LDN Weekly – Issue 331 – 12 September 2024 – Nights Are Getting Colder

NIGHTS ARE GETTING COLDER

Dear Reader,

There’s a chill in the air as the excitement from the election of a new Government fades into the mist. Keir Starmer’s to-do list appears endless, under strain from a number of unsolved issues and new headaches. As Parliament winds down (again) for a busy conference season, you’d be forgiven for wondering when the bad news stops and when we’ll be whisked away to sunlit uplands.

In a sector impacted by every bump in the road, certainty and stability are a luxury worth hoping for. Ahead of a ‘painful’ Budget on 30 October, it will take this conference season to present the public with a more optimistic outlook. Starmer’s speech will be a pivotal moment to brighten the skies of a drizzly autumn.

LDN will be with you every step of way, charting the machinations of Westminster, London and the wider built environment sector.

Meanwhile, in this week’s edition, there’s a helpful guide to the Government’s new Renters’ Rights Bill which started its progress through Parliament only yesterday, news of Liverpool Street Station and the Truman Brewery projects, plus a roundup of the lush landscape of think tanks and organisations publishing their research into key issues.

Thank you as ever for reading our weekly newsletter. If you haven’t already, be sure to follow our social media accounts and do keep in touch.

Daniel Reast

Insight Executive

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RENTERS RIGHTS REVIVAL

Keeping promises: As included in the King’s Speech, the Government has this week brought forward the Renters’ Rights Bill, setting out measures to improve conditions and security for tenants in the private rented sector (PRS).

False start: The previous government introduced and carried a Renters’ Reform Bill part of the way through Parliament, but it was shelved before the General Election.

Evictions banned: The Bill includes the long-awaited abolition of Section 21 (also referred to as ‘no fault’) evictions, for both new and existing tenancies.

Standards extended: Homes in the sector will also be required to adhere to the Decent Homes Standard (currently only applicable to social housing), while also aiming to ensure that all homes in the PRS meet minimum energy efficiency standards by 2030. Landlords that fail to adhere to these requirements will be fined or face legal challenges.

And extended: The extension of Awaab’s Law to the PRS (it also only currently applies to social housing), which will require landlords to remediate issues, including damp and mould, within a specific timeframe.

Fixed terms abolished: Fixed term assured tenancies will be abolished and replaced with ‘rolling’ tenancies, with tenants required to give two months’ notice to leave their property.

A helping hand: A Private Rented Sector Database will be created, helping landlords understand their obligations and providing tenants with information. All landlords will be required to register themselves and their properties and the database will also be accessible to local authorities.

Conflict resolution: The Government is also planning on creating a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman, to which tenants will be able to make complaints about their landlord’s behaviour or actions. All private landlords will be required to join the system, which will offer free, impartial and fair resolutions.

What else? The Bill will also ban rental ‘bidding wars’ and put an end to excessive in-tenancy rent increases, including allowing landlords to only increase rents once per year to the market rate. Bans on renting to tenants with children or in receipt of benefits will also be abolished, while tenants will be given the legal right to have pets in their homes.

What next? Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook has said that he hopes the Bill will make quick progress through the Commons, with the aim that the changes become law ‘within the first half or around summer next year’. As we are entering Party Conference season, Parliament is in recess for the rest of the month, but the Bill’s Second Reading is currently scheduled for 9 October.

Mixed response: The Bill has been welcomed by renters’ groups, with Shelter calling it a ‘watershed moment’. However, there is a consensus that the Government’s reforms could go further and do more to tackle the biggest issue facing England’s 11 million renters - affordability. As for the sector, the BPF has also welcomed many of the measures, though has voiced concerns about the capacity of the courts to handle disputes once section 21 evictions have been abolished.

• Regal has secured planning permission from Camden Council for the £125m transformation of a 0.75-acre site next to the Roundhouse Theatre. The plans include demolishing three vacant office buildings on-site to deliver a 265-bed purpose-built student accommodation scheme in four buildings up to 12 storeys, along with 24 affordable homes and 455 sqm of ground floor commercial space.
  
