VIDEO | How can rail unlock Northern growth?

The latest episode of Scheming sees Place sit down with the managing director of Muse, one of the country’s leading authorities on regeneration.

The £2.5bn Crescent Salford masterplan is one of the country’s largest and most ambitious regeneration schemes. Project partners ECF, Salford City Council, and the University of Salford are hard at work turning the vision into a reality for the benefit of local people.

The introduction of the Building Safety Act has added layers of complexity and red-tape to the construction and development process. This mega-roundtable, gathered together by Project Four, discussed the challenges involved with the new legislation and what the industry needs to do moving forward.

The built environment is a major contributor to global carbon emissions, and refurbishing and retrofitting existing structures is crucial to achieving net zero targets. This roundtable, convened by DeSimone Consulting Engineering, brought together developers, architects, and real estate experts to discuss the pros and cons of breathing new life into a building.

Place North’s invitation-only briefing on the Wednesday morning at UKREiiF explored one of the biggest and most enduring obstacles the property and development industry is seeking to overcome – society’s distrust of the sector.

Is the shed market staring down the barrel of a supply crisis? How are turbulent Trump tariffs impacting the sector? In a world now underpinned by AI, is this the time for Atom Valley and data centres to shine? All of this and more was on the agenda at Place North West’s 2025 North West Industrial and Logistics conference.

What ‘Liberation Day’ means for Northern property. Plus: The rise and fall and rise again of Brendan Flood.

Like many local authorities across the country, Bury Council is on a mission to breathe new life into its town centres. Chief executive Lynne Ridsdale spoke to Place North West about how her organisation is funding that vision.

The regeneration of Manchester United’s Old Trafford stadium and the land around it presents arguably the biggest opportunity for transformation the borough has ever seen. The council and its partners discussed how to maximise the potential of that project and others in the pipeline.

Intimate networking events, hard-hitting panel discussions with industry leaders, and high-energy activation sessions make up Place North’s diverse and engaging programme for the 2025 edition of the international property expo.

“Blackpool has already made great waves in regeneration, so why not invest here?” said Emma Ratcliffe, head of business development for the North West at Morgan Sindall Construction as the firm heads to MIPIM as one of the council’s trusted delivery partners.

Small and medium sized housebuilders are uniquely placed to play a starring role in addressing the UK’s housing crisis and contribute to the government’s ambitious homes target, according to Andrew Evans and John Wybar of VM Finance.

“You can say you heard about them before they were cool,” was the tempting introduction at the 2025 North West Emerging Development Hotspots conference in Manchester, where sleepy seaside towns, underperforming town centres and rural idylls ripe for development were all being showcased.

What will happen if planning can no longer be blamed for the lack of viability in housing schemes? Plus: Greater Manchester’s game of Cluedo and office-to-resi pivots

The construction firm’s managing director Paul Dodsworth chatted to Place North West about its expansion plans, thriving in a volatile market, and why the company is going to MIPIM 2025.

The construction industry has remained unchanged for far too long. It is still one of the least diverse sectors in the UK, and that must change, writes Renee Preston, founder of Construction for Women.

Cyber security, Preston’s “limitless” ambition, and the county’s exceptional digital connections were high on the agenda at Place North West’s Lancashire Development Update, held at Preston’s Guild Hall. Education, skills, and the need to develop a workforce to enable growth also took centre stage.

Whisper it, but against a backdrop of economic doom and gloom, could the slow pace of the Northern property market’s lower prices be its secret power? Plus: Socially minded pension funds and dead cats.

Respondents to a recent survey conducted by the lender are finding it tough to deliver in the current market. However, the government’s pro-growth agenda has given the sector an injection of optimism, attendees at a special event heard last night.