Future of London

Thanks to the organisations, managers and mentors who enabled this talented group to launch their careers. Could you help the next cohort? We’re looking for employers to host placements for the next intake of our Emerging Talent Programme, which attracts people from diverse backgrounds into the built environment sector Now in its third year, 80% of graduates have found full-time jobs in the sector – about half with host employers. You could recruit a graduate after they have completed their placements. Employer benefits include: • Handling the whole recruitment process • Supporting the placement with mentors and training days • Helping your managers develop EDI expertise To find out more, contact Andrea Gordon, FCIPD or Karen Jefford CMgr FCMI and join the growing number of organisations who have supported the programme: Altair | Arup | Barnet Council | BOUYGUES UK | @London Borough of Camden | Campbell Tickell | DP9 Limited | Enfield Council | Greater London Authority | Haringey Council | Hill Group UK | London Borough of Hounslow | Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea | London Borough of Lambeth | L&Q | Metropolitan Thames Valley | Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) | Quod | Sanctuary Housing Association Southern Housing | Socius | Southwark Council | London Borough of Waltham Forest | Westminster City Council | Yoo Capital Thanks to our current mentors and line managers Guin D. | Amma Coleman-Green | Maya Davies | Mary-Helen Young | Sarah Atkinson | Fabrizio Stefanoni | Ludovic P. | Hassan Ahmed Aanika Khan | Hannah Settle | Tristan Dewhurst MRICS MRTPI | Manon Smits | Elaine Ambrose CIHM CMgr MCMI | Jessica Tsang

🚨 The UK Procurement Act 2023 comes into force today, shining a light on the need for more inclusive procurement in urban design and placemaking. At our recent event with LHC Procurement Group, we explored how the industry and public sector can rethink procurement to deliver better, more representative built environments. The new Act introduces measures to open opportunities, simplify processes and enhance transparency — but a cultural shift is just as critical. Procurement isn’t just about getting things done — it’s about who we are designing for. Our event highlighted eight key steps for the public sector to reframe procurement for greater impact: ✅ Know your community ✅ Avoid tokenism ✅ Be flexible ✅ Build capacity among smaller firms ✅ Involve procurement teams earlier ✅ Involve young people ✅ Collect and analyse data ✅ Champion diverse suppliers A more inclusive approach can lead to urban spaces that truly reflect the communities they serve. Now is the time to embrace this shift and make procurement work for all. Find out more via the link in the comments below. 💡 Which of these steps do you think will have the biggest impact? Let’s discuss! 👇 #ProcurementAct #DiversityInDesign #InclusiveGrowth Thanks to Ethan James, Shona Snow MCIPS Chartered, Paul Smith and Farah Malik at LHC for their support and partnership on this project. Hannah Gibbs Sarah Yates

We're supporting the 1.5M New Homes campaign and our CEO Nicola Mathers is speaking at their webinar on growth plans in Hounslow. The webinar considers the choice between redeveloping life-expired buildings or retrofitting in the context of community needs, environmental imperatives and financial constraints. Thanks to 1.5M New Homes campaign founder Toby Fox for making this happen. We're looking forward to the debate with Peter O’ Brien, director of regeneration and growth at London Borough of Hounslow, along with Tom Conlon of Red Loft and Matt Griffiths-Rimmer of Hadley Property Group. Register for the webinar on 28 February at 12.30pm via the link in the comments below. #FutureOfLondon #1p5mnewhomes #hounslow

Engagement consultancy ECF works with clients who want to involve communities in development, so they're expecting more public sector opportunities. But it won't be plain sailing. “Contentious sites are going to have to be brought forward, either greenbelt or town centre intensification,” explains MD Oliver Deed. “The skill will be in curating campaigns that reach beyond the noise.” The ECF story started in Australia in 2017 when Oliver spent a year working for his now business partner, Kathy Jones. Working in Australia was clearly a formative experience for him. “It was more genuine with a desire to get people involved in the process earlier,” he says. “In the UK, I found that community engagement had been quite a transactional process.” After launching ECF in 2018, they were determined to do things differently and decided to focus on the public sector. Recent ECF projects include Hartree, a “new urban quarter” in Cambridge by LandsecU+I and TOWN. He also highlights ECF’s work on the long-running Let’s Talk Enfield engagement project for Enfield Council on placemaking and active travel. Future of London’s work on co-production was an important factor in ECF becoming a member. “Hopefully together, we can sort of push community engagement and co-production as much as possible within the built environment space and with local authorities.” Read the full story via the link in the comments below. #FutureOfLondon #CommunityEngagement

