PhD Studentship: CDA - The Development of a Gayborhood in Post-war London: Mapping Soho and its Archives

One Collaborative Doctoral Award funded by the AHRC Landscape Hub at the University of Westminster, consisting of a fee waiver and stipend. 

The University of Westminster is delighted to invite applications for a Collaborative Doctoral Award as part of the University’s AHRC Doctoral Landscape Award.

The AHRC Doctoral Landscape Award is a major new funding scheme from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). Its aim is to grow the UK’s capacity for doctoral research in the arts and humanities and to create a vibrant, inclusive research culture.

For 2026 entry, the Collaborative Doctoral Award (CDAs) is detailed below.

Application deadline: 10 July 2026

Application process

Applications are submitted via the same online system as self-funded doctoral programmes.

Applicants must clearly state the name of the CDA in their application form, after which Project teams will review and shortlist applications for interview. Applications must include a personal statement and a research proposal which sets out the applicant’s vision for the project.

What does a Landscape Award Include?

Landscape Awards include:

• Home fee tuition fee waiver (International students will be responsible for the difference between the Home fee waiver and the International fee).
• A 3.5 year tax-free stipend at the UKRI minimum rate, plus London weighting (£22,780 per annum for 2025/26) (for CDA projects the duration is 4 years).
• Access to professional development opportunities, placements, additional funding and the London and the East of England Hub.

CDA - The Development of a Gayborhood in post-war London: Mapping Soho and its archives

In the literature on gayborhoods the development of gay and queer businesses is often missing. How these become established, grow and survive remains to be documented. This project aims to provide the first detailed mapping of the history of queer businesses through a case study of Soho. In addition to using existing material in the Westminster City Archives and elsewhere, it will also seek to collect additional archival material. It will thereby add materially to our understanding of how gayborhoods like Soho have developed and make a groundbreaking contribution by providing the first detailed analysis of LGBTQ+ business history.

International applicants may apply; however, only a successful home applicant would be able to start in September 2026.

If an overseas applicant were selected, the start date would be January 2027

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