diff --git a/pybamm/meshes/meshes.py b/pybamm/meshes/meshes.py
index 933544132..4b144f33a 100644
--- a/pybamm/meshes/meshes.py
+++ b/pybamm/meshes/meshes.py
@@ -72,6 +72,27 @@ class Mesh(dict):
             if domain not in ["negative electrode", "separator", "positive electrode"]:
                 self.domain_order.append(domain)
 
+        # evaluate any expressions in geometry
+        for domain in geometry:
+            for prim_sec_tabs, variables in geometry[domain].items():
+                # process tab information if using 2D current collectors
+                if prim_sec_tabs == "tabs":
+                    for tab, position_size in variables.items():
+                        for position_size, sym in position_size.items():
+                            if isinstance(sym, pybamm.Symbol):
+                                sym_eval = sym.evaluate()
+                                geometry[domain][prim_sec_tabs][tab][
+                                    position_size
+                                ] = sym_eval
+                else:
+                    for spatial_variable, spatial_limits in variables.items():
+                        for lim, sym in spatial_limits.items():
+                            if isinstance(sym, pybamm.Symbol):
+                                sym_eval = sym.evaluate()
+                                geometry[domain][prim_sec_tabs][spatial_variable][
+                                    lim
+                                ] = sym_eval
+
         # Create submeshes
         for domain in geometry:
             # need to pass tab information if primary domian is 2D current collector
diff --git a/pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py b/pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py
index 9b84f2730..115dae34c 100644
--- a/pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py
+++ b/pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py
@@ -178,7 +178,7 @@ class ParameterValues(dict):
 
     def process_geometry(self, geometry):
         """
-        Assign parameter values to a geometry (inplace), *and* evaluate.
+        Assign parameter values to a geometry (inplace).
 
         Parameters
         ----------
@@ -191,17 +191,15 @@ class ParameterValues(dict):
                 if prim_sec_tabs == "tabs":
                     for tab, position_size in variables.items():
                         for position_size, sym in position_size.items():
-                            sym_eval = self.process_symbol(sym).evaluate()
                             geometry[domain][prim_sec_tabs][tab][
                                 position_size
-                            ] = sym_eval
+                            ] = self.process_symbol(sym)
                 else:
                     for spatial_variable, spatial_limits in variables.items():
                         for lim, sym in spatial_limits.items():
-                            sym_eval = self.process_symbol(sym).evaluate()
                             geometry[domain][prim_sec_tabs][spatial_variable][
                                 lim
-                            ] = sym_eval
+                            ] = self.process_symbol(sym)
 
     def process_symbol(self, symbol):
         """Walk through the symbol and replace any Parameter with a Value.

Parameter processing for geometry
**Describe the bug**
In the case where your model has no parameters you still need to define an empty pybamm.ParameterValues() and process the geometry.

**To Reproduce**
Steps to reproduce the behaviour:
1. Go to 'training_workshop/exercise2_solving_a_pde.py'
2. Comment line 53 out
3. Run the code

**Expected behaviour**
I get the following error:
```
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "examples/workshop_exercises/exercise2_solving_a_pde.py", line 58, in <module>
    mesh = pybamm.Mesh(geometry, submesh_types, var_pts)
  File "/home/ferran/PyBaMM/pybamm/meshes/meshes.py", line 87, in __init__
    geometry[domain]["primary"], submesh_pts[domain]
  File "/home/ferran/PyBaMM/pybamm/meshes/submeshes.py", line 49, in __init__
    edges = np.linspace(spatial_lims["min"], spatial_lims["max"], npts + 1)
  File "<__array_function__ internals>", line 6, in linspace
  File "/home/ferran/PyBaMM/env/lib/python3.6/site-packages/numpy/core/function_base.py", line 138, in linspace
    dt = result_type(start, stop, float(num))
  File "<__array_function__ internals>", line 6, in result_type
TypeError: data type not understood

