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Since 1997 and the accession of New Labour to Government, area-based regeneration programmes have been undertaken to alleviate multiple deprivation within inner-city areas. Improvements and positive change was to be achieved through the implementation of Urban Regeneration Companies, who were responsible for establishing a regeneration framework for the area and overseeing its implementation. This thesis undertook a multi-methods approach to understanding how regeneration practice has impacted upon sense of place and well-being amongst local residents living within an area of regeneration in the North-West of England. The research incorporated both a pragmatic and participatory approach to the research, drawing upon visual methods to capture the experiences of local residents, alongside more traditional research approaches, including participant observations in the community and semi-structured interviews with residents and regeneration professionals. Fieldwork was conducted over an 18- month period between 2006 and 2008, during which I undertook a 12-month placement at an Urban Regeneration Company in the North-West of England. The findings from the study identified a disconnect between how local residents experienced notions of sense of place and well-being and that articulated by the professional community through regeneration practice. Local residents discussed a sense of place-well-being dynamic, identifying the importance of third places within the community and reflecting upon their deep rooted attachment to home. Physical transformation brought about by regeneration professionals had the potential to undermine this sense of place-well-being dynamic, challenging local residents' claims to space and resulting in the alienation of local residents in the place- making process. A stakeholder event was facilitated at the end of the research to engage the professional and resident community in a process of active dialogue and shared visioning. The outcome was a series of recommendations for changes to regeneration practice and policy that need to be implemented if regeneration is to situate notions of sense of place and well-being within the change process and to ensure that local residents are involved in the place-making agenda. In capturing and bringing together the perspectives of both the resident and professional community within a single regeneration programme, the research makes a unique contribution to the field of sense of place, well-being and urban regeneration practice.

An ageing population and international migration are two concurrent phenomena occurring at different levels of intensity in countries with various levels of development. The UK is no exception to this rule as a country with an ageing population of whom ethnic minorities are the fastest growing segment of the population. An ageing population has raised significant challenges in terms of how societies can best support older adults to live at home and in their communities i.e. healthy ageing in place. Although there has been considerable research conducted into the experiences of home and community in Western societies, research on the experiences of ethnic minority older adults is still in its infancy. It is estimated that there is a Turkish population of 500,000 in the UK and that this number is growing ('British Turks', 2020), yet they remain an 'invisible minority' and are under-represented in policy discourse (Enneli et al., 2005). This is particularly true for the older segment of the population whose needs in respect of healthy ageing have been less well understood. As a result, the experiences of older ethnic minority populations such as older Turkish people have been poorly integrated into interventions aimed at addressing the wellbeing of this group. Bringing together the literature from migration and diaspora studies, gerontology and social care, this research examines experiences of healthy ageing in place amongst Turkish community in London based on qualitative case study approach. To collect the experiences of participants, 48 semi-structured individual interviews and 5 community mapping workshops with 65 older Turkish adults in London were undertaken exploring experiences of healthy ageing. This was supplemented by 13 interviews with professional service providers within the community aimed at understanding how healthy ageing has been addressed within existing service supports. The data collection was conducted between March and November 2017. A thematic analysis of the collected data was undertaken, identifying two main themes integral to understandings of healthy ageing: independence and social participation. Each theme revealed aspects of home and community important to healthy ageing including access to formal and informal care, housing and home, transport and outdoor spaces and barriers to navigating services and supports for the older Turkish community in London. Recommendations are put forward to identity how healthy ageing can be better integrated into place-based supports for the older Turkish community which address both independence and participation in the lives of older Turkish adults and are sensitive to the ways in which old age is experienced within specific ethnic minority groups.

