Cliff Hague

Cliff is a freelance consultant, researcher, author and trainer. He was the Chair of the Cockburn Association 2016 – 2023.

He is Professor Emeritus of Planning and Spatial Development at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.

He is a Past President of the Royal Town Planning Institute, and of the Commonwealth Association of Planners.

He is a past Chair of Built Environment Forum Scotland.

He was awarded the O.B.E. in the 2016 Birthday Honours.

Books

Some articles fromall categories:

How to save town centres

In smaller towns across the UK and many other countries, the town centres are struggling. Julian Dobson, has a barrowful of ideas of what to do about it. His book How to Save Our Town Centres is the best starting point I know for those who want to combine analysis with action. It is well researched, well-informed and…

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Territories finding a New Momentum

Territories finding a New Momentum: Evidence for Policy Development, Growth and Investment, Third ESPON Synthesis Report (2014) Co-author. https://www.espon.eu/topics-policy/publications/synthesis-reports/third-espon-2013-synthesis-report

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Plaudits and Problems: Planning in the Commonwealth

This blog was first posted on the Planning Resource website on 21 February 2011. It was great to see the Commonwealth Association of Planners given the President’s Special Award at the RTPI Awards ceremony in London recently. Retiring RTPI President Ann Skippers emphasised the work CAP does in supporting planners across the Commonwealth. She invited the audience to imagine…

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A brand-led approach to saving town centres

There is much concern at present about the plight of town centres, especially in small and medium-sized towns. There are many more empty shops as the economic problems hit consumers and businesses. However, there are also structural underlying problems. The growth and convenience of large edge-of-town supermarkets and retail warehouses has badly impacted on businesses based…

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National Planning prioritises Climate and Nature

Scotland’s fourth National Planning Framework puts climate and nature centre-stage.  The Scottish Government is seeking to “transform planning” by putting the twin crises of climate and nature at the heart of the planning system. National Planning Framework 4 is one of the first national-scale planning documents in the world to confront the urgent challenges of climate…

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African politicians don’t grasp importance of cities

Despite the pace of urbanization and the economic importance of cities, many leading politicians in Africa are still focused on rural areas. Reuben Abraham, the head of a leading Indian think tank on urban issues, says that leaders of some developing countries are simply failing to undersand the importance of urbanization. Speaking  in Jakarta at a New…

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“This project will be a good one!”

This blog was first posted in February 2015. Young Eyes is a new IC project. It looks to me like it will be a good one. I was at the kick-off meeting in a cold and misty Warsaw in January. All the partners were there – Jelgava and Rauna from Latvia, our Polish friends from…

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ESPON and the EU’s Territorial Agenda

This blog was first posted on the Planning Resource website on 22 June 2011. Budapest What can local and regional authorities do to speed economic recovery? What kind of actions are needed to make the pattern of development more sustainable? How can we make places more inclusive?  The Territorial Agenda of the European Union 2020 (TA), agreed…

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Informal development, planning and sustainable urbanisation

The third report on The State of African Cities , published in 2014, shows how informal development is a key force in the continent’s urbanisation, yet also poses major dilemmas. The report’s sub-title “Re-imagining sustainable urban transitions” suggests both the need to come up with new answers, but also the elusiveness of solutions. Anybody interested in Africa,…

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