Retrofit Conference 2026

Half-day conference

Monday 05 October 2026
09:00 - 13:00

£298.80 (Incl. VAT)

Join our annual Retrofit conference to hear how retrofit can take centre stage in delivering a more sustainable, resilient London.

The NLA’s annual Retrofit Conference returns this October. Since our last conference, the landscape has shifted significantly - with new central leadership, a revised NPPF, and a new draft London Plan - alongside major advances in how the circular economy is shaping retrofit practice.

This year’s conference will focus on London’s commercial retrofit market. It will bring together experts, developers, and policymakers working on the capital’s existing building stock to explore emerging trends in commercial retrofit and define what best practice looks like today.

Is the changing political landscape helping or hindering the opportunity for commercial retrofit? And what can we do differently now to make retrofit easier in the future?

Join us on Monday 5th October at the London Centre for the insights shaping the decarbonisation of London's commercial building stock. There will also be plenty of time for networking.

Free for members.

Programme

08:30 Registration and Breakfast

Session One: State of the Retrofit market

The opening session brings together leaders in retrofit to explore how we continue to retrofit, repair, and maintain existing buildings, taking a high-level look at the politics, policies and progress shaping the retrofit of London's commercial schemes. What retrofit-led policies have local authorities adopted and implemented? What external factors are likely to challenge the sector over the next five years? How can we de-risk our projects, and why does retrofit matter even more in a tough economic climate?

09:00 Welcome from Chair

Catherine Staniland, Director, NLA

09:05 Keynote Address

Tom Sleigh, Chair of the Planning and Transportation Committee, City of London Corporation

09:15 Presentation: Implementing a Retrofit-First Policy

Ian Poole, Associate Director and Innovation Lead, ElliottWood

09:25 Panel Discussion & Q&A

Speakers above, plus:

Nicholle Kingsley, Partner, Mischon de Reya

10:00 End of Session

10:00-10:30 Break

Session Two: Lessons for the future

This session looks at the current challenges facing retrofit projects for commercial schemes, and what we can do better when designing today's buildings in preparation for their retrofit in the future. We'll explore some of the challenges in current London retrofit schemes, along with actionable ideas to take forward. What could have been done differently in the past to make retrofit easier now, what are the common challenges being faced today, and what are the best ways to overcome them?

10:30 Welcome from Chair

Kiru Balson, Principal Sustainability Consultant, Max Fordham

10:35 Presentation:

Luke Kelly, Project Director, British Land

10:45 Presentation: Integrating a holistic process Langfield

Sam Watkins, Director, tp bennett

10:55 Panel Discussion and Q&A

Speakers above, plus:
Hugo Dring, Director, Buro Four
Laura King, Director, KPF

11:30 End of Session

11:30-12:00 Break

Session Three: Circular Economy

This final session dives deeper into the technical aspects of retrofit, including material reuse, carbon lifecycle analysis, and the economics of retrofit development. What does best practice look like when it comes to reusing materials at scale, and how do we accurately measure the carbon impact of retrofit?

12:00 Welcome from Chair

Catherine Staniland, Director, NLA

12:05 Presentation: LSE Firoz Lalji Global Hub

Ivo Kolchev, Senior Sustainability Manager, McLaren Construction Group

12:15 Presentation: 110 The Queen’s Walk

Benjamin Walker, Director, LDA

12:25 Presentation:

Rebecca Campbell, Partner, Studio PDP

12:35 Panel Discussion & Q&A

Speakers above, plus:

Speaker biographies

Catherine Staniland

Chief Impact Officer, NLA

Ivo Kolchev

Senior Sustainability Manager, McLaren Construction

Sam Watkins

Director, TP Bennett

Nicholle Kingsley

Partner, Real Estate, Mishcon de Reya

Rebecca Campbell

Partner, Studio PDP

Hugo Dring

Director, Buro Four

Tom Sleigh

Chair of the Planning and Transportation Committee, City of London Corporation

Kiru Balson

Principal Sustainability Consultant, Max Fordham

Luke Kelly

Project Director, British Land

Laura King

Director, Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)

£298.80 (Incl. VAT)

SOLD OUT

Free for members

To find out more about NLA membership, please click here.

Sponsors

Address

The London Centre
3 Aldermanbury
EC2V 7HH

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Access

There are two ways of entering the London Centre: either up 3 steps with a handrail on either side, or via a platform lift. There are gender-neutral and accessible toilets on the lower ground floor, which can be accessed via a flight of stairs or lift.

Please visit The London Centre Access Page here.

If you would like more information about the space, or have any further access requirements, please let us know how we can best accommodate these, by emailing events@nla.london.