Last week all the chairs of the NLA Expert Panels met for the first time since launching the network in 2020. It was a long time coming and with covid restrictions lifted they were finally able to meet in person to share what each group has been up to in the past two years. 

 

With 15 NLA Expert Panels covering a diverse range of topics, issues discussed ranged from the challenges that covid brought to streets, public spaces, offices, schools, and high streets; to decarbonising the existing building stock and unlocking barriers around the technical delivery of modern methods of construction. 

 

Ashley Bateson, Partner at Hoare Lea and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Net Zero, kicked off the discussion by putting on the agenda the next zero challenge and exposing that energy efficiency, circular economy, and embodied carbon are common concerns across all panels. Arita Morris, Director at Child Graddon Lewis and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Technical Competency, moved the discussion to the construction industry and the need to increase technical capability and futureproofing skills after the Grenfell disaster.  

 

With people leaving London during the pandemic, there is a danger of schools closing but also a potential of redundant retail for spaces for education, reported Ben Marston, Director at Jestico + Whiles, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Education. While Jonathan Burroughs, CEO at Creative Places, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Innovation Districts highlighted how knowledge quarters are becoming more inclusive towards the areas and communities where they are based in. The pandemic has also shown the importance of the underlying industrial and logistics infrastructure that allowed London to continue its operation as a global city, but the sector needs better recognition and support from politicians and decision-makers, argued Tom Alexander, Director at Aukett Swanke, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Industrial & Logistics

 

The planning reforms was another key issue discussed by all panels, and it was the Expert Panel on Planning, chaired by Jonny Popper, Managing Director at London Communications Agency, that led an NLA member’s survey and response to the White Paper consultation setting the precedent for the potential of panels to influence policy. The panel continues to debate the reform and its uncertainties but made progress delving into the recent outcomes of the National Model Design Codes. Levelling up – or down – was a common concern and in the current atmosphere of disconnect and fragmentation, Robert Evans, joint managing Partner at Argent and chair of the NLA Sounding Board, said a cross-sector unified mission is what we need. 

 

On transport and infrastructure, Bruce McVean, Acting Assistant Director for City Transportation, City of London, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Transport, promoted fairness and a more equitable transport system and streetscape and proposed a vision for a private car-free central London. When it comes to improving the way we experience the city, Camilla Siggaard Andersen, Urban Research Lead at Hassell, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Built Environment Technology, asked: can technology create a ‘pleasant city’ that helps people navigate transport networks, enjoy public spaces and reduce carbon emissions? 

 

When it comes to tall buildings and with the redefinition of what a tall building is in the new London Plan (with most boroughs adopting six storeys), what does it mean now for the relevance of tall buildings, asked Stuart Baillie, Partner at Knight Frank, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Tall Buildings; but most importantly what can tall buildings contribute to places to work and live, the housing crisis, and the net zero agenda.

 

With the return to the office in full swing, the Expert Panel on Work have been discussing what people expect now from their workplaces and what offices will look like in a post-pandemic post-carbon city. What will the new weekday look like? Is the commute over? One thing is for certain, employees’ attraction and retention must be backed by clear and transparent ESG strategies from employers to support the best worker experience. Future employees will back companies that can prove their CRM credentials, argued Katrina Kostic Samen, Head of Workplace Strategy and Design at KKS Savills, and chair of the NLA Expert Panel on Work. And with service charges escalating, it is not just housing but the provision of affordable workspaces is also still a key issue for London.

 

As a younger generation, Selasi Setufe MBE, Senior Architect and Innovative Sites Programme Manager at Be First, and chair of the NLA NextGen Sounding Board, made clear how policies that were brought forward a long time before them, and with little consultation, have a massive impact on young professionals. So, making sure we bring younger diverse voices into these conversations is very important. It is ultimately different lived experiences that will inform these discussions and how we will see these ambitions realised. The climate crisis is now a top priority because a younger generation has challenged what was accepted as the norm, supported Ashley Bateson. 

 

There is a real disconnect in the collective imagination of what the city should be, as Camilla Siggaard Andersen highlighted. The group then agreed that the built environment industry has here an opportunity to truly connect and influence the next Mayor’s vision of the city. 

 

The discussion came to an end – for now – and as Peter Murray OBE, Curator-in-chief at NLA, and chair of this session nicely put it, NLA’s network involves people who own land, people who design buildings, people who decide if they can go ahead or not, and people who build them – we bring people together to shape a better city as we like to say. With the New London Agenda, we want to make sure that in the next mayoral elections the built environment industry has not just a say but a joined-up silo-less vision of how London should be shaped going forward. And the NLA Expert Panels have a key role to play in it.