Why London Why Now?

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In 2022, we looked at London in a new light to build the city of tomorrow for a sustainable economic recovery post-pandemic and post-Brexit, and helping our clients with solutions to challenges that have accelerated as a result of these seismic changes.

Significantly, major forces are leading to fundamental shifts in the built environment, creating opportunities and threats for our public and private sector client base. As a result, this idea means fresh thinking on key areas and a greater emphasis on creating social value and the journey towards net-zero carbon.

In our city of tomorrow campaign, we explored three core themes – workspace, society and delivery – looking at key trends in real-time across our industry, drawing on a diverse range of perspectives and experiences, and offering practical advice alongside high-level thinking. Watch the video below on some of the key takeaways from the campaign:

"Please get involved and contribute – the more we can collaborate the better this city can be." Oliver Maury, Head of London Sector

Here was the blurb from the campaign: We all have an obligation to make tomorrow better than today. As a national and global space, this city has always played a crucial role, but part of its enduring success is its ability to evolve. For us, this means fresh thinking, creativity and partnership. Much more than our governance, we look for common ground and relationships founded on co-creation, risk-sharing and joint problem-solving. It’s also our job, in property, to reflect the needs of every part of London’s demographic by providing a built environment that allows society to flourish collectively. Our purpose, then, must be to devise the strategies and deliver on the actions that will make it happen, so over the next year, our team will be exploring three key themes as we focus on a city of tomorrow:

Workplace

The driver of our economy and reason for our place as a global financial capital, London’s workplaces have continually evolved, but are they changing fast enough and with the proper focus? Buildings that were once accepted as part of the scenery now seem wildly unsuitable and defunct, so how do we redefine, repurpose and improve these spaces to create something better that will last?

Society

There has never been a time when the community has held such importance. It’s more apparent than ever that new public and private spaces must offer a broader purpose, helping tackle inequalities, improving inclusion and positively contributing to society and the planet. The potential to do more here is enormous but how we address this in our planning and development needs more significant interrogation. We can make a difference at every level – encouraging wellness and diversity in how we design and curate spaces through designing and managing the tallest towers and reconsidering the role of transport and infrastructure.

Delivery

How we deliver change across the real estate industry is constantly evolving. Still, the pace and nature of change in response to current market shifts mean we must revalidate our approaches. How should the public and private sector investors, developers and landowners reconsider their role in the development process to bring about the change needed, and how are new ideas working in practice across the wide range of projects that contribute to our built environment?

In 2022, our team will be exploring the city of tomorrow with our clients, discussing these challenges, and working together to offer new solutions. We will be joining together in thought pieces, events, online sessions and – at last – in-person events and meetings. Please get involved and contribute – the more we collaborate, the better this city can be.

contact us to explore how we can partner to create the city of tomorrow