A huge thank you to Deloitte for hosting and facilitating an incredible learning day for our Emerging Talent Programme at their offices in London. Thanks to Dena Dabbas, Sebastian Foster, Alex Morton, Hattie Vessey, Eve Whitehead and Rees Powell for a day of valuable insights, engaging discussions and plenty of inspiration for our future in the built environment. We covered: 📊 Real-world case studies and problem-solving 🔍 Career pathways and key qualifications 📝 Mastering report writing 🤝 The power of networking and building meaningful connections 🤖 How AI is shaping the future of real estate The cohort had a brilliant time learning from industry experts, exchanging ideas, and making new connections. The Emerging Talent Programme provides paid work experience to people from ethnic minority backgrounds to launch careers in the built environment sector. Please contact Andrea Gordon, FCIPD or Karen Jefford CMgr FCMI if your organisation is interested in hosting a placement and advancing your EDI strategy. Thank you again to Deloitte for an insightful and engaging day - we can’t wait to put these learnings into action! Thanks also to our current host organisations Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea | Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | London Borough of Lambeth | BOUYGUES UK | L&Q | London Borough of Camden | Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) | Greater London Authority Meet the third cohort of the Emerging Talent Programme Dionne Bimpong | Sonia H. | Yangyang Li | Daniel F. P. | Srivardhan Rajalingam | Dayantara Santano | Abdulrahman Yinusa | Salimat Yéwándé Bakare #FutureOfLondon #EmergingTalentProgramme #EarlyCareers #RealEstate #BuiltEnvironment #Networking #AIinRealEstate #Diversity&Inclusion #ETP3

Well done to London Borough of Waltham Forest for their excellent inclusive growth summit, co-chaired by our CEO Nicola Mathers. Key points from the day. 👇

From social value to sustainability and retrofit to good growth, there's a category for every project at the Building London Planning Awards. So why not enter yours?! 🏆 Thanks to our friends BusinessLDN and the Mayor of London for championing great work in London's built environment sector with these excellent awards.

Join us for inspiring ideas on inclusive economies at a networking event for the graduation of our Future London Leaders (FLL38). Our future leaders will showcase transformative ideas such as improving access to London's night-time economy; free public transport for women, and connecting community enterprises with vacant units. As always, the room will be buzzing with innovative, inspiring minds and a networking reception afterwards. Join us for this fantastic evening to reconnect with leadership alumni and be part of the conversation that will help shape our city’s future! Register now via the link in the comments below. Future London Leaders 38 Matthew Aihie | Georgia Beamish-White | Kerri Bourne | Sophia Bromfield | Chino Avila Buquir | Silvia Commisso | Gurvinder Doal | Emma Gowing | Katie Harris | James Hawkins MRTPI | Joely Hill | Martin Lomas | Oliver Reinhold | James Santos Murphy | Rosie Seaman | Will Sendell | Jason Walker-Lucy Thanks to their mentors for getting them this far! Polly Barker | Steve Beard | Meera Bedi | Paul Bridge | Andrew Caruso, AIA, NCARB | Chris Cheeseman | Graham Clements | Jeff Endean | Leanne Keltie | Matt Lally | Lizzie Pillinger | Joe Richardson | David Sherrington | Allison F Sofekun | Samantha Steele | Sharon Strutt, MRTPI #FutureOfLondon #FutureLondonLeaders #FLL38

This is a great opportunity for Future of London members We Made That to spend time in their studio exploring spatial justice and the "right to place" in a collaborative environment.

How can public spaces make London happy? To find out, we’re bringing together built environment experts to look at links between wellbeing and place. The evidence for investing in public spaces is compelling: regular use increases life satisfaction equivalent to a £974 income rise, according to Fields in Trust. The Health Foundation provides data that shows a correlation between life expectancy and access to green space (see comments below for links to both reports). But we need to understand better what makes these spaces truly inclusive and welcoming for all Londoners. That’s what the Happy London project aims to do. We're delighted that Countryside Partnerships, Potter Raper and Queen Mary University of London are already on board with the project, which starts in May. Thanks to Laura Murray (Countryside), Nicola Tilbury MRICS (Potter Raper), Jennie Savage FRSA and Alison Blunt (QMU) for supporting the project. Become a funding partner for this programme to help us develop practical, evidence-based approaches for public spaces that bring communities together and enhance happiness for all. Programme sponsorship is from £2,500. Contact Anna Odedun for the profile-raising and thought leadership benefits of becoming a Future of London partner. #FutureOfLondon #PublicSpace #CommunityWellbeing #HappyLondon