Urban Transformations Research Centre (UTRC)’s Post

Delighted to have chaired this fabulous #UKREiiF panel, championing the UK #Living sector. The panel covered a lot of ground but my key takeaways are: From the investor perspective Imogen Ebbs and Ann Xu MRICS: - Macro trends are the core driver of investment strategies - Demand and supply imbalance is a solid foundation for long term institutional investing. The chronic under supply of UK housing is a great example - Waiting for the right time to deploy capital is essential. But when they deploy, they do so at scale - Social impact focused on local need is high on the agenda for investors From the developer perspective Damien Sharkey and Tariq Shah OBE: - Understanding the demographic of the area is key. Developers should be looking to retain, and enhance the local area - whether that’s delivering affordable, BtR or Co Living schemes - Stranded assets can be converted into core living assets, but should be designed with next gen in mind - Working in partnerships allows local capital to be retained in local markets From the local authority perspective Joanne Roney, Chief Executive at Manchester City Council: - Be “dead clear” about the long term vision of your city - Give investors and developers access to senior officers to grow collaborative relationships - Don’t compromise on sustainability and biodiversity in housing delivery And from all sides, a real willingness, and acceptance that #strategicpartnerships between public and private sectors are key to tackling the UK housing crisis and delivering the homes we all need #gowlingwlg #howwelive #mattchristie #phillaycock

After much anticipation, this morning saw the release of Government’s Regional Deals Strategic Framework. There’s much to welcome in the Framework, the priority objectives and guiding principles are clear, and the process is well set out. I particularly like the staged approach, starting with a small number of regions, as was the case in the UK where the first Deals were focused on the Core Cities. I also welcome the inclusion of the initial development of a Memorandum of Understanding, something which worked well in some of the Australian Deals, particularly South East Queensland. The focus on partnership, economic growth and central and local government working collaboratively towards a 30-year vision, with shared outcomes and objectives negotiated through 10-year strategic plans is certainly a step forward. The obvious elephant in the room is the lack of new funds to support implementation, but this was well signaled over recent months and there is at least a commitment to unlocking a range of funding and financing tools. The real test will be how these new tools and revenue sources can be effectively deployed to deliver long-term regional visions and the extent to which initial deals provide a true platform for localism and further devolution. #economicdevelopment #cityandregionaldeals #urbandevelopment Beca Infrastructure New Zealand Urban Development Institute of New Zealand UDINZ Sanchia Jacobs Robert Brodnax Rupert Hodson Tracey Haszard

"National, sub-national and regional bodies need to reflect on their role in enabling and supporting places to function, such that together meaningful plans and policies can be developed and implemented. A National Industrial Strategy, as promoted by the IED's Grow Local, Grow National manifesto, would be a great place to start, one that presents public bodies with a framework within which to work in their strategic planning, whether this be sectoral or spatial. Allied to this proper reform of Local Plans, and the resourcing of Local Plans, to enable a fit-for-purpose planning system at the local level." Check out the latest member blog on our website from Simon Emery, Regional Director at AECOM https://lnkd.in/etj-2q65. #economicdevelopment #regeneration #levellingup #regionaldevelopment #localeconomy #economicgrowth #inclusivegrowth #sustainablegrowth #devolution #communitydevelopment #healthycommunities #placemaking #netzero #socialvalue #townplanning #housing #propertydevelopment #infrastructuredevelopment #inwardinvestment #businesssupport #enterprise #entrepreneurship #employability #skillsdevelopment #researchanddevelopment #innovation #planning #surveying #engineering #highways #transport #localgovernment #localgov #localauthority #localauthorities #councils #university #universities #highereducation #professionaldevelopment #CPD

