The development industry has endured tumultuous times over the last few years – a sluggish economy exacerbated by high and now sticky inflation, high build costs and a sharp increase in intertest rates, building regulatory pressures and a previous Government that flip-flopped over planning policy.

The coming of the Labour Government last summer heralded a lot of positive sounds with the loudest notes chiming to 'Get Britain building again!'. Whilst the ambition of delivering 1.5M new homes this parliament is just that, ambitious, the sentiment is setting sights in the right direction. And, since December, the Government has begun to follow through with Planning reform. Significant policy and guidance updates in the NPPF and NPPG have been made, as has legislative substance in last week's Planning & Infrastructure Bill, the ring fencing of planning fees being one of the most welcomed introductions, with more indicated to come (see National Development Management Policies, etc).

All of this is stirring a quiet sense of optimism amongst the development industry. Indeed, so far in 2025 we at CarneySweeney have been hearing phones ring and emails ping to plenty of new enquiries. This undertone suggests a building of momentum as we head toward UKREiiF 2025. Several of our Directors will be attending and look forward to sharing thoughts and ideas over what the future will bring with our esteemed industry peers.

Should you wish to meet with any of our attendees please make contact via the below: