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Damilola Akinniyi

DAMILOLA AKINNIYI

DAMILOLA AKINNIYI

Free course

Desk Study: from zero to your first report

Learn how to research a site before anyone digs, the way it is done on real projects. Step by step, in plain language, with one example site that we build a full desk study for together.

8 lessonsAbout 4 hoursFree, sign up with your emailBeginner friendlyUK practice, with guidance for other countries
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By the end of the course

You will be able to write a desk study yourself

  1. Explain what a desk study is, why it is done and what it covers.
  2. Find the information a desk study needs, mostly from free UK sources, and explain what it means for a site.
  3. Plan a site walkover, carry it out safely and record what you see.
  4. Bring your findings together into a clear desk study report.

Who it is for

No degree needed. Just curiosity about the ground.

Starting out

Graduates, apprentices, technicians and students who want to know how a desk study is really done in industry.

Changing direction

Career changers and self-learners moving into engineering, environmental or property work.

Working around it

Developers, planners and project managers who commission desk studies and want to read them with confidence.

Building a business

Anyone thinking of offering desk studies as a service. A well-written desk study is valuable work in its own right.

Outside the UK

The course uses UK practice as its main example, because it is well documented. Every lesson also shows how to find the same information wherever you are, and what to do when records are thin. The questions a desk study asks are the same everywhere.

Why this course

Built from the lecture room and the project office

DA

I am Damilola Akinniyi, a geotechnical engineer and educator. I have taught geotechnical engineering at university, including as Head of Geotechnics at Coventry University, and I have worked on engineering projects in consultancy in Hong Kong and the UK. In practice, I have written and reviewed desk studies alongside the design of several infrastructure projects.

This course brings both worlds together: how desk studies are taught well, and how they are used on real projects. You get the reasons behind each step, not just a list of documents.

PhD, Geotechnical EngineeringFellow of the Higher Education AcademyUniversity teachingDesk studies written and reviewed in practice

How every lesson works

Same rhythm, every time

You always know where you are. Each lesson has one to three clear outcomes and moves through the same steps:

You will learnWhy it mattersThe idea, in plain wordsOn our siteYour turnQuick checkKey points

One fictional site runs through the whole course. Each lesson adds a section to its desk study, so by the end you have watched a full report come together, and filled in your own template alongside it.

Wherever the lesson uses a UK example, a Wherever you are box shows how the same step works in other countries.

And every lesson has From practice tips: what experienced reviewers look for, and the mistakes that cost real projects time and money.

The course

Eight lessons, one report

  • 1
    What a desk study is, and why it mattersAbout 20 minutes
    Start →
  • 2
    Why there are so many documentsThe four layers every country has: law, policy, standards and guidance. The UK is the worked example
    Start →
  • 3
    Site history: what the land used to beOld maps, aerial photos and past uses
    Start →
  • 4
    Ground and waterGeology, groundwater and flooding
    Start →
  • 5
    Constraints and hidden hazardsHeritage, ecology, landfill, mining, radon, unexploded bombs, buried services, and hazards found around the world
    Start →
  • 6
    The site walkoverPlan it, stay safe, record what you see, and what to do when records are missing
    Start →
  • 7
    Making sense of itThe conceptual site model and ranking risks
    Start →
  • 8
    Writing the reportStructure, clear writing and recommendations
    Start →
  • ★
    Final assessment: your own desk studyWrite a desk study for a new fictional site from a data pack. Free to do, and you can check it yourself against the marking scheme.
    Open →

This course reflects my own experience and general UK practice. It is independent of any employer or client, and all examples are fictional.