  
• Munich Re has secured planning consent from the City of London Corporation for its plans to retrofit and extend its eight-storey office building at Finsbury Square. The plans include delivering an additional storey, winter garden and roof terrace to expand overall space to 140,000 sq ft, while retaining 90% of the existing structure.
  
  
• Tower Hamlets Council has granted planning permission approval for Fabrix’s plans to deliver a new 1.93ha industrial park at Empson Street in Bromley-by-Bow. The plans include the demolition of existing buildings to provide 10 two-storey units providing 11,664 sqm of flexible industrial space. 10% is allocated as affordable space contained within a retained and refurbished MOT garage, alongside a new circular economy hub acting as a community ‘waste exchange.’
  
  
• Sutton Council has approved its plans to deliver 290 homes (50% affordable) at its Elm Grove regeneration scheme in Sutton town centre. 79% of residents in the estate’s 73 homes voted in favour of regeneration in March 2022, with the council’s plans including replacement homes for residents. The project secured £26.4m in affordable homes funding from the Greater London Authority to proceed with the project.
  
  
• Planning officers at Greenwich Council have recommended approval for two ambitious residential schemes on brownfield land in the borough. The schemes comprise Criterion Capital and Maritime View’s deferred and revised plans for a three-block redevelopment of Enderby Place with 564 homes and 1,215 sqm of commercial space, while Fairview New Homes’s revised plans for three buildings at Boord Street consisting of 352 homes, 340 student beds and 10,000 sqm of light industrial space also receive recommendation to approve. Both schemes allocate 35% affordable homes and will be decided on by Greenwich’s Planning Board on 17 September.
  
  
• Sellar and Network Rail are to submit revised plans for their controversial redevelopment of Liverpool Street Station following a further consultation later this year, with the new designs reported as being ‘substantially different’ to existing plans. The developers’ current plans include a part 15, part 21-storey building above the Grade II-listed terminus with 78,000 sqm of office space, as well as changes to the Grade II* listed former Great Eastern Hotel building.
  
  
• Developer Grow Places has submitted plans to Tower Hamlets Council for a long-standing proposed redevelopment of the Truman Brewery site on Brick Lane. The 1.3ha masterplan includes delivery of six new buildings to demolish vacant and ‘low value, underused buildings’ while refurbishing and extending the historic two-storey Cooperage building and upgrading the Grade II-listed Boiler House for additional events and exhibition space. The masterplan totals 35,000 sqm of mixed-use space including 50 affordable homes, creative and retail units, and a new microbrewery.
  
  
• The High Court has dismissed the application for judicial review by architect James Monahan into Camden Council’s decision to approve Simten and BC Partners’ plans to redevelop One Museum Street. The plans, approved in November 2023, include the demolition of the former Travelodge on the site and the delivery of a new 175,000 sq ft, 19-storey office building as well as 44 homes in other buildings on the site, 19 of which will be affordable.
  
  
• Brookfield Properties has submitted plans to the City of London Corporation to demolish and redevelop its 28-storey office building at 99 Bishopsgate to deliver a 54-storey block, providing 97,000 sqm of office space and 2,000 sqm of ground floor retail and hospitality space. The proposals would demolish the current building to street level while maintaining 48% of the current building’s mass through retaining the basement and delivering a standalone six-storey building for cultural and community uses.
  
  
• The Government has announced that a design competition for the memorial for Queen Elizabeth II is to launch by the end of 2024. The memorial will be situated in St James’s Park at Marlborough Gate, chosen for its proximity to the Mall. A final design will be chosen in 2026 following consultation and engagement. (We hope it is better than the one in Belfast).

• Jason Windsor has been formally appointed as Group Chief Executive of Abrdn following five months as interim CEO. Windsor joins from Persimmon where he was Chief Financial Officer, and succeeds Stephen Bird who departs after four years leading the assets and investment firm.
  
  
• Asset manager Schroders has promoted Richard Oldfield to CEO, replacing Peter Harrison who steps down in November. Oldfield is the current Chief Financial Officer and a former executive with PwC.
  
  
• Urban research charity Open City has appointed Manijeh Verghese as its new CEO, joining from the Architectural Association (AA) School of Architecture where she led as Head of Public Engagement. She is also one of the Mayor of London’s Design Advocates and a Trustee of the Architecture Foundation.
  