For many older people, ageing in place in a familiar environment is beneficial for their well-being, through having opportunities to access local amenities and services, to be connected to the community and to participate in local civic and social life. In spite of their perceived decline, local high streets remain valuable central and well-connected places that can foster ageing in place, yet their potential to sustain well-being in old age has been overlooked. This research explores how everyday use of local high streets supports older people's well-being, focusing on three case studies - three local town centres - in Edinburgh. It takes a phenomenological approach to study how people interact with these places which involves structured and unstructured field observations, focus groups, and one-to-one and walking interviews with people aged 60-96. The findings illustrate that local high streets enable four key dimensions of older adults' well-being, by helping to: reduce isolation, providing a restorative social experience away from the home; strengthen sense of place and feelings of attachment; sustain physical health and the pleasure of being out from home; and retain a sense of mastery and autonomy in the completion of everyday living activities. The research revealed aspects of local high streets in Edinburgh and more widely in Scotland that can be improved to enhance well-being in later life. Three main areas of intervention are suggested: an improved pedestrian-friendly, inclusive and walkable public realm integrated with public transport infrastructure; more proactive land use policies and place management to achieve adequate clustering of mixed uses, including social care services, community spaces and a variety of informal settings; and the promotion of town centre living for older people through accessible housing provision located next to local high streets.

This thesis by publication critiques existing ageing-in-place concepts and discusses the need for a community-led, participatory approach to create effective housing solutions for older adults. It is argued that current understandings of ageing-in-place may perpetuate housing inequality through the dominant view that all older adults can live happily at home for as long as possible. Existing housing strategies developed in pursuance of ageing-in-place are limited by a lack of important theoretical and methodological insight necessary for acquiring in-depth holistic understandings of the place-based needs of older adults towards ageing well in the right place. To fully understand the experience of older adults' everyday lives as they age-in-place necessitates a collaborative research approach. Such an approach facilitates the active participation of the community and individuals directly impacted by the housing redevelopment process. This thesis introduces and discusses complexities that surround the housing development process for older adults. It consists of five published papers interlinked by an affordable housing redevelopment project in western Canada. These papers focused on: (1) a necessary progression towards ageing in the right place concepts; (2) the importance of collaborative, narrative and creative methods for developing age-friendly housing; (3) theoretical development of an intersectional place perspective; and, (4) the value of knowledge translation mechanisms to create a pathway towards real world impact. The papers present conceptual, theoretical, and methodological developments and contributions that are guided by a critical, community-based participatory research approach. They discuss the value of a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach for the co-creation of effective place-based housing solutions for older adults. The application of CBPR principles helped shape the selection and implementation of methods as well as informed a new theoretical perspective that bridges place theories in Gerontology together with intersectional feminism.

By 2050, it is estimated that 84% of the population in the Global South will be living in urban areas. As a country of the Global South, Jordan has experienced dramatic growth of urban areas over the past decades. Cities in Jordan contain 83% of the population, of which, it is estimated, 24% are in the age group 15-24. Youth input, effort and experience in the planning process are recognised by academic research and international aid donors as a significant element in catalysing positive social and economic change and ensuring sustainable development across the Global South. Consequently, this research aims to investigate whether young groups' vision and aspirations for, and perspectives on the city of Amman were translated into strategies or projects in urban policy. In doing so, it aims to explore the wide range of institutional challenges and opportunities that either hinder or encourage youth participation in policymaking. To achieve this aim, this study followed the inductive-deductive cycle of knowledge. This research starts with a critical literature review of theories in planning, governance, youth participation and spatial planning in Jordan. Healey's systemic institutional design for collaborative planning was employed to critically analyse the planning system (hard infrastructure) and planning practice (soft infrastructure) within the chosen case study of Amman 2025. Amman 2025 is a significant and unique strategic spatial planning project in Jordan designed to encourage public participation in the policymaking process regarding urban development in Amman. New primary data were collected through extensive qualitative research in the form of semi-structured interviews and focus groups to cover the period from the start of Amman 2025, in 2006, to the conducting of data collection in 2015. With the research objectives in mind, a thematic analysis was conducted to identify salient themes in order to address the research aims. The findings of this study show that youth participation in Jordan is neither inherent in the legal, political and administrative framework of the planning system nor in the embedded institutional settings within the planning practice of Jordan. Most importantly, cultural imperialism in Jordan weakens young people's chances of being considered for any decision-making roles relevant to planning activities. Enhancing youth participation in spatial planning in Jordan requires the institutional capacity of urban governance to be built up to enable a more collaborative planning practice, in addition to applying principles of good governance in the planning system.