Work

A gentrification stage‐model for London? Through the ‘looking Glass ’ of Kensington

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Despite the term ‘gentrification’ being coined in London by the British sociologist Ruth Glass, there has not been an attempt to develop a stage model of gentrification for London, nor any up‐to‐date discussion of the different waves of gentrification there in one academic paper or book. Research on urban gentrification tends to see gentrification as an evolving wave, or set of waves, that change in relation to context and the dynamics of urban change. In this paper we look at the different stages of gentrification that have affected London over time, we do so by looking through the lens of a long gentrified part of inner London—Kensington, part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. After establishing a stage model of gentrification in Kensington, we argue that stage models, like ours, have value in, for example, rethinking past trajectories of gentrification, but that we should be more critical of stage models going forwards.

Source: Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers

DOI: 10.1111/tran.70012

Authors: Loretta Lees, Sharda Rozena

Institutions: Boston University, University of Sheffield

Language: English

Topic: Urban Planning and Governance

Subfield: Urban Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Sustainable cities and communities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,070