Urban transformation and socio-spatial reconfiguration are key dynamics shaping contemporary societies. Globalisation has intensified social fragmentation and polarisation, even in European cities with strong welfare regimes (Musterd et al., 2017). Since the mid-1970s, rising social inequality and the weakening capacity of governments to counteract it (Atkinson, 2015) have exacerbated residential segregation. Segregation characteristics vary based on urban histories, economic restructuring, welfare state changes, and housing policies (Musterd, 2020).

Economic inequality and residential segregation in European cities often coincide with gentrification, which reshapes urban environments through real estate investment and public policies promoting urban renewal (Hochstenbach & Musterd, 2018). Gentrification brings middle- and upper-income groups into historically lower-income neighbourhoods, altering housing markets, businesses, and social networks. While it can revitalise local areas of cities by improving infrastructure and services, it often displaces long-term residents, contributing to rising housing costs and reinforcing economic inequalities (Atkinson & Bridge, 2005; Slater, 2009). Beyond its economic impact, gentrification influences social cohesion, patterns of consumption, and access to essential services, including education. The changes in neighbourhood composition that result from gentrification often lead to shifts in local schools, creating tensions between incoming middle-class families and long-standing residents.

The intersection of urban transformation and education policies shapes patterns of school segregation (Bonal & Bellei, 2018). The spatial restructuring of cities affects education in multiple ways: it influences the distribution of schools, reshapes local education markets, reinforces the interplay between residential and school segregation, and modulates the effects of education policies related to school admissions, catchment areas, and enrollment patterns. School segregation is not only a reflection of residential patterns but also a consequence of specific policies and family strategies. Mechanisms such as white flight, in which native middle-class families leave schools with growing numbers of disadvantaged or minority students, and middle-class colonisation of certain public schools contribute to these dynamics. School segregation is further exacerbated by selective admission policies in private and publicly funded private schools, as well as by the strategic use of residential addresses to secure access to high-reputation local schools.

While extensive research has examined these processes in the U.S., the European context presents distinct institutional, policy, and historical configurations that require further investigation (Boterman et al., 2019). European cities, despite their relatively strong welfare states, are experiencing increasing inequalities that affect both residential and school segregation. The interplay between housing markets, educational policies, and family strategies is producing new forms of socio-spatial educational inequality that remain underexplored. This panel will address these issues by bringing together empirical research from different European contexts. Using diverse methodological approaches, the four papers included in the panel will examine processes of urban change, spatial inequalities, and school segregation.

The first paper analyses school segregation in Milan and Oslo, exploring how school choice policies shape segregation patterns in different urban contexts. The second paper investigates the transition from pre-primary to primary education in Sweden, showing how spatial stratification contributes to school segregation. The third examines the segregation of Roma students in the Czech Republic, highlighting the impact of catchment area policies and political attitudes. Finally, the fourth paper focuses on how urban gentrification drives processes of school gentrification in certain areas of Barcelona and examines different patterns of school actors’ responses to these changes.

Beyond diagnosing these challenges, the panel will explore policy interventions and strategies to mitigate educational inequalities in changing urban contexts. This includes assessing the effectiveness of desegregation policies, the role of inclusive urban planning in promoting equitable school access, and the impact of community-driven initiatives in education.

Atkinson, A. (2015). Inequality. What Can Be Done? Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Atkinson, R., & Bridge, G. (Eds.). (2005). Gentrification in a Global Context. London: Routledge. Bonal, X., & Bellei, C. (eds.) (2018). Understanding school segregation: patterns, causes and consequences of spatial inequalities in education. Bloomsbury Publishing. Boterman, W., Musterd, S., Pacchi, C., & Ranci, C. (2019). School segregation in contemporary cities: Socio-spatial dynamics, institutional context and urban outcomes. Urban Studies, 56(15), 3055-3073 Hochstenbach, C., & Musterd, S. (2018). Gentrification and the suburbanization of poverty: changing urban geographies through boom and bust periods. Urban Geography, 39(1), 26–53. Musterd, S. (ed) (2020) Handbook of Urban Segregation. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Musterd, S. Marcińczak, S., van Ham, M. & Tammaru, T. (2017), Socioeconomic segregation in European capital cities. Increasing separation between poor and rich, Urban Geography, 38(7), 1062-1083. Slater, T. (2009). Missing Marcuse: On gentrification and displacement. City, 13(2–3), 292–311. Tammaru, T., S. Marcinczak, M. Van Ham & S. Musterd (2015). Socio-Economic Segregation in European Capital Cities: East meets West. London: Routledge.