Devolution and local government reorganisation present opportunity and challenge in equal measure. Credit: PNW

Event Summary

Lancashire Development Update 2026 | Summary + gallery

4 February 2026 10:44 Dan Whelan Comments (0)

Attendees at Place North West’s Lancashire Development Update in Blackpool last week were told the county stands on the cusp on a new era and were urged to get behind its ambitious £20bn growth vision.

For too long, Lancashire has failed to punch its weight but, with devolution and local government reorganisation gathering pace, the time to invest is now, according to Mo Isap, chair of the Lancashire Business Board, who kicked off proceedings with a rousing speech.

Attendees were treated to a rousing speech from chair of the Lancashire Business Board Mo Isap, who insisted Lancashire is ‘united’. Credit: PNW

He called on the property professionals assembled in the room to get behind the county’s £20bn growth strategy, which sets out 12 key projects aimed at boosting the local economy.

Lancashire should unite to strive for a Manchester-style revival and build its own “symbols of prosperity”, alluding to the tall skyscrapers that have transformed the city’s skyline, Isap added.

Scroll to the bottom of the page for a gallery of images

Place North West’s 2026 instalment of the Lancashire Development Update was held at the IMAX in Blackpool and sponsored by Blackpool Council, Morgan Sindall Construction, and Roma Finance.

Expert speakers

Mo Isap, chair, Lancashire Business Board
Alex Gardiner, director, Metro Dynamics
Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader, Blackpool Council
Nick Mullins, co-founder, Axis Real Estate
James Scott, managing director, Maple Grove Developments
Chris Hayward, director of development & housing, Preston City Council
Ian Scott, chief executive officer, Ocasa Homes
John Winstanley, managing director for strategic land, Story Homes
Deborah Smith, managing director, Smith & Love
Saira Hussain, partner, HAD&Co
Les Warren, executive director, Progress Housing Group
Nick Gerrard, growth and prosperity programme director, Blackpool Council
John Pye, project director, Eden Project Morecambe

Attendees were treated to a rousing speech from chair of the Lancashire Business Board Mo Isap, who insisted Lancashire is ‘united’. Credit: PNW

A mayor with bags of cash

The first half of the event looked in depth at the current political landscape in Lancashire and examined the challenges and opportunities it throws up for the property sector and the wider economy.

The prospect of a mayor for Lancashire is looking more likely than ever. Having been reticent at first, the county now recognises the importance of having a “figurehead” to attract investment, according to Blackpool Council Leader Cllr Lynn Williams.
“I want to see that Lancashire mayor coming over the hill in 2028 with bags of cash,” she said. The two developers on the opening panel, Axis-RE’s Nick Mullins and Maple Grove Developments’ James Scott, agreed that they are having to become more and more creative to get schemes to stack up as a result of high land prices and economic headwinds.
Collaboration with their supply chains and the public sector and an ability to tap into various wells of funding are the minimum requirements for getting projects off the ground, they said. Preston City Council’s Hayward said that the Government Property Agency is due to make a decision this spring on whether to develop a civil service hub in the city’s station quarter. Plans were lodged last year for a 770,000 sq ft office scheme on land next to the Fishergate Shopping Centre that require a sizeable pre-let to make viable.
Gardiner said the “short-term upheaval” of local government reorganisation would be worth it in the long run. “If we can get to a situation where we end up with local authorities that can make decisions about local places that actually reflect how people live and work, I think that can be a benefit”, she said.

Public and private sector experts ran the rule over the county’s regeneration initiatives. Credit: PNW

Lancashire’s housing landscape

This panel explored Lancashire’s residential supply and demand dynamics and how changes to national planning policy to support Labour’s bid to build 1.5m homes by the end of the parliament are manifesting across Lancashire’s 14 boroughs.

Article 4 Directions that remove permitted development rights for some HMOs are having a positive impact on the quality of shared housing and weeding out rogue landlords, according to HAD&Co’s Saira Hussain. “[Inexperienced developers] see it as a problem, whereas the developers that have been doing it for quite some time…don’t see it as a hurdle to get over,” she said.

Deborah Smith, co-founder at Smith & Love Planning Consultants, gave an overview of the changes to national planning policy that could have a bearing on development in Lancashire. The reinstatement of concrete housing targets had plunged some local council’s into a housing land supply deficit, presenting opportunities for housebuilders, she said. However, for all of the positive changes, Smith said more objectivity around Grey Belt is required to give all parties certainty.

Changes to the Section 106 process aimed at making it easier for housing associations to acquire this type of housing are welcome but lacking in detail, Progress Housing’s Les Warren said. He also said it is important that certain types of housing don’t get forgotten about in the clamour to deliver. “In the conversation around housing and new supply, I think we need to make sure that supported and specialist extra care all gets properly covered,” he said.

John Winstanley of Story Homes said the easiest way to move the dial on the uptake of S106 homes would be to allow registered providers to use grant funding to acquire them. The current system does not allow this. Like his fellow panelists, Winstanley was positive about the government’s interventions over the last 18 months with regards to greasing the wheels of the housing sector. “This year will be our busiest year in terms of site starts, which is fantastic, because those national changes have unlocked sites,” he said.

Blackburn, Burnley, and Lancaster are among the Lancashire locations of interest to Ocasa Homes, a residential developer and asset manager providing mid-market rental properties in areas of high demand. “For us, it’s all about supply and demand imbalance, and it’s about investing in the right areas where we know we can fill buildings with the right customers and provide them with the with the residential service that people deserve,” said CEO Ian Scott.

The county’s residential market was under the spotlight during the second half of the conference. Credit: PNW

Blockbuster developments

Nick Gerrard, growth and prosperity programme director at Blackpool Council, and John Pye, project director at Eden Project Morecambe, closed out proceedings by providing updates on their respective projects.

In Blackpool, progress is being made on the £300m leisure-led regeneration of the former Blackpool Central station, following the collapse of former development partner Nikal, with the appointment for Newmark and The Leisureway to lead on the masterplanning process.

Meanwhile, the Silicon Sands data centre cluster at the Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone and the ongoing regeneration of the gateway to the town centre – including the innovative Multiversity initiative – continue to attract interest from both investors and occupiers.

The long-awaited and much-anticipated Eden Project Morecambe is expected to secure planning permission this month, paving the way for a possible start on site this year, following the appointment of a main contractor.

The scheme, which recently underwent a redesign, is seen as critical to the future of Morecambe’s economy, Pye said.