The UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) once again descended on Leeds on 20 May, bringing together thousands of investors, developers, professionals, and regeneration specialists to talk about industry growth prospects, the government’s 1.5million housing target and - of course - the challenge of climate change.
With an estimated 16,000-plus delegates, the event also saw ministers, MPs, elected Mayors, and a host of national and local government representatives in attendance.
RIBA was there this week in some force, too: RIBA President, Muyiwa Oki; RIBA Board member and Practice Committee chair, Jennifer Dixon; and RIBA’s Director of Inclusion, Robbie Turner, either chairing or taking part in several high profile panel discussions.
How did RIBA take part in discussions around climate goals?
With urgent housing and climate targets needing to be addressed, Muyiwa chaired the panel ‘How can we deliver homes and places while also meeting our climate goals?’, which looked at how the headline ambition of producing 1.5million homes can be squared with the UK’s legal requirement to reach net zero by 2050.
This is particularly pertinent given criticism from opposition parties and the independent Climate Change Committee that UK preparations for climate change are inadequate.
On the panel, Bill Esterson, Chair of the House of Commons’ Energy Security and Net Zero Committee and MP for Sefton Central, explained the strengths and weaknesses of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill – a key piece of legislation for the government’s housing target – particularly with regard to staying aligned with climate obligations.
He went on to outline how the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee has been looking at retrofit - in answer to Muyiwa’s recommendation for retrofit to be approached in a holistic way (ie. when climate resilience and emissions mitigation are considered at the same time in the context of the existing building).
RIBA proposes that the government bring forward a National Retrofit Strategy – a long-term policy and investment program for upgrading the energy efficiency of the UK’s housing stock. To be effective, RIBA recommends that such a strategy should include funding and incentives.
Panellist David Partridge, chair of the Governance Board of the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard (a cross industry project that included collaboration with nine built environment organisations), which launched as a pilot version last year, described what’s next for the Standard and suggested ways in which the government could do more to encourage homeowners to retrofit their homes.
To help drive change for both new builds and retrofitting existing buildings, RIBA recommends that the government adopts and standardises construction reporting metrics in line with those in the Standard.
Muyiwa was also called upon Christine Cambrook of Buro Happold, who sits on the steering group for the UK Green Building Council Climate (UKGBC) Resilience Roadmap project, to explain how the project is pushing for measurable metrics and science-based targets for climate resilience and is trying to identify key actions that industry stakeholders should take. The UKGBC accepts the conclusions of the Climate Change Committee that the UK currently lacks associated targets or goals for resilience standards at national, local and sectoral level.
What else happened at UKREiiF?
The government’s ambition to deliver 1.5million homes presents both an opportunity and a challenge.
Ensuring that these homes are well planned, high quality, and supported by the right infrastructure was the topic of the roundtable discussion at the ‘Future Placemaking: Delivering 1.5million Homes’ session, which saw RIBA Board member Jennifer Dixon and housing minister Matthew Pennycook speak.
RIBA welcomed some of the proposed changes in the recently revised Planning and Infrastructure Bill, but insisted that to meet these targets, success will depend on effective planning reform, strategic infrastructure investment, and a skilled workforce capable of delivering at scale.
What else did RIBA take part in?
Elsewhere during the forum, RIBA joined forces with the Institute of Civil Engineers, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, and the Royal Town Planning Institute to host an exclusive networking event for UKREiiF delegates and a series of joint events in the Built Environment Lounge. RIBA was also active on a number of expert discussion panels, including:
- It’s time to stop talking about the housing challenge.
Muyiwa joined Clear Futures, Aviva Investors and Manchester City Council to discuss how collaboration can turn commitments into real progress in addressing the housing crisis. - Connecting Yorkshire: Our integrated transport system.
Muyiwa was back in the chair for a discussion on how elected Mayors are driving efforts to improve regional transport networks by taking trams and trains back into public control and improving transport connectivity. Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, David Skaith, Mayor of North Yorkshire, and Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire, all took part in the discussion. - Who puts the distinctiveness into place? A developer, an architect, and a marketeer go head-to-head.
Muyiwa represented the architecture sector in a debate with a developer and a marketeer over who plays the most critical role in creating distinctive places. - Attracting and maintaining talent in the built environment sector.
Muyiwa joined a panel discussion on how the industry can attract new talent and how best to engage with young people. - The role with no name: How can professional services evolve to meet changing client needs?
Jennifer Dixon, RIBA Board Member and Practice and Policy Committee Chair, joined a discussion on how the real estate investment and infrastructure sectors are looking for something different from professional services. - Inflexible working – The elephant in the room.
Robbie Turner, RIBA’s Director of Inclusion and Diversity, joined this panel discussion on how childcare costs and availability impact recruitment, retention and progression in the industry at a time when skills shortages are threatening the government’s housing and growth targets. - New towns: Delivering high-quality places.
This drinks reception asked what is needed to ensure quality remains a key consideration in the creation and development of new towns and urban extensions, and how can built environment professionals support the Government in delivering the next generation of new towns? Both Muyiwa Chris Curtis MP spoke during this session.
Text by Neal Morris. This is a professional feature edited by the RIBA Practice team. Send us your feedback and ideas.
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