Dr Jenny Preece

School of Geography and Planning

Lecturer

Jenny Preece profile photo
Profile picture of Jenny Preece profile photo
jenny.preece@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 8130
Interdisciplinary Centre of the Social Sciences (ICOSS)

Full contact details

Dr Jenny Preece
School of Geography and Planning
Interdisciplinary Centre of the Social Sciences (ICOSS)
219 Portobello
Sheffield
S1 4DP
Profile

I joined the department as a researcher in 2017, working with the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence, an interdisciplinary research centre working on contemporary housing problems.

My PhD was in people's experiences of post-industrial neighbourhoods, which I completed at the Centre for Regional, Economic and Social Research at Sheffield Hallam University. Prior to my PhD I worked for several years in policy and research roles in the social housing sector in London. My undergraduate degree was in history, after which I completed a masters in public policy - then I moved into working directly in housing policy and practice...and this interest in housing policy has never left me!

I have carried out lots of different research projects in my time in USP, sometimes working in partnership with academic colleagues at other universities, and at other times in collaboration with non-academic organisations such as Mind Cymru and the Centre for Ageing Better.

I am a member of the International Editorial Advisory Board for Housing Studies journal and a peer reviewer for a range of journals in the field of housing and urban studies. I am also a Co-Investigator for the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence (CaCHE).

Research interests

My research focuses on understanding housing choices and aspirations, particularly in changing contexts and with relevance to issues of constraint and exclusion. I am interested in people's lived experiences of home, and how people experience change, whether in the dwelling itself or the wider neighbourhood. In the last few years my research has focused on understanding the lived experience of the building safety crisis or ‘cladding scandal’, working with leaseholders in England who are living with significant fire safety defects. I have worked to increase the impact of this work by carrying out additional research into, for example, people's experiences of living through building remediation.

Publications

Journal articles

  • Born TB, Preece J & Robinson D (2025) . Housing, Theory and Society.
  • Preece J (2025) . Urban Studies.
  • Preece J (2025) . International Journal of Housing Policy.
  • Hincks S, Leishman C, Pham H & Preece J (2024) . Environment and Planning B.
  • Preece J (2024) . Housing Studies, 39(2), 584-586.
  • Preece J & Flint J (2024) . International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 48(1), 94-110.
  • Preece J, Flint J & Robinson D (2024) . Housing Studies, 39(12), 3117-3137.
  • Preece J, McKee K, Robinson D & Flint J (2023) . Urban Studies, 60(9), 1650-1667.
  • Preece J, McKee K, Flint J & Robinson D (2021) . Housing Studies, 38(10), 1824-1844.
  • Preece J & Levy RA (2020) . Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 20(4), 631-654.
  • Preece J, Garratt E & Flaherty J (2020) . Geoforum, 116, 140-148.
  • Preece J (2020) . Urban Studies, 57(4), 827-843.
  • Preece J (2020) Whose Housing Crisis? Assets and Homes in a Changing Economy. TOWN PLANNING REVIEW, 91(1), 94-97.
  • Preece J (2020) Housing in the United Kingdom: Whose Crisis?. TOWN PLANNING REVIEW, 91(1), 94-97.
  • DEMBSKI S & PREECE J (2020) . Town Planning Review, 91(1), 93-97.
  • Preece J, Hickman P & Pattison B (2019) . Housing Studies, 35(7), 1214-1238.
  • Soaita AM, Serin B & Preece J (2019) . The International Journal of Housing Policy, 20(3), 320-343.
  • Preece J, Crawford J, McKee K, Flint J & Robinson D (2019) . Housing Studies, 35(1), 87-106.
  • Hall M, Levy R & Preece J (2018) . Journal of Early Childhood Research, 16(4), 363-377.
  • Preece J (2018) . Critical Social Policy, 38(4), 794-795.
  • Levy RA, Hall M & Preece J (2018) . International Journal of Educational Psychology, 7(2), 123-150.
  • Preece JF (2018) . Urban Studies, 55(8), 1783-1799.
  • Preece J (2015) . Housing Studies, 30(4), 645-646.
  • Preece J (2012) . Sociological Research Online, 17(3), 269-270.

Book chapters

  • Robinson D, Williams R & Preece J (2024) Ethnic inequalities in housing: exploring the policy response In Stephens M, Perry J, Williams P & Young G (Ed.), 2024 UK Housing Review (pp. 23-34). Coventry: Chartered Institute of Housing.

Book reviews

  • Preece J (2012) Fitting into place?. Sociological Research Online, 17(3).

Reports

  • Gilbertson J, Harris C, Pearson S, Smith R, Wilson I, Marshall M, Preece J, Robinson D, Brown J, McGregor S , Roberts G et al (2025) Home improvement services in England: National Evaluation
  • Preece J (2024) Emotions, policy and collective action in housing safety crises
  • Robinson D, Preece J & Robbins G (2022) Race equality in housing: a review of the policy approach in England, Scotland and Wales
  • Gibb K, Moore T, Preece J, Hoolachan J, Boyle J & Munro M (2022) Research on purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) and student housing in Scotland
  • Preece J (2022) Learning from experiences of remediation in the building safety crisis
  • Preece J (2021) Living through the building safety crisis: Impacts on the mental wellbeing of leaseholders
  • Gibb K, Frey J, Leishman C, Preece J & Buchanan J (2021) Establishing an evidence base for the development of a viable intermediate rent model for the Northern Ireland housing market
  • Robinson D, Preece J, Young G & Gibb K (2021) Past, present and future: Housing policy and poor-quality homes
  • Preece J, Bimpson E, Robinson D, McKee K & Flint J (2020) Forms and mechanisms of exclusion in contemporary housing systems : a scoping study
  • Hickman P & Preece J (2019) Understanding social housing landlords’ approaches to tenant participation: Scoping study
  • Preece J (2019) Understanding the approaches to tenant participation in social housing: an evidence review
  • Preece J & Bimpson E (2019) Forms and mechanisms of exclusion in contemporary housing systems: an evidence review
  • Preece J & Bimpson E (2019) Housing insecurity and mental health in Wales: an evidence review
  • Hickman P, Pattison B & Preece J (2018) The impact of welfare reforms on housing associations A scoping study
  • Preece J (2018) The impact of welfare and tenancy reforms on housing associations: An evidence review
  • Preece J (2017) Understanding housing aspirations and choices in changing contexts: A mapping review
Teaching interests

I use my research to inform my teaching practice, particularly specialising in the teaching of contemporary housing issues. I am interested in the applied, policy applications of research, and methodologically I focus on teaching qualitative approaches.

Teaching activities

TRP108

TRP130

TRP335

TRP6211

UG and PGT dissertation supervision

PGR supervision

L1 Personal Tutor

Links