Getting Britain Building Again: Can Planning Reform Perform Mission Impossible?

Andrew is Head of Planning at Urban Splash and heavily involved with House by Urban Splash – a new pioneering housebuilder using innovative design, Modern Methods of Construction and the latest technology to create sustainable homes and communities. He is responsible for securing planning permission for major housing and mixed used projects across the country. Andrew has worked in planning for over 15 years in Manchester, Birmingham and London and also New Zealand where he gained first hand experience working in a zoning planning system. He is a Regional Board Member for the RTPI North West.

Alex Robinson is Director of Development for Strategic Land. He is responsible for sourcing land for the business working closely with Andy Sharpe on land bids and land promotion. He was the development manager on Barton Park in Oxford which is a joint venture with Oxford City Council delivering nearly 900 new homes and was instrumental in Barton Park being one of 10 demonstrator sites in the NHS England’s healthy new towns initiative. He previously worked on Trumpington Meadows in Cambridge responsible for the commercial aspects of this scheme including the land sales to Barratt Homes. Alex managed the construction and sale of Parkside Place in Cambridge city centre, comprising 99 luxury apartments including a new state of the art fire station for Cambridge and Peterborough Fire Authority.

Joseph Daniels founded Project Etopia in 2015 at the age of 23 and is the CEO of Project Etopia Group. Motivated with a passion to make a difference his objective is to build the smart connected eco cities of the future that work towards solving the global housing crisis, whilst having a positive impact on climate change. He aims to do this by combining various energy, construction and intelligent technologies, through invention or collaboration, to build the highest performing buildings. His ambition was fuelled by the lack of security he faced as a young man and continues to drive his motivation to create a better tomorrow. Joe has been recognised across various industries for his innovative approach to technology and real estate, most recently he received the accolade of Forbes 30 under 30 in the manufacturing and industry category, as well as a feature in the United Nations 75th anniversary book for his contribution to climate change.

Alexandra Notay is Build to Rent fund director at PfP Capital, the fund and asset management arm of Places for People, tasked with raising a £550M fund to deliver 3,000 BTR homes across the UK. She is also an internationally recognised expert on build to rent, placemaking and sustainable urban development, with 15 years’ strategic advisory experience to public and private sector clients across four continents. In January 2019 Alex was selected as one of the 48 women shaping the future of UK real estate at the prestigious BISNOW Women Leaders event. Alex is a published author and editor of over 30 books and reports on real estate including the renowned ULI UK Best Practice Guide on Build to Rent (2014, 2016). Alex is a vice-chair of ULI UK Residential Council and on the ULI UK Executive Committee, serves on the BPF Build to Rent Committee and is an Associate Member of CREFC Europe. She is also a non- executive director of Sound Diplomacy, SouthWest Board Member for LandAid and trustee of SunScreenIT Foundation.

John is Commercial Director for the Commercial Real Estate team at Aldermore. He is responsible for developing new propositions and enhancing the customer journey to meet growing demand. John has 30 years’ experience in the industry having previously worked in a number of national roles at Bank of Scotland, CYBG and NAB.

Iain is a leading planning lawyer who has focussed on large scale development and regeneration projects, throughout his 20+ years in practice. He advises developers, funders, landowners, local authorities and Government Departments on the consenting process, risk management, appeals and Court actions and ultimately the delivery of some of the UK’s most significant commercial and residential led schemes. He leads Pinsent Masons’ cross-discipline Residential Sector team, as part of its Global Real Estate practice. The team advises land owners, residential developers, investment funds and inward investors, and are currently very active in the Garden Villages space. The team also advises within the “alternative” asset class, and is actively involved in many large scale Build to Rent, student and later living schemes and investment opportunities.