At the CCRI, we are part of the Cymru Wledig LPIP Rural Wales partnership. Our colleagues at the University of Aberystwyth are advertising a couple of brilliant posts that you might be interested in if you are looking for an exciting role in rural policy research. This research aims to make a difference on the ground (see - https://lnkd.in/ee53A--6), and you'll be working with communities, businesses, policy people and academics. The objective of Cymru Wledig LPIP Rural Wales is to facilitate effective policies and interventions that promote inclusive, sustainable growth in Rural Wales through the framework of the ‘wellbeing economy’, which prioritises an economy designed to deliver social justice for current and future generations on a healthy planet in which citizens are actively engaged in their communities. It aims to fill evidence gaps, explore innovative solutions, and enhance the use of research to support effective policies working toward this goal. Cymru Wledig LPIP Rural Wales also strongly emphasises capacity building for inclusive participation in regional and community development, including supporting communities to undertake their own research, equalities mainstreaming, and actions to enable the involvement of often under-represented groups. Innovation Manager https://lnkd.in/eiqCz2Tu Programme Manager https://lnkd.in/en4WSGs4

We are investing £9.7m to tackle regional disparities across the UK. The funding will go to 17 projects aimed at ensuring everyone in the UK has a path to economic success and personal wellbeing, regardless of where they live. Professor Alison Park, head of UKRI’s Creating Opportunities and Improving Outcomes Strategic Theme, said: “Across the political spectrum, there is agreement that the regional disparities that exist in the UK do real social and economic damage. Policymakers and researchers have tried various ways of addressing those disparities, but we often don’t truly know how effective they are – or if there are better ways of achieving our goals.    “The projects announced today will help to fill this knowledge gap by evaluating the effectiveness of these interventions. That way, we can ensure policymakers focus their efforts on the best ways to improve lives and opportunities across every part of the UK.” Take a look at the projects below👇🏻

Cymru Wledig LPIP Rural Wales - The Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership I had the pleasure of being invited to the launch of the Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership at the Senedd a few weeks ago. I was inspired by the presentation by Professor Michael Woods, who eloquently summarised the many challenges facing rural Wales, many of which were unknown to me. Living in rural Wales as I do, makes this an area of public policy and research that interests me personally. The current ‘Brain Drain’ research GlobalWelsh is undertaking (info below) will feed into this project and other initiatives such as the Mid Wales Growth Deal (MWGD) and Uchelgais Gogledd Cymru | Ambition North Wales. We have asked specific questions as part of the research that will paint a clear picture of why people have left all areas of Wales, on what basis they would consider returning and what they perceive as the barriers to coming home. We will also uncover the positive stories of returners and how coming back to Wales was a great move and how they contributed to the economic regeneration of their area. I am also pleased to say that I have recently joined the Mid Wales Growth Deal, Economic Advisory Group whose remit is to: - Provide a business voice on the MWGD.  - Champion the MWGD at a strategic level reflecting the need for investment in the Mid Wales economy.  - Provide business experience and expertise to assist the Tyfu Canolbarth Cymru | Growing Mid Wales Board to make funding decisions. Rural Wales is an important part of the Welsh economy with specific challenges that the Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership is aimed at addressing. We hope that GlobalWelsh can be part of the solution in helping connect with their diaspora and sell a compelling vision of rural Wales to encourage returners. For those that share my interest in rural Wales, attached is a summary of The Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership. Information on our 'Brain Drain' Research Press Release >>> https://lnkd.in/e3UuY6eq Link to the Survey >>> https://lnkd.in/e5UEQpMk Meilyr Ceredig Carwyn Jones-Evans Nicola Williams

