Over the past twelve months, Future of London has held 25 events convening over 400 practitioners and policymakers from across the Capital. We have published a series of policy briefings covering the major reforms affecting the regeneration, housing and economic development sectors in London, and launched the third round of our acclaimed Future London Leaders Programme.
We have a fantastic schedule of activities lined up for 2012, including further work on Localism in London, a project examining the implementation of the Green Deal, analysis relating to London’s housing challenge, the return of the Future of London Major Projects Delivery Group, and much more besides.
In particular, we are hosting an exciting event on 18 January 2012 in relation to Localism and the impact on economic development in London – click here to book your place.
You can find out more about all of our workstreams below, or on our website: www.futureoflondon.org.uk. There is also still time to become a member of Future of London for 2012. Please contact Future of London Director Ben Harrison for more details at ben@futureoflondon.org.uk.
Recent and forthcoming programme highlights
A Green Deal for London
Future of London is delighted to announce our research project examining the how the Green Deal can be delivered in London. The coalition government’s flagship environmental policy programme is intended to leverage around £12 billion of investment into residential and commercial energy efficiency. The Green Deal mechanism will enable households and businesses to install energy efficiency improvements to their property from registered providers at no upfront cost, with repayments attached to the property rather than the individual. The project, sponsored and supported by EDF Energy, Pinsent Masons and PricewaterhouseCoopers, will provide London Boroughs with recommendations as to how they can be “Green Deal friendly” and therefore drive demand for the Green Deal. Read more about the project here.
Localism in London – Planning Seminar Report
The first research seminar for our Localism project focused on the impact of the Government’s localism agenda on London planning. We heard from Jane Everton, Deputy Director, Development Planning at CLG; Andrew Barry-Purssell, Senior Manager, London Plan at the GLA; and Jo Wilson, Programme and Policy lead at Future of London. The seminar also involved a group session where participants, drawn from a mix of local and London-wide government, the private sector, and think tanks, were asked to consider a selection of headline reforms from the localism agenda in terms of the scale of potential impact they could have in London on one hand, and the likelihood that reforms would be taken up or employed to full effect, on the other. Click here for slides from the session, and here for the report on the workshops’ outcomes.
The Local Finance Bill Digested
A key plank of the Government’s Localism Agenda upon assuming office was the implementation of major financial devolution to local authorities across the country. Faced with a stagnating economy, the need to incentivise local areas to promote growth has become all the more urgent. Within this context, the Government has recently announced plans to introduce a Local Finance Bill that will radically impact upon the ways that London Boroughs can raise finance in their area. For a brief overview of some of the key implications for London, click here.
Major Projects Delivery Group
Future of London’s Major Projects Delivery Group brings together senior practitioners from across the Capital to share knowledge and best practice, and develop new ways to navigate the shifting development and policy context. In 2012 we will be focussing on major housing-led regeneration projects across inner and outer London, looking at the following regeneration projects: Graham Park (LB Barnet), Woodberry Down (LB Hackney), Blackwall Reach (LB Tower Hamlets), Kidbrooke (LB Greenwich) and Elephant & Castle (LB Southwark). For full details on the group, click here.
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