The Infrastructure Podcast

• Luton’s community-led airport with Nick Platts

  In this week's episode  we take a look at airport development and specifically how, contrary to popular believe, it can actually positively benefit local communities.To do this we are going to focus on Luton Rising, the community-owned owner of London Luton Airport and the driving force behind one of the UK’s most ambitious aviation expansion projects — a £2.4 billion investment that will increase capacity from 19 to 32 million passengers per year through the development of a second terminal. And at the heart of the plan is Nick Platts, Managing Director of Luton Rising. For the last two and a half years he has been immersed in this vast and ambitious project and used his experience from working in aviation and logistic around the world and last April successfully achieved a Design Consent Order – DCO for this important piece of Nationally Significant Infrastructure.But this is far more than a transport or infrastructure story. As the UK’s only 100% community-owned airport, Luton Rising channels its profits directly back into local services and community projects — over half a billion pounds since 1997.As such, the project represents not only a major boost for the regional economy — contributing an estimated £1.5 billion annually to GDP and creating thousands of jobs — but also a pioneering example of how growth, sustainability, and social value can align under public ownership.So lots to talk about as we explore what makes the Luton Rising model so distinctive, and how it navigated the complex Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project process, to get to the starting blocks ready to turn ambition into reality.ResourcesLuton Rising expansion plansLuton Rising websiteLondon Luton AirportLuton Rising DCO for expansionLuton Borough Council UK Government policy on airport expansion

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• Thinking neighbourhoods with Baroness Hilary Armstrong

  This week's special episode is a live recording in front of an audience in the newly revamped main gallery at the Building Centre in London. My guest is Baroness Hilary Armstrong of Hill Top, Chair of the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods and life-long advocate for communities and regeneration and the conversation explores one of the most important – yet often overlooked – questions in public policy: “how do we reestablish the concept of decent neighbourhoods as a means to renew the country from the ground up?”Some background: Baroness Armstrong has spent her career at the intersection of politics, policy and community life and today – from her work as a social worker in Sunderland ..to her time as a Cabinet Minister in the last Labour Government shaping the New Deal for Communities. A great platform to talk about what’s gone wrong in the past decade, what can be done now to bring new hope across Britain’s neighbourhoods.The Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods - ICON - is a cross-party initiative dedicated to understanding how neighbourhoods can drive national renewal and in the Spring is set to publish Think Neighbourhoods, its new report in why and how investment and focus on neighbourhoods can revitalise lives across the UK.And it certainly is a really interesting moment for housing. The government is pressing forward with its target to building 1.5 million new homes and – as we heard on the podcast last week - has just given the thumbs up to the New Towns Taskforce’s plans for 12 communities across the UK. Meanwhile, the post Grenfell fire challenge to build and retrofit homes to be safer, warmer and more carbon efficient, continues to grow.A tough brief for sure and ICON’s interim report - published last March - makes a compelling case for investment in and focus on neighbourhoods as part of this journey. It identifies over 600 ‘mission-critical neighbourhoods’ across the country – places where disadvantage, disconnection and declining social infrastructure are holding people back and calls for a radical shift in how government works, arguing that “thinking big means thinking neighbourhoods.”“if Britain wants to deliver the government’s missions and rebuild trust in politics,” it says, “it must start by investing in its neighbourhoods.”ResourcesThe Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods - ICONBaroness Hilary Armstrong of Hill TopInterim Report – Think NeighbourhoodsICON’s summer progress reportICON's lates research on what is happening in England’s neighbourhoodsThe Building Centre, Store Street, London 

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• New towns: laying the foundations with Lord Ben Gascoigne