```

diff --git a/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py b/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py
index 4e442ebd7..52fafc776 100644
--- a/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py
+++ b/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py
@@ -7,6 +7,35 @@ import unittest
 
 
 class TestMesh(unittest.TestCase):
+    def test_mesh_creation_no_parameters(self):
+        r = pybamm.SpatialVariable(
+            "r", domain=["negative particle"], coord_sys="spherical polar"
+        )
+
+        geometry = {
+            "negative particle": {
+                "primary": {r: {"min": pybamm.Scalar(0), "max": pybamm.Scalar(1)}}
+            }
+        }
+
+        submesh_types = {"negative particle": pybamm.Uniform1DSubMesh}
+        var_pts = {r: 20}
+        mesh = pybamm.Mesh(geometry, submesh_types, var_pts)
+
+        # create mesh
+        mesh = pybamm.Mesh(geometry, submesh_types, var_pts)
+
+        # check boundary locations
+        self.assertEqual(mesh["negative particle"][0].edges[0], 0)
+        self.assertEqual(mesh["negative particle"][0].edges[-1], 1)
+
+        # check number of edges and nodes
+        self.assertEqual(len(mesh["negative particle"][0].nodes), var_pts[r])
+        self.assertEqual(
+            len(mesh["negative particle"][0].edges),
+            len(mesh["negative particle"][0].nodes) + 1
+        )
+
     def test_mesh_creation(self):
         param = pybamm.ParameterValues(
             base_parameters={
diff --git a/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_scikit_fem_submesh.py b/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_scikit_fem_submesh.py
index 73c4e7041..540cdac9b 100644
--- a/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_scikit_fem_submesh.py
+++ b/tests/unit/test_meshes/test_scikit_fem_submesh.py
@@ -76,7 +76,8 @@ class TestScikitFiniteElement2DSubMesh(unittest.TestCase):
 
         var = pybamm.standard_spatial_vars
         var_pts = {var.x_n: 10, var.x_s: 10, var.x_p: 10, var.y: 10, var.z: 10}
-        with self.assertRaises(TypeError):
+        # there are parameters in the variables that need to be processed
+        with self.assertRaises(NotImplementedError):
             pybamm.Mesh(geometry, submesh_types, var_pts)
 
         lims = {var.x_n: {"min": pybamm.Scalar(0), "max": pybamm.Scalar(1)}}

pip install -e .[dev,docs]
parse_log_pytest
requirements.txt
flake8 pytest
apt-get update apt-get install -y gcc gfortran libopenblas-dev liblapack-dev
3.9
requirements/base.txt
pytest --no-header -rA --tb=line --color=no -p no:cacheprovider -W ignore::DeprecationWarning