  
• Renowned housing legal aid lawyer and former Chair of the Housing Law Practitioners Associations, Simon Mullings, has died. Known as ‘Spike’, Mullings led the housing legal team at Hammersmith and Fulham Law Centre and was instrumental in 26 years of high-profile cases challenging homelessness, poor practices in the housing sector, and housing inequalities in London.
  
  
• Tri7 has appointed Ben Beck to lead its new office investment arm with an ambitious strategy to build a £250-300m portfolio in the next three years. Appointed as managing partner, Beck joins from Blue Coast Capital where he held the role of Director in the transactions team.
  
  
• Kadans Science Partner has hired Bevan McWilliam as its new UK-based Director of Business for Life Sciences, leading the Dutch developer’s new leasing and development strategy in the UK. He joins from graphic design and communications agency Gyroscope London.
  
  
• The House of Commons has concluded its elections for chairs of select committees, with six London Labour MPs chairing departmental scrutiny committees. Florence Eshalomi MP (Vauxhall) heads up the Housing, Communities and Local Government committee, Ruth Cadbury MP (Brentford and Isleworth) chairs Transport, while Meg Hillier MP (Hackney South and Shoreditch) was elected unopposed to chair the Treasury committee. Helen Hayes (Dulwich and West Norwood) chairs the Education committee, former barrister Andy Slaughter (Hammersmith and Chiswick) heads Justice, and Emily Thornberry (Islington South and Finsbury Park) takes Foreign Affairs after being snubbed from the ministerial team.
  
  
• The All-Party Parliamentary Group for London has held its inaugural meeting to re-establish the group following the General Election. Florence Eshalomi MP (Labour, Vauxhall), Peter Fortune MP (Conservative, Bromley and Biggin Hill), and Munira Wilson MP (Liberal Democrat, Twickenham) were elected Co-Chairs for the group, with Liam Conlon MP (Labour, Beckenham and Penge) as Vice-Chair. London Councils remains the group’s Secretariat.
  
  
• Lambeth Council has carried out a minor reshuffle of its Cabinet following the election of Jim Dickson as Labour MP for Dartford. Cllr Tim Windle has been appointed the new joint Cabinet Member for Healthier Communities, serving alongside Cllr Jacqui Dyer who held the role with Dickson before his election to Parliament.
  
  
• Redbridge Council has also reshuffled its Cabinet with Leader of the Council Cllr Kam Rai incorporating the regeneration and growth portfolio in his new role, while newly appointed Deputy Leader Cllr Vanisha Solanki will assume responsibility for finance. Cllr Saima Ahmed replaces Solanki as Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness.

REPORTS ROUNDUP

Idea-farming: In Labour’s election manifesto and first King’s Speech, the party offered an unsurprising if long-expected list of policies to match Keir Starmer’s vision for government. But if the Prime Minister is running out of ideas, there’s no shortage of think tanks, and industry groups publishing new recommendations with bold policy ideas to help shape Labour’s course. Here’s a number of recent reports on built environment sector which piqued our interest.

Innovate to accumulate: Continuing its interest in all things AI, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change recommends deploying AI to make the UK’s planning and housing systems more efficient, streamlined, and enabled to deliver homes in ‘the right place.’ The report also calls for ‘alignment’ of decision-making across all levels of governance to speed up development.

Soaring over scrubland: The Centre for Policy Studies’ Robert Colvile previews the organisation’s upcoming research with Create Streets in The Sunday Times with an impressive map identifying areas of low quality ‘grey belt’ land in England’s Green Belt areas. Colvile writes that changes prompted by the Government’s proposed update to the National Planning Policy Framework could provoke an ‘enormous amount of resistance’ by residents and campaigners.

Quite the task: Grey belt land gets a look over from the Resolution Foundation too, their new report suggests that it could support around one million homes. However, the think tank warns that the Government’s aim of delivering 1.5 million homes this Parliament would be an ‘unprecedented’ amount in our modern history. The Government's approach to housebuilding is also ‘heavily’ reliant on private developers, which could limit how many get built. With leading housebuilder Barratt’s adjusted profits falling  56.4% in the past year, there’s a valid reason to be sceptical.

