Tim Richardson & Gordon Dabinett Department of Town and Regional Planning

1. Governance and Polycentric Urban Development: the territorial and political translation of spatial ideas Tim Richardson & Gordon Dabinett Department of Town and Regional Planning The University of Sheffield ESPON Scientific Conference, A European Territorial Research Community, October 13-14, 2005, University of Luxembourg

2. approach • using situated analysis to enrich understanding of the impact of European spatial policies • macro-analytical and micro-political perspectives on ‘polycentricity’: • analytical purity of ESPON’s research (determination of ‘polycentricity’ through calculative practices) • moments of translation: embedding of ideas in planning events at different scales (‘polycentricity remains open and contestable’) • how calculative practices play a crucial part in legitimising spatial policy discourses and practices

3. Doncaster Barnsley Rotherham Sheffield South Yorkshire • 1.3 million population • Four urban centres within a high quality environment • Traditional industrial area undergoing restructuring • Objective 1 2001-2006 • No single governance structure

4. Moments of translation:expressions of ‘spatiality’ at successive stages in the preparation of the South Yorkshire Spatial Study • The Study Brief: transfer of a European idea • The consultant’s study: translation through communicative processes • polycentricity as a network of specialised urban economies … complementary and inter-dependent functions… cooperation that achieves mutual benefits. • The five spatial propositions: policy meanings through mapping • South Yorkshire now; monocentric; bi-polar; polycentric; polycentric plus; Dearne-Don axis • The assessment criteria: meaning through policy fit • Spatial objectives • Economic outcomes • Policy changes • The tools and instruments: meaning through classification and hierarchy • The ‘client’s’ decision ; meaning through governance

5. Polycentric development: the Study Brief

6. Mapping of the spatial propositions in the SYSS

7. ESPON’s pure analysis • A top down approach • Relies heavily on measurable populations • Finds tensions between macro/meso and micro scale applications of polycentricity, contrary to ESDP’s expectations • ‘South Yorkshire’ invisible • does not relate well to the actual territorial politics of SY, and does not reflect the existing functional relations between urban centres.

8. FUAs and PIAs:rendering ‘Sheffield’ visible ‘Sheffield’ visible as the 11th most significant Main Potential Polycentric Integration Area (PIA) in Europe, with a combined population of c9.5 million

9. challenges in the implementation of polycentricity at all spatial scales No link between macro/meso analysis and subregional polycentricity

10. the gap From above: the future development of the functional relations between South Yorkshire’s urban centres is irrelevant to the opportunity for ‘Sheffield’ to become a high ranking polycentric territory at the European level From below: macro-scale spatial agendas are not relevant to the search for functional relations between neighbouring cities and urban areas which are the primary focus of territorial politics

11. conclusions • ESPON research identifies conflict between the pursuit of polycentricity at the European level and the ESDP's goal of achieving a balanced polycentric urban system: 'It will be the task of further research to point towards rational trade-offs in this goal conflict‘ • Situated micro-political analysis which engages with construction of spatial meaning through local (and multi-scalar) territorial politics seems useful in addressing this challenge