Science + Technology The majority of the immediate reaction to the government's proposed #planning reforms quite rightly focuses on addressing the housing crisis.   However, economic growth hasn't been ignored, which I'm encouraged by. For example, the scientific community has been lobbying for greater recognition and support for the sector's contribution to the national economy for some time. Building on the UK Innovation Strategy (2021), I'm pleased to see the consultation document and the draft #NPPF provide support for key industries, such as laboratories, which should enable our world leading clusters like #Cambridge and #Oxford continue to thrive, whilst laying the groundwork for new or emerging clusters to evolve.   I welcome the consultation on an expectation that additional commercial sites are identified in plans and positively considered in decisions. Making specific plans for commercial development which meets the needs of a modern economy is something that should lend confidence to the science + technology investment and real estate communities.   Like many others, I'm curious to see how commercial laboratories development may be prescribed as NSIPs and how they could be directed to the NSIP consenting regime. In principle, a streamlined decision-making process to allow the type of nationally significant science to be delivered, should definitely be supported.   These moves will hopefully stimulate economic growth in the key sectors which are critical to the country's economic growth; however, they will only be successful by working hand in hand with delivering affordable housing for the workforce those sectors rely on.

The latest research from Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation on governance is spot on > https://lnkd.in/gGq4aVSm We (Stantec) are in the midst of developing an Economic Development Strategy for a regional area in Australia. When reading this latest research, it strikes me as though you could place the role of local governments into each one of these typologies. Alternatively, they can be seen as THE key intermediary that facilitates the system changes necessary for local economic growth.   Over several years of working both in and for local government, I have seen firsthand the enormous pressure they are under to maintain and improve infrastructure, deliver the level of services their communities expect, improve outcomes, and meet national goals like achieving net zero and housing delivery. The research highlights that "Unfortunately, intermediaries in the social change landscape are susceptible to becoming institutionalised at different points in their life cycles — shifting their focus to survival rather than their overall purpose and role within a larger system." In my view, the shift in federal and national government funding towards competitive, tied funding, combined with local governments' inability to raise revenue, has significantly hindered the proper functioning of local areas, their economies, and the communities that depend on them. Many of them are in survival mode. Prime examples in my experience include the North West of England, Regional Victoria, and the North East of Tasmania. In the short run (to benefit the longer run), I've advocated that local governments need to develop clear and effective frameworks for coproduction, closely aligned with typologies that support collective action and resource sharing (capital and staff time). In the long run, we all need to advocate for systemic changes in local government funding. This will be necessary - if not critical - to ensure that national objectives (like housing delivery and net zero) can be achieved. This will require increased trust from federal and national governments that local people know what is best for their areas, and that national agendas (housing delivery and net zero) are in their interest to deliver effectively and efficiently. In other words, rebalancing local government funding away from tied, competitive grants towards increased levels of fixed assistance will prevent institutionalisation and allow local governments to focus on goals that are ultimately aligned with national agendas.

Professor James White and colleagues at the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence (CaCHE) have received ESRC funding to explore how cities can be planned and retrofitted for net-zero living. URBAN RETROFIT UK will work with partners across all four nations of the UK and internationally to investigate urban retrofit successes and challenges, including barriers to scaling up. This is part of a £9.5million investment by ERSC into five projects that will research place-based approaches to an environmentally sustainable future, providing evidence to support local and national decision-making. As Project Lead, Professor James White will lead a team of researchers from Cardiff University, Dalhousie University, University of Sheffield, University of the West of England and the University of Ulster. They will collaborate with UK partners to identify and examine place-based urban retrofit case studies being delivered through local planning and development systems in Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow and Sheffield. The team will co-produce a framework mapping the critical intervention points required to close the implementation gap between national policy and local delivery. This will form the basis of a toolkit for planning authorities, property developers and communities. An international urban retrofit hubs network will also be established to share learning. Read more on the #SocSciHub: https://lnkd.in/eutXSNZf #NetZero #UrbanRetrofit #Sustainability #ESRC

An interesting blueprint for growth from Harworth Group plc , with one of the key solutions being quicker decision making. To enable this, we needed clearer and more concise guidance, particularly regarding design quality. The format of these, design briefs/codes/guidance whatever the chosen vehicle is, needs to be understandable, useful to both applicant and decision maker, but crucially they need to be cognisant of commercial viability and delivery. This may mean that the authors of the next wave of design guidance may need to reach out wider to gain greater insights from those across the industry. #delivery #placemaking #masterplanning