alabaster==0.7.16
anyio==4.9.0
anytree==2.12.1
argon2-cffi==23.1.0
argon2-cffi-bindings==21.2.0
arrow==1.3.0
asttokens==3.0.0
async-lru==2.0.5
attrs==25.3.0
autograd==1.7.0
babel==2.17.0
beautifulsoup4==4.13.3
bleach==6.2.0
certifi==2025.1.31
cffi==1.17.1
charset-normalizer==3.4.1
comm==0.2.2
contourpy==1.3.0
cycler==0.12.1
debugpy==1.8.13
decorator==5.2.1
defusedxml==0.7.1
docutils==0.21.2
exceptiongroup==1.2.2
executing==2.2.0
fastjsonschema==2.21.1
flake8==7.2.0
fonttools==4.56.0
fqdn==1.5.1
guzzle_sphinx_theme==0.7.11
h11==0.14.0
httpcore==1.0.7
httpx==0.28.1
idna==3.10
imagesize==1.4.1
importlib_metadata==8.6.1
importlib_resources==6.5.2
iniconfig==2.1.0
ipykernel==6.29.5
ipython==8.18.1
ipywidgets==8.1.5
isoduration==20.11.0
jedi==0.19.2
Jinja2==3.1.6
json5==0.10.0
jsonpointer==3.0.0
jsonschema==4.23.0
jsonschema-specifications==2024.10.1
jupyter==1.1.1
jupyter-console==6.6.3
jupyter-events==0.12.0
jupyter-lsp==2.2.5
jupyter_client==8.6.3
jupyter_core==5.7.2
jupyter_server==2.15.0
jupyter_server_terminals==0.5.3
jupyterlab==4.3.6
jupyterlab_pygments==0.3.0
jupyterlab_server==2.27.3
jupyterlab_widgets==3.0.13
kiwisolver==1.4.7
MarkupSafe==3.0.2
matplotlib==3.9.4
matplotlib-inline==0.1.7
mccabe==0.7.0
mistune==3.1.3
nbclient==0.10.2
nbconvert==7.16.6
nbformat==5.10.4
nest-asyncio==1.6.0
notebook==7.3.3
notebook_shim==0.2.4
numpy==2.0.2
overrides==7.7.0
packaging==24.2
pandas==2.2.3
pandocfilters==1.5.1
parso==0.8.4
pexpect==4.9.0
pillow==11.1.0
platformdirs==4.3.7
pluggy==1.5.0
prometheus_client==0.21.1
prompt_toolkit==3.0.50
psutil==7.0.0
ptyprocess==0.7.0
pure_eval==0.2.3
-e git+https://github.com/pybamm-team/PyBaMM.git@455f2ebd928d597d51740b41e4f37eb7aeca7253#egg=pybamm
pycodestyle==2.13.0
pycparser==2.22
pyflakes==3.3.1
Pygments==2.19.1
pyparsing==3.2.3
pytest==8.3.5
python-dateutil==2.9.0.post0
python-json-logger==3.3.0
pytz==2025.2
PyYAML==6.0.2
pyzmq==26.3.0
referencing==0.36.2
requests==2.32.3
rfc3339-validator==0.1.4
rfc3986-validator==0.1.1
rpds-py==0.24.0
scipy==1.13.1
Send2Trash==1.8.3
six==1.17.0
sniffio==1.3.1
snowballstemmer==2.2.0
soupsieve==2.6
Sphinx==7.4.7
sphinxcontrib-applehelp==2.0.0
sphinxcontrib-devhelp==2.0.0
sphinxcontrib-htmlhelp==2.1.0
sphinxcontrib-jsmath==1.0.1
sphinxcontrib-qthelp==2.0.0
sphinxcontrib-serializinghtml==2.0.0
stack-data==0.6.3
terminado==0.18.1
tinycss2==1.4.0
tomli==2.2.1
tornado==6.4.2
traitlets==5.14.3
types-python-dateutil==2.9.0.20241206
typing_extensions==4.13.0
tzdata==2025.2
uri-template==1.3.0
urllib3==2.3.0
wcwidth==0.2.13
webcolors==24.11.1
webencodings==0.5.1
websocket-client==1.8.0
widgetsnbextension==4.0.13
zipp==3.21.0

