Building Weekly Digest - 1 August 2025
Building Magazine
The UK's leading magazine for construction professionals featuring the latest industry news, expertise and intelligence.
As we come towards the end of another week, here is a recap of some of the finest features and comment pieces that we have published on the Building website over the past few days:
Nansledan: can design codes and long-term stewardship deliver better housing?
Mary Richardson visited Nansledan, the The Duchy Of Cornwall ’s urban extension to Newquay in Cornwall. While its traditional architecture divides opinion, she finds that the project raises important questions about planning and designing new housing at scale
So where does this leave us? Perhaps only royal patronage could have delivered these developments. Privilege? Check. But it’s what you do with it that counts. And, as housing is the social crisis of our age – and underlying cause of a myriad of related economic issues – a focus on model housing schemes looks like a good use of prerogative. The delivery of high-quality, mixed-tenure housing for thousands is surely legacy-worthy. As for the aesthetics of the place: I went to Cornwall secretly hoping for something resembling Portmeirion. And Portmeirion II it is not. This is more sensible, practical – replicable. But, despite all the rules, the faux-traditional buildings are light-hearted and loveable. Yes, loveable.
Ahead of a £1.5bn development, Populo Living shares its plan to boost regeneration in Newham
In 2018, a new mayor tasked Newham’s housing company with building more affordable homes. Seven years later, it’s getting ready for its biggest scheme yet. Daniel Gayne headed to east London to find out more…
The successes and failures of 1960s estate development are far more obvious to us today than they were to the architects, developers and councils of the day. It may be another half century before a real judgment can be passed on what Populo Living is doing in Newham but for now all they can do is focus on their mission as senior communications manager Duncan Hayes describes it to me: “More, better.”
A good start but there’s a lot more work to do: road testing the national infrastructure pipeline
Effective management of expectations is a key element of a successful product launch. Simon Rawlinson of Arcadis believes NISTA has set itself a massive task with the introduction of the new pipeline
The first positive that stands out is that the database aims to be very comprehensive. Data from 40 organisations has been collected so far, and the exemplary contribution from Gatwick airport describing its forward programme demonstrates the power of combining private and public sector investment opportunities. Including the private sector creates a big challenge for the NISTA team, however: the data collecting will require a lot of effort and the database can never truly be comprehensive. The pipeline cannot be a substitute for a leads database.
The government must be brutal in reducing planning burdens to help SME housebuilders deliver
There is no chance of meeting the 1.5 million homes target without smaller firms delivering. This government should be bolder in reforming planning to help them do it, argues Paul Smith , managing director at The Strategic Land Group
The Competition and Markets Authority’s recent housebuilding market study noted how “the complexity and cost of the planning system” is “disproportionately impacting SME housebuilders.” According to the CMA, securing permission for sites of between 100 and 500 homes costs around £1,500 per home. For sites of 50 homes or less, that figure rises to £3,500 per home. A recent consultation on site size thresholds is the government’s attempt to address this. As the consultation observed, “reducing risks and costs, and removing barriers to entry is key to supporting the government’s ambitions for a reformed housebuilding system, with SMEs playing a leading role”. Having identified the weight of regulation as the problem, it is perhaps surprising that the proposals then fail to do very much about it.
Why procurement reform has taken decades – and why now is different
Calls for change are nothing new in our industry, but now we really do have the tools and the need to make it happen, says Rider Levett Bucknall RLB 's Paul Beeston
The industry has rightly moved on from the days of long weights and stripey paint – but our tolerance for inertia over procurement reform lingers. That must end. We now have the tools, the data, and (crucially) the context to act. Clients are demanding more, and the supply chain is ready to respond. If we embed clear information requirements and use data to drive performance, we can finally shift from process to outcome.
Latest CPD modules:
Sponsored by MSA - The Safety Company, this CPD explores best practice for safe access and egress when working at height, highlighting key legislation, designer responsibilities and the role of informed decision-making in improving worker safety.
Sponsored by ROCKWOOL UK®, this CPD module explores the roof as the building’s fifth facade – highlighting its functional potential and critical role in meeting fire safety regulations, then unpacks the relevant guidance and legislative requirements to be met.
This module, sponsored by LandTech, provides built environment professionals with a clear and practical understanding of the evolving Green Belt policy landscape, with a focus on identifying and assessing grey belt sites for sustainable development.
Sponsored by Solarlux, this module explores the design, specification and performance considerations for bi-fold and sliding door systems. From material choices and thermal efficiency to security standards and installation best practice, specifiers will be able to choose these systems confidently.
Sponsored by URSA (part of the Etex Group), this module explores how glass mineral wool insulation supports sustainable construction by reducing carbon emissions and improving energy performance – covering its environmental benefits, technical performance and practical applications, and showing how it helps architects meet ambitious regulatory and design targets.
Interested in partnering with us on CPD content? Find out more here
Summer special price for Building the Future 2025 on now
The agenda is live and the speakers are being announced for the CPD-certified Building the Future Conference 2025 — and time to be in attendance at our most ambitious programme yet on a summer special ticket is running out!
Ticket prices will be going up from the end of the month so snap them up before the price rise!
From building safety and sustainability to funding, skills, and housing, this year’s conference brings together the sector’s sharpest minds to shape what’s next for UK construction.
📍 2 October 2025 | 155 Bishopsgate, London 🎟️ Summer special prices until 31 AUGUST
Interested in partnering with us at the Building the Future conference? Find out more here
Building Awards tables selling fast
The Building Awards are back at Grosvenor House Hotel on Tuesday 4 November 2025 and tables are on sale now, and now the finalists have been revealed tables are selling fast!
Shortlists for 20 of the 22 categories have been revealed and you can find out everyone in the running for the prestigious titles here.
So now is your chance to secure your slot and take the opportunity to celebrate and network with the industry's shining lights!
Questions? Contact buildingawards@assemblemediagroup.co.uk and speak to the team
Interested in partnering with us at the Building Awards? Find out more here
Unpacking the ongoing impact of the Building Safety Act on housing and construction in the Midlands
Sponsored by: Gleeds and Fenwick Elliott LLP
As the Building Safety Act (BSA) continues to reshape the construction and housing landscape across the UK, the Midlands is feeling its effects acutely.
This is a region undergoing ambitious regeneration, with major urban centres such as Birmingham pushing forward on complex housing, social infrastructure and commercial developments.
But with new legislation comes new responsibilities – and a fresh set of challenges.
To explore these issues, Building convened a roundtable in Birmingham as part of the Building the Future Think Tank, chaired by the magazine’s architectural editor Ben Flatman.
Interested in content partnership opportunities? Find out more here
These are some of the top news stories produced by our reporting team this week: