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Welcome to east London

East London is the fastest changing urban location in the UK. Change is evident in the soaring office blocks at Canary Wharf, the gentrification of Brick Lane and the sweeping developments around Stratford. The years since the 2012 Olympics have seen rapid change.

For geographers this is a great place to investigate urban themes – regeneration, gentrification, population change, inequality, urban responses to the climate crisis, sustainable living, impacts of new transport infrastructure and other contemporary geographical trends.

East London is home to some of Britain’s most diverse and most deprived communities. Now, in their midst are some of the biggest regeneration projects – Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Westfield Shopping Centre, the International Quarter, East Bank and Crossrail – all part of the jigsaw of a rapidly changing socio-economic landscape.

These places present great opportunities for inspirational geographical fieldwork. Geography teachers use urban fieldwork to bring the classroom to life, for data collection and to deepen students’ understanding and experience. Many questions can be investigated:

How has east London been regenerated? Has it been successful?
Has regeneration benefitted everyone? If not, who are the winners and losers?
What is gentrification? Who does it benefit?
Did the 2012 Olympics leave a green and healthy legacy?
Is East Village (former Athletes’ Village) a model for sustainable urban living?

About us

UGEL is a co-operative of highly experienced local geography teachers. We offer a range of one-day fieldwork programmes from KS3 to KS5, including GCSE and A-Level. If you prefer a bespoke programme, we can design one to meet your requirements. We also offer coastal fieldwork in Essex.

We provide all learning resources for students, together with our unparalleled expertise.
We aim to give an excellent, but affordable, experience for students and staff. We do not charge a deposit and we only invoice on completion.

We have been bringing students to east London with UGEL for over ten years. The team of teachers are hugely knowledgeable and their passion for fieldwork means the students leave with a deep understanding of urban processes.

Richard Bustin

Head of Geography at Lancing College and Editor of Teaching Geography

Our pupils have learnt a lot from your expert knowledge and enthusiasm. Getting to see all the things that they have been studying and practice their fieldwork skills was great.

Mark Spalton

Holme Grange School