What is purdah?
The pre-election period can be problematic for those looking to bring forward development.
Making the most of social to engage communities
Gone are the assumptions that online-only campaigns will bypass ‘hard-to-reach’ groups.
Is Lancashire about to break the mould of devolution in the North?
After several years of deadlock, political leaders across Lancashire are on the cusp of agreeing a bid calling for devolution of £5.6bn to the county.
Should we level-up parish councils in 2022?
Do you have a town or parish council? Do you know what it does and who sits on it?
A stumble towards net zero
For those interested in how the UK is going to meet its 2050 decarbonisation targets, Christmas came early this week.
Labour conference: everything you need to know from a trip to the seaside
There is plenty for built environment professionals to take notice of following Sir Keir Starmer’s first in-person leader’s speech, where he offered up a “serious plan for Government”.
Seven principles for engaging with neurodiversity
Great minds don't all think alike. Over 15% of the UK is neurodivergent, and when we plan community engagement events, we need to recognise this.
Councillor attitudes to net zero and the climate crisis
We commissioned polling to test the attitudes of elected councillors and MPs to the climate emergency and how property should be part of the UK's response.
What can we expect from this year’s local elections?
Voters across the North West will go to the polls on 6 May, in what will be the UK’s largest set of local elections since 1973.
Welcome to the political circus
The race for Labour’s Liverpool Mayoral candidacy has been thrown into chaos.
How much longer can we cope with Zoomocracy?
A recent infamous video that I'm sure you have seen throws a spotlight on whether the move towards virtual council meetings is good for democracy in the long term.
Will 2021 be the year Garden Communities finally bloom?
It’s fair to say Garden Communities did not have a vintage 2020. Some question whether the Government's ambition to deliver the 49 sites is realistic.
Will they, won’t they? Looking ahead to the 2021 local elections
As we enter 2021, we've looked ahead to May and what the local elections can mean for the North West.
How powerful will Manchester’s recovery be?
Manchester City Council recently set out its plan for how the city will kickstart economic recovery after the crisis caused by the pandemic.
What do councillors really think about Planning for the Future?
Councils across the North West are considering their responses to the Government’s proposed reforms to the planning system, with some describing the Planning for the Future White Paper as “fundamentally undemocratic” as reported by Place North West here. To gauge the response to the proposed reforms, BECG commissioned Savanta ComRes to interview 315 English Councillors, […]
DevoLancs: A step closer to the North West’s next elected mayor?
According to Regional Growth Minister Simon Clarke MP, “the greatest decentralisation of power in our modern history” is going to hit the region’s politicians in the autumn.
Let’s talk about home
The recent Design Council report, A Public Vision for the Home of 2030, makes for fascinating reading as we see new housing developments start to come forward again.
Reflections from a virtual world
All it took for the development industry and local authorities to embrace digital technologies was a global health pandemic.
Towards a post-Covid world
As we head into another three weeks of lockdown to tackle the coronavirus outbreak, it seems the time is right to start thinking about what the world could look like in the future.
Selected industry experts bring you insight and expert advice, across a range of sectors.
Subscribe for free to receive our fortnightly round-up of property tips and expertise
Selected industry experts bring you insight and expert advice, across a range of sectors.
Subscribe for free to receive our fortnightly round-up of property tips and expertise