Shiny and new: For MCS Foundation, it’s a question of quality and standards in new homes. Their research shows top-of-the-line, energy efficient homes with solar panels, high-grade insulation and a heat pump could save owners £1,341 a year in energy costs. Labour has inherited the question of a Future Homes Standard to implement after the Conservatives completed but did not respond to a consultation from 2023 into how this should look in official guidance.

Village greens: Learning from other urban initiatives, Centre for Cities makes the case for greater fiscal devolution to kickstart a groundswell of green transport investments and policies in the UK’s cities. The report calls for planning policy changes to deliver higher densities, accelerated retrofits and better-connected cities.

Choice cuts: The CBI has produced a solution to the Government’s pledged business rates reform. The business group recommends replacing the current system with a ‘progressive’ tax banded in a similar way to income tax, measuring taxable income annually on a site-by-site basis.

Missing doormats: Southwark Council was aided by two top housing experts, Toby Lloyd and Rose Grayson, for its remarkable full report into the future for England’s council housing. Southwark and over 100 other local councils call for a new ‘fair and sustainable’ Housing Revenue Account (HRA) model and review of Right-to-Buy so councils can manage, repair and develop council homes more effectively.

WE RECOMMEND

• London’s newest museum.
• Which aircraft took place-spotters to Heathrow Airport earlier this week.
• A look at the capital’s best nightclubs. Spoiler alert - they’re not in Soho.
• The salad chain that is taking over the City.
• A sneak peek at the restoration of the Crystal Palace Subway.

SQUARE MILE WELCOMES FIRST CO-LIVING HOMES

This week, residential developer, Hub, secured approval from the City Corporation’s Planning Application Sub Committee to deliver what will be the Square Mile’s first ever co-living scheme. The proposal will sensitively refurbish and repurpose 45 Beech Street, an existing serviced office located in the heart of the Barbican Estate, to deliver 174 new homes - accounting for roughly 10% of the City’s 2040 housing target. Residents will have access to a range of shared facilities, including kitchen, dining and lounge areas, gym and exercise spaces, alongside a publicly accessible café. LCA has supported HubCap since its initial engagement with the City Corporation and neighbouring residents in the summer of 2023, right up to the committee hearing.

Photo courtesy of Hub and Bridges Fund Management

LONDON DESIGN FESTIVAL AT GREENWICH PENINSULA

London Design Festival returns to the capital on 14 – 22 September, celebrating art and design across the city as well as further demonstrating London as a global creative powerhouse. The programme spans 11 Design Districts each hosting their own series of creative workshops and talks, studio tours, art and design installations and shows. Some themes being explored this year include AI and technology, sustainable design and the circular economy and even the science of sleep. Whilst some of these events are ticketed, the majority are free to attend as a way to open up the arts to a wider audience and encourage people to discover a new part of London.

LCA client Knight Dragon is the developer behind Greenwich Peninsula which is a Design District in this year’s festival. Visitors can wander along a free public art trail hosting six Damien Hirst statues, relax by the Thames and enjoy an intimate drawing workshop with fashion and print designer, Kitty Joseph, and tour the studios of some of London’s up and coming creatives.

The LCA team has been busy promoting the packed programme of events and secured a spot in The Times’ 24 must-see shows at London Design Festival 2024 round up.

Photo courtesy of Vivid Squad

LDN CONTRIBUTORS 

LCA prides itself on its intelligence-led approach to PR and communications and our dedicated insight team monitors London politics, news and issues as it happens.

If you would like to know more about LCA or anything in this edition of LDN – London in short please get in touch. 

Nick Bowes

Managing Director, Insight

Robert Gordon Clark

Senior Advisor and Partner

Emily Clinton

Account Manager, Insight 

 Daniel Reast

Insight Executive

Design:  Aroa Maquedano Pulido:

We strive for balance and accuracy at all times; however, if you feel we have made a mistake, omission or have misrepresented a story or issue please alert the team by contacting the LDN team by using the details above.

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