name: PyBaMM
channels:
  - defaults
  - https://repo.anaconda.com/pkgs/main
  - https://repo.anaconda.com/pkgs/r
  - conda-forge
dependencies:
  - _libgcc_mutex=0.1=main
  - _openmp_mutex=5.1=1_gnu
  - ca-certificates=2025.2.25=h06a4308_0
  - ld_impl_linux-64=2.40=h12ee557_0
  - libffi=3.4.4=h6a678d5_1
  - libgcc-ng=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - libgomp=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - libstdcxx-ng=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - ncurses=6.4=h6a678d5_0
  - openssl=3.0.16=h5eee18b_0
  - pip=25.0=py39h06a4308_0
  - python=3.9.21=he870216_1
  - readline=8.2=h5eee18b_0
  - setuptools=75.8.0=py39h06a4308_0
  - sqlite=3.45.3=h5eee18b_0
  - tk=8.6.14=h39e8969_0
  - wheel=0.45.1=py39h06a4308_0
  - xz=5.6.4=h5eee18b_1
  - zlib=1.2.13=h5eee18b_1
  - pip:
      - alabaster==0.7.16
      - anyio==4.9.0
      - anytree==2.12.1
      - argon2-cffi==23.1.0
      - argon2-cffi-bindings==21.2.0
      - arrow==1.3.0
      - asttokens==3.0.0
      - async-lru==2.0.5
      - attrs==25.3.0
      - autograd==1.7.0
      - babel==2.17.0
      - beautifulsoup4==4.13.3
      - bleach==6.2.0
      - certifi==2025.1.31
      - cffi==1.17.1
      - charset-normalizer==3.4.1
      - comm==0.2.2
      - contourpy==1.3.0
      - cycler==0.12.1
      - debugpy==1.8.13
      - decorator==5.2.1
      - defusedxml==0.7.1
      - docutils==0.21.2
      - exceptiongroup==1.2.2
      - executing==2.2.0
      - fastjsonschema==2.21.1
      - flake8==7.2.0
      - fonttools==4.56.0
      - fqdn==1.5.1
      - guzzle-sphinx-theme==0.7.11
      - h11==0.14.0
      - httpcore==1.0.7
      - httpx==0.28.1
      - idna==3.10
      - imagesize==1.4.1
      - importlib-metadata==8.6.1
      - importlib-resources==6.5.2
      - iniconfig==2.1.0
      - ipykernel==6.29.5
      - ipython==8.18.1
      - ipywidgets==8.1.5
      - isoduration==20.11.0
      - jedi==0.19.2
      - jinja2==3.1.6
      - json5==0.10.0
      - jsonpointer==3.0.0
      - jsonschema==4.23.0
      - jsonschema-specifications==2024.10.1
      - jupyter==1.1.1
      - jupyter-client==8.6.3
      - jupyter-console==6.6.3
      - jupyter-core==5.7.2
      - jupyter-events==0.12.0
      - jupyter-lsp==2.2.5
      - jupyter-server==2.15.0
      - jupyter-server-terminals==0.5.3
      - jupyterlab==4.3.6
      - jupyterlab-pygments==0.3.0
      - jupyterlab-server==2.27.3
      - jupyterlab-widgets==3.0.13
      - kiwisolver==1.4.7
      - markupsafe==3.0.2
      - matplotlib==3.9.4
      - matplotlib-inline==0.1.7
      - mccabe==0.7.0
      - mistune==3.1.3
      - nbclient==0.10.2
      - nbconvert==7.16.6
      - nbformat==5.10.4
      - nest-asyncio==1.6.0
      - notebook==7.3.3
      - notebook-shim==0.2.4
      - numpy==2.0.2
      - overrides==7.7.0
      - packaging==24.2
      - pandas==2.2.3
      - pandocfilters==1.5.1
      - parso==0.8.4
      - pexpect==4.9.0
      - pillow==11.1.0
      - platformdirs==4.3.7
      - pluggy==1.5.0
      - prometheus-client==0.21.1
      - prompt-toolkit==3.0.50
      - psutil==7.0.0
      - ptyprocess==0.7.0
      - pure-eval==0.2.3
      - pycodestyle==2.13.0
      - pycparser==2.22
      - pyflakes==3.3.1
      - pygments==2.19.1
      - pyparsing==3.2.3
      - pytest==8.3.5
      - python-dateutil==2.9.0.post0
      - python-json-logger==3.3.0
      - pytz==2025.2
      - pyyaml==6.0.2
      - pyzmq==26.3.0
      - referencing==0.36.2
      - requests==2.32.3
      - rfc3339-validator==0.1.4
      - rfc3986-validator==0.1.1
      - rpds-py==0.24.0
      - scipy==1.13.1
      - send2trash==1.8.3
      - six==1.17.0
      - sniffio==1.3.1
      - snowballstemmer==2.2.0
      - soupsieve==2.6
      - sphinx==7.4.7
      - sphinxcontrib-applehelp==2.0.0
      - sphinxcontrib-devhelp==2.0.0
      - sphinxcontrib-htmlhelp==2.1.0
      - sphinxcontrib-jsmath==1.0.1
      - sphinxcontrib-qthelp==2.0.0
      - sphinxcontrib-serializinghtml==2.0.0
      - stack-data==0.6.3
      - terminado==0.18.1
      - tinycss2==1.4.0
      - tomli==2.2.1
      - tornado==6.4.2
      - traitlets==5.14.3
      - types-python-dateutil==2.9.0.20241206
      - typing-extensions==4.13.0
      - tzdata==2025.2
      - uri-template==1.3.0
      - urllib3==2.3.0
      - wcwidth==0.2.13
      - webcolors==24.11.1
      - webencodings==0.5.1
      - websocket-client==1.8.0
      - widgetsnbextension==4.0.13
      - zipp==3.21.0
prefix: /opt/conda/envs/PyBaMM

tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_mesh_creation_no_parameters
tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_combine_submeshes tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_ghost_cells tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_init_failure tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_mesh_coord_sys tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_mesh_creation tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_mesh_sizes tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_multiple_meshes tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_multiple_meshes_macro tests/unit/test_meshes/test_meshes.py::TestMesh::test_unimplemented_meshes
pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py pybamm/meshes/meshes.py
pybamm/parameters/parameter_values.py pybamm/meshes/meshes.py