  In this week's episode we focus on New Towns and specifically the government’s on-going ambitions to tackle the UK’s housing crisis through the creation of a new generation of communities across England. Now Britain’s housing crisis is not new — but the scale of the Government’s ambition to tackle it is. With a target to deliver 1.5 million homes over the next Parliament, the focus is turning to how this can be achieved in a way that creates thriving, sustainable communities rather than disconnected housing estates.In September the government accepted the findings of the New Towns Taskforce and committed to working on ideas for up to 12 New Towns through the work of the New Towns Unit – with a consultation planned for the Spring. So some progress but lots to do.And to discuss the challenge, I am joined today by Lord Ben Gascoigne, chair of the House of Lords Built Environment Committee who will talk us through the findings of the committee’s s latest report, New Towns: Laying the FoundationsThis argues that the UK cannot achieve its new town and housing ambitions without decisive national leadership and long-term commitment from central government. It calls for a dedicated cabinet-level minister and a new national delivery agency to oversee a programme of development corporations that are capable of building this new generation of well-planned, infrastructure-led towns.At the heart of the report lies a message that echoes across decades of British planning history — that success demands vision, coordination, and patience. But in today’s fiscal climate and fragmented planning landscape, those qualities are harder than ever to muster.ResourcesNew Towns: Laying the FoundationsHouse of Lords Built Environment CommitteeLord Ben GascoigneNew Towns Taskforce report Sept 25Government response Sept 25

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• Data transforming infrastructure with James Lee

  In this week's episode we’re taking a closer look at infrastructure’s use of data – how emerging digital technologies and AI tools are shaping and transforming the way we manage our built and natural environment.To help me I am joined by James Lee, the new Chief Operating Officer at global infrastructure giant Bentley Systems in a quiet corner of the annual Year in Infrastructure tech gathering and celebration in Amsterdam.  It is clearly a moment when global infrastructure delivery faces unprecedented pressures — from net zero targets and climate resilience; to skills shortages and digital transformation.And as we have been hearing at the event, Bentley stands at the intersection of engineering and innovation with a mission “to close the gap between what the world demands and what we are able to deliver – as chief executive Nicolas Cumins puts it.So a lot to chat through with James today. He joins Bentley after a two-decade career spanning Google Cloud and SAP and so, I think, brings a unique perspective on operational challenges, AI integration, and the power of partnerships to drive transformation at scale.Let’s explore how James plans to align these innovations with the realities of infrastructure delivery.ResourcesBentley Systems Year in InfrastructureBentley Systems websiteInfrastructure Policy Advancement - TIPLive summitsGoogle Cloud

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• Architecture for public good with Chris Williamson

  In today’s episode we turn our attention to architecture and its role in shaping not just our buildings and infrastructure, but the society, environment and communities that are created by our built environment.To tackle this challenging brief, I am joined this week in a quiet corner of the Building Centre in London by Chris Williamson, internationally renowned architect, founder of Weston Williamson + Partners – the practice that he set up in 1985 - and the freshly installed new President of the Royal Institute of British Architects – RIBA.Chris is a man with a bold vision to reshape the profession and reshape RIBA, an organisation which has been a cornerstone for architecture for nearly two centuries. But today, the institution faces serious questions about its relevance, its purpose, and how it can adapt to meet the needs of a fast-changing world. And as issues like climate resilience, community engagement, and professional diversity take centre stage, there is growing pressure for RIBA to evolve — to become more accessible, more influential, and more impactful.But to honest, it’s a challenge that Chris has been immersed in for his whole career, having worked on a huge portfolio of infrastructure projects, including notably the Jubilee Line extension station at London Bridge, Elizabeth Line stations at Paddington and Woolwich, the Melbourne Metro Tunnel project plus many urban regeneration projects, such as the Arden Cross masterplan in the West Midlands.All of this work has emphasised Chris’s focus on the design of spaces that are not only functional but are sustainable and, crucially, enjoyable for people.In his presidential nomination bid, Chris promised big change – in his first 100 days he vowed to review the 2021 RIBA Masterplan to create a more purposeful institution that leads on sustainability, champions diverse routes into the profession, delivers lifelong learning, and rebuilds public trust in architecture as a force for societal progress.So what does that future look like? What will it take to deliver meaningful reform? And how can architects once again be seen — not just as designers of buildings — but as stewards of a better, fairer, more sustainable world?ResourcesWeston Williamson + Partners websiteRoyal Institute of British Architects – RIBA websiteChris Williams elected RIBA PresidentChris Williamson's presidential bidThe Stirling PrizeChris on “Your Architect” by Derek SeniorRIBA amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill

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