning 2004, 73(9), 254-256.
  • Gilroy R, Booth C. Changing the mould: a case study of the Frauenwerkstadt. Zehar 2004, 52, 8.
  • Gilroy R. Why can't more people have a say? Learning to work with older people. Ageing and Society 2003, 23(5), 659-674.
  • Gilroy R, Shaw T. Market towns, older people and regeneration. Town and Country Planning 2002, 71(9), 237-238.
  • Booth C, Gilroy R. Gender aware approaches to local and regional development: better practice lessons from across Europe. Town Planning Review 2001, 27(2), 217-242.
  • Gilroy RC, Booth C. The role of a Toolkit in mobilising women in local and regional development. Local Economy 2000, 15(1), 9-17.
  • Gilroy RC, Cowen D, Pantazis C. Risking Housing Need. Journal of Law & Society 1999, 26(4), 403-426.
  • Cowan D, Gilroy R, Pantazis C. Risking housing need. Journal of Law and Society 1999, 26(4), 403-426.
  • Gilroy R, Booth C. Building an Infrastructure for Everyday Lives. European Planning Studies 1999, 7(3), 307-324.

• Authored Book

  • Gilroy R. Planning for an Ageing Society. London, UK: Lund Humphries, 2021.

• Book Chapters

  • Gilroy R. Framework for inclusive residential projects for all: Further research lines. In: Pozo Menendez E; Higueras Garcia E, ed. Urban Design and Planning for Age-Friendly Environments Across Europe: North and South - Developing Healthy and Therapeutic Public Spaces for Local Contexts. Cham: Springer, 2022, pp.161-170.
  • Gilroy R, Aitken D, Miller P. Future Homes: developing new responses through new organisations. In: Steer, M; Davoudi, S; Shucksmith, M; Todd, L, ed. Hope Under Neoliberal Austerity: Responses from Civil Society and Civic Universities. Bristol: Policy Press, 2021, pp.187-202.
  • Bailey C, Gilroy R, Reynolds J, Douglas b, Webster Saaremets C, Nicholls M, Warwick L, Gollan M. Ageing in place: creativity and resilience in neighbourhoods. In: Goulding, A; Davenport, B; Newman, A, ed. Resilience and Ageing: Creativity, Culture and Community. Bristol: Policy Press, 2018, pp.157-180.
  • Gilroy R, Attuyer K, Bevan M, Croucher K, Tunstall R. Moving between generations? The role of intergenerational relations in older people’s mobility. In: Lesley Murray and Sue Robertson, ed. Intergenerational Mobilities: Relationality, age and lifecourse. London: Routledge, 2016, pp.23-33.
  • Gilroy R, Brooks L. Fair shares for all: The challenge of demographic change. In: Davoudi, S; Bell, D, ed. Justice and Fairness in the City: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach to 'Ordinary' Cities. Bristol: Policy Press, 2016, pp.213-230.
  • Gilroy R. Well being and the neighbourhood: Promoting choice and independence for all ages. In: Atkinson, S., Fuller, S., Painter, J, ed. Wellbeing and Place. Abingdon: Ashgate, 2012, pp.73-88.
  • Gilroy R, Brooks E, Shaw T. Ready or not: The ageing of the market towns' population. In: Powe, N.A., Hart, T., Shaw, T, ed. Market Towns: Roles, Challenges and Prospects. London: Routledge, 2007, pp.69-80.
  • Kellett P, Gilroy R, Jackson S. Space, identity and choice: Exploring the housing arrangements of older people. In: Martens, B; Keul, A, ed. Designing Social Innovation: Planning, Building, Evaluating. Gottingen: Hogfre and Huber, 2005, pp.291-299.

• Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstracts)

  • Yang D, Hamza N, Gilroy R. Summer Energy Use and Comfort Analysis in Rural Chinese Dwellings: A Case Study of Low-income Older Populations in Shandong. In: 37th Passive and Low Energy Architecture (PLEA 2024). 2024, Wroclaw, Poland: Oficyna Wydawnicza Politechniki Wrocławskiej.
  • Yang D, Hamza N, Gilroy R. Exploring ventilation behaviours and indoor air quality in diverse rural older households in cold climate regions of China: A comparative study. In: Indoor Air 2024. 2024, International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate ISIAQ.

• Reports

  • Aitken D, Gilroy R. Park Homes in Scotland: Planning for Retirement Living. ESRC; Newcastle University; Morris Leslie Group, 2019.
  • Gilroy R, Tewdwr-Jones M. Joining the dots- making healthcare work better for the economy. London, UK: Smith Institute, 2015.
  • Cameron S, Gilroy R, Speak S. A Scoping Study of social inclusion in the north east of England: A regional baseline and benchmark, Summary Report. Newcastle upon Tyne: One Northeast, 2001.