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Sheffield 3D Model

Make smarter design and planning choices with Sheffield’s digital twin

Explore, plan, analyse and present your work on a survey-accurate 3D model of Sheffield, including approved and under-construction buildings. Use rich data layers to assess site potential, spot constraints early and reduce project risk, all in one digital twin your whole team can work in.

Trusted by Sheffield City Council. Built for built environment professionals, from architects and planners to developers and asset managers.

  • 38 sq km
    MODELLED TO 15CM ACCURACY
  • 111
    Consents approved
  • 192,264
    TREES, ACCURATE HEIGHT AND CANOPY

See Sheffield's past, present & future in VU.CITY

Sheffield consented timeline 2026 shown in VU.CITY Sheffield in 2016 Sheffield in 2026

Models. Data. Tools. All in one platform.

Oxford Carfax Accuracy

We provide the most accurate and detailed managed city models available. ±15cm for all buildings, trees and terrain.

Developments + data

Our public data is available to all users. You can also import your own, private data for your projects. Visualise, analyse and filter large-scale data sets with ease.

3D draw

Test and iterate ideas in survey-accurate context. Draw in 2D and 3D. Mark up plans and create maps with stakeholder-ready visual quality.

VU.CITY ZTV Analysis-1

Generate ZTV studies and viewsheds in just a few clicks. See sunlight paths and overshadowing instantly.

Visualise Real Estate assets and their views out in 4D

Create guided tours and presentations, export high quality imagery and share files with stakeholders for seamless collaboration and feedback.

GeometrySurvey-grade 3D city models
DataA public data library
Design toolsDraw, measure, annotate
Analysis toolsVisibility, sunlight and more
Presentation toolsTell your story, your way

Government-trusted Sheffield coverage

From the city centre to Attercliffe and beyond, our Sheffield 3D model is mapped to 15cm accuracy.

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Sheffield data layers for contextual viability

From transportation and zoning to environmental factors, the data layers in VU.CITY’s Sheffield 3D model provide essential insights for more informed and confident decision-making.

Administrative Boundaries

  • Certificate of Immunity polygons

  • Local Authority Districts

Amenities & Services

  • Educational Establishments

  • GP Practices

  • Locally Important Buildings

  • Retail Boundaries

  • Supermarkets

Demographics & Economy

  • Average annual income

  • Deprivation index

  • House prices

Environmental

  • Air Quality Management Areas

  • Ancient Woodland

  • Flood Risk Areas

  • Recorded Flood Outlines

  • Spatial Flood Defences

  • Local Nature Reserves

  • Rail Noise

  • Sites of Special Scientific Interest 

Green Spaces & Open Areas

  • Open green spaces

  • Parks and garden

Heritage & Conservation

  • Certificate of Immunity points

  • Conservation Areas

  • Designated sites

  • Heritage at risk

  • Listed Building points

  • Listed Buildings polygons

  • Scheduled Monuments

Local Plan Sheffield

  • Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District

  • Area suitable for purpose-built student accommodation

  • Brownfield areas

  • Catalyst Site

  • Central area neighbourhood

  • CIL residential

  • City centre

  • Clean Air Zone

  • Connecting Sheffield

  • Gateway route

  • Green Belt addition

  • Greenbelt

  • Historic park, garden or cemetery

  • Local geological site

  • Local green space

  • Local wildlife site

  • LPA

  • Mass transit corridor

  • Neighbourhood planning areas

  • Night-time quiet area

  • Olympic Legacy Park

  • Parks and countryside sites

  • Policy zone

  • Priority location

  • Safeguarded for flood storage

  • Safeguarded route for the Innovation Corridor

  • Site allocation

  • Strategic road

  • Strategic route for heavy goods vehicles

  • Sub-area

  • Supertram route

  • Supertram stop

  • TPO points

  • TPO polygons

  • Waterway line

Planning & Development

  • Green Belt

  • Developments

Transport & Accessibility

  • Cycle Network

Hover over each card to see more

Explore VU.CITY's tools

VU.CITY-icon-Sheffield-light

VU.CITY Sheffield is the largest and most accurate interactive 3D model available for the famous Outdoor City.

Sheffield is thriving and growing into a modern, 21st-century city for people to live in and businesses to succeed. Sheffield City Council has played a key role in flagship projects that have changed the city’s image over the last decade, including Heart of the City, The Moor and Castlegate, as well as major infrastructure such as the Lower Don Valley Flood Defence Scheme. Significant investment is also coming from Sheffield’s universities and global industry leaders such as Boeing and McLaren.

As the major city at the heart of a wider city region, Sheffield is one of the main drivers of economic growth in the north of England. The Sheffield Plan will guide the future of the city, setting out how and where development will take place up to 2038, with around 40,000 new homes planned to support a growing population.

The Sheffield Plan covers the whole of the Sheffield City Council area, except the part within the Peak District National Park, and respects the city’s natural environment, identity and heritage. Because VU.CITY lets everyone see proposals clearly, it makes agreement more likely at every stage, from public consultation through to planning committee.

Sheffield’s next chapter

Investment in Sheffield is at an all-time high, and major regeneration is reshaping the city centre. The £470 million Heart of the City scheme has transformed the south side of the centre. West Bar, a £300 million mixed-use quarter between Kelham Island and Castlegate, is bringing new offices and homes. Castlegate, the birthplace of Sheffield, is becoming a new riverside park and a core part of the city’s Innovation District.

Understanding the potential of every new scheme and reducing its risk has never mattered more. With VU.CITY Sheffield, you can see approved and under-construction schemes in context and test how your own plans will sit alongside them. The more everyone involved can collaborate, the lower the risks.

Built environment professionals, from architects and planners to developers and asset managers, use VU.CITY Sheffield to understand a site’s opportunities and challenges, test designs in context, strengthen pre-app conversations and planning submissions, and improve how everyone involved collaborates.

VU.CITY Sheffield FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about VU.CITY's Sheffield 3D Digital Twin and Model.

How can the VU.CITY Sheffield model support the city’s regeneration efforts?

VU.CITY Sheffield lets you visualise and assess projects in key regeneration areas, such as Heart of the City, West Bar and Castlegate. You can see how new developments will affect Sheffield’s urban landscape and test your plans against approved schemes.

Can the Sheffield 3D model help evaluate design and massing options early in the planning process?

Yes. VU.CITY Sheffield lets you import or draw massing options and test them in survey-accurate context, checking height, views, daylight and sunlight before you commit to a design.

How does the VU.CITY Sheffield model improve stakeholder engagement and public consultation?

VU.CITY Sheffield creates interactive tours and high-quality imagery that make proposals easy for anyone to understand. That helps residents, councillors and planning committees see a scheme’s impact and benefits clearly.

What environmental and heritage data layers are included in the Sheffield model?

The Sheffield 3D model includes data layers covering heritage and conservation, environment, green spaces, planning and development, and the Sheffield Local Plan. You can also bring in your own data and view it alongside ours.

Who benefits from using the VU.CITY Sheffield model?

VU.CITY Sheffield is built for built environment professionals, from architects and planners to developers, local authorities, asset managers and real estate teams working across Sheffield.

Explore digital 3D geospatial solutions for the built environment

VU.CITY provides clear, powerful tools for key decision-makers across the built environment, helping them visualise and shape the future of cities with confidence and precision.

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