As we come to the end of the year and reflect on 2023, it’s fair to say that the West End has defied expectations despite the considerable challenges. Its streets are packed and business appears to be booming. But there are some underlying issues which are a cause for concern.
High quality, sustainable office space is in chronically short supply, driving rents up, whilst major planning applications in Westminster have fallen 75% over the past six years – a sure sign that investment is being held back.
Whilst it is too early for New Year resolutions, resolving this paradox is a key priority for the WPA. The current partial review of Westminster’s City Plan is tasked with enabling sustainable new development alongside a host of environmental, social and economic policy objectives. Last week we invited our members to a draft webinar with the Planning Team at the Council on their draft Retrofit First and Embodied Carbon policy. (see news updates below)
It’s imperative the Council gets the balance right, and the WPA will continue to provide its insight and expertise on behalf of members.
We are also continuing to work closely with Westminster City Council on a number of other fronts. The Sustainable City Charter is now on 51 signatories and represents over 28 million square feet of commercial space. We have also signed a £250,000, three-year partnership with Young Westminster Foundation to help support young people from under-represented groups and disadvantaged areas into potential careers in real estate. This fund was made possible by several leading WPA member companies. To get involved or for more information please get in touch with us here.
On behalf of the WPA Board and Executive team, I want to thank all our members and stakeholders for your continued support. Highlights of our activity and impact over the year are below, along with further news updates.
Have a great Christmas and New Year break, and we look forward to seeing you after the festive period at some of our forthcoming events.
Charles Begley
WPA Chief Executive
Events
Join us for a New Year breakfast seminar reviewing central London’s office, residential and retail property markets. Our expert speakers will discuss the biggest changes and trends seen across the West End, City and Fringe markets, including the market outlook and opportunities and challenges ahead. Panellists will be announced shortly.
Date: Wednesday 17 January 2024
Time: 8:00am – 10:00am
Location: Mishcon de Reya, Africa House, 70 Kingsway, WC2B 6AH
NextGen members are invited to our winter networking event for London’s young property professionals. Join us at Sheppard Robson’s Camden Town headquarters for drinks to welcome in the New Year and an opportunity to meet with your industry peers. Please do encourage your rising talent (up to 10 years experience) to sign up to our series of NextGen activity by emailing nextgen@cwpa.org.uk. Antonia Jennings, the new Chief Executive of Centre for London, will deliver a keynote address on why young Londoners matter to the city’s economic success.
Hosted at The Londoner Hotel, Leicester Square, our Annual Dinner is the perfect opportunity for WPA members to enjoy an exclusive evening of entertainment with industry peers, celebrating Westminster’s built environment.
Members can purchase a table of 10 or individual tickets. Please note the ticket price now includes five bottles of wine per table of 10, with members able to purchase additional drinks on the night.
Our keynote speaker will be announced in due course.
Date: Thursday 18 April 2023
Time: 7.00pm-late
Venue: The Londoner, 50 Whitcomb Street, WC2H 7DY
Ticket Price: £350.00 per person (Includes champagne reception and half bottle of wine per person)
Westminster City Council's draft Retrofit First and Embodied Carbon policy
Nearly 100 WPA members joined a webinar hosted by the City Council last week on its draft Retrofit First and Embodied Carbon policy as part of an informal engagement before formal publication and consultation next year. The proposed new policy will prioritise the retrofit of commercial development over demolition and redevelopment by:
Introducing controls on demolition through a series of tests;
Setting benchmarks for embodied carbon for major schemes, and when substantial or total demolition is proposed;
Unlocking and promoting retrofit, including by supporting the extension of buildings to facilitate retrofit.
The WPA will provide feedback on behalf of our members and we would encourage as many members as possible to submit their own responses to Planningpolicy@westminster.gov.uk by Friday 22 December regardless of whether or not you attended the online discussion. If you have any comments for inclusion in WPA’s feedback, please email andrea.williams@cwpa.org.uk.
You can view the slides from the webinar here and view the draft policy here. We will publish our response online on Thursday 21 December.
Publications:
London’s Knowledge Clusters: From Emerging to Maturing
Following our 2018 report about the emergence of ‘Knowledge Clusters’ in the capital, this timely update explores the emergence of new hubs for science and innovation.
Global Cities Survey and Global Cities: A Focus on New York
London Property Alliance’s quarterly surveys in January, March, June and October tracked London’s economic performance against its key global city peers, along with a special focus comparing London and New York last month.
The Crossrail Effect: How the Elizabeth line is transforming the capital
Released one year after the opening of the Elizabeth line, this report explores the network’s impact on central London’s built environment and economy. Market data and analysis was conducted by Knight Frank. Read the full report here.
Sustainable City Charter
One year after its launch, WPA and Westminster City Council’s Sustainable City Charter has been signed by over 50 of Westminster’s leading businesses representing 28 million sq ft of commercial floorspace, with a further 75 expressions of interest. To find out how you can get involved in delivering a cleaner and greener Westminster, click here.
Key policy and consultations
WPA has continued to support the interests of its members throughpolicy responses at local, London and national level. In Westminster this includes warning against proposals for a near 10-fold increase in carbon offset fees and other policies contained in a new SPD; commenting on the council’s draft Statement ofCommunity Involvement; and supporting long-awaited plans to upgrade Oxford St.
Additionally, as the London Property Alliance (on behalf of both WPA and CPA) we have set out our position in response to the Secretary of State’s intervention on Marks & Spencer’s plans for its Oxford St store, as well as calling on the Office for Budget Responsibility to reintroducetax-free shopping for visitors in the UK.
From 17 January 2024,Cllr Ryan Jude will be replacing Cllr Tim Roca who has resigned from the Cabinet after his selection as a parliamentary candidate for Macclesfield. Cllr Jude will become Cabinet Member for Climate, Ecology and Culture.
West Fitzrovia has been successful in its BID ballot result. This takes the number of BIDs in the borough to 18. The West Fitzrovia BID will commence from 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2028.
Planning application fees for major applications will rise by 35% this month while all other applications will increase by 25%. Read our response to the planning fees performance consultation here.
Plan to move government roles out of Westminster brought forward
The plans to relocate 22,000 roles out of London have been moved forward from 2030 to 2027. Aberdeen, Darlington and Greater Manchester have been chosen to host second headquarters for major departments.
Oxford Street Programme - complementary schemes update
The three complementary schemes set out in the Oxford Street Programme have had their funding approach and design approved by Westminster City Council Cabinet. These schemes seek to extend the public realm benefits on Oxford Street into adjacent neighbourhoods.
To ensure residents are at the heart of key decisions around building safety and in line with the Building Safety Act, Westminster City Council has opened its Building Safety Survey to Westminster residents. The results of this consultation will help to influence the Council's resident engagement strategy for high-rise buildings. The survey closes on Friday 26 January 2024.
Chief Executive of Westminster City Council, Stuart Love, has won the Inclusive Awards' CEO of the year award for his "outstanding leadership, innovation and commitment" to equity, diversity and inclusion.
Westminster City Council’s Morgan Cheung received a ‘Rising Star’ award at the inaugural Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) recognition list 2023. The Rising Stars awards recognises planners from ethnic minority communities in the first 10 years of their careers who have made contributions to the planning profession.
Both WPA and CPA members have access to our comprehensive database of all major decisions from central London's major planning committees. These can be viewed on our Planning News page.
For more details on all of the property news stories in the central London boroughs over the last seven days please visit the news section of the London Planning website.
Westminster Property Association, 10 Bloomsbury Way, Bloomsbury, London WC1A 2SL, United Kingdom
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