Thriving Towns and
Urban Centres

A cosmopolitan three-city region consisting of Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton, the West Midlands’ vibrant cities have achieved substantial success in attracting international capital investment into real estate. As this global investor interest continues to grow, it is now the turn of the West Midlands’ thriving towns and boroughs to catch the eye.

As the need for housing in our cities continues to rise, so do the opportunities for our towns to fulfil excess demand. New schemes like the £210m Willenhall Garden City – set to create 500 homes in Walsall – will have a new railway station with direct links to Birmingham and Wolverhampton, while Sandwell’s new 800-home Grove Lane development is less than five miles away from the centre of the UK’s second city.

Huge levels of investment in transport infrastructure are driving investor interest, further enhancing our status as the UK’s best-connected region. Geographically positioned at the heart of the UK’s motorway network, 90% of the UK’s population is accessible within a four-hour drive of the West Midlands, while High-Speed 2 (HS2) will put the region within just 38 minutes of London. Towns are also benefitting from cuts in local travel times via the introduction of the new Midlands Metro – which is connecting towns like West Bromwich to Birmingham in just 14 minutes – and rapid bus services, while new railway stations have opened or are in planning across the West Midlands. Transport links across the region are only set to get better, with new transport infrastructure at the core of several of the region’s ambitious Town Centre Masterplans.

Access to funding has been at the heart of this transformation, enabling the creation of major investment opportunities. The West Midlands has been hugely successful in securing UK Government funding to spark significant and transformative change across our towns and cities. Since 2018, over £1bn in devolved housing and land funds has been secured, enabling us to tackle key viability challenges, de-risk regeneration opportunities and prioritise brownfield development. Money from the UK Government’s £1bn ‘Long-Term Plan for Towns’ fund, has enabled local authorities to develop long-term strategies to invest and regenerate their area based on the needs of the local community. Bilston, Dudley, Darlaston and Smethwick have all been awarded £20m each to be used over the next ten years.

It’s a pivotal time to invest and play a part in the next chapter of our success story.

David Rudlin

Director of Urban Design at Building Design Partnership (BDP)

David is a leading urban designer in the UK, the Director of Urban Design at BDP, past chair of the Academy of Urbanism, winner of the 2014 Wolfson Economics Prize and principal author of the Government’s National Model Design Code.

He manages urban design and masterplan projects across the UK, focussing on the north, and is chair of the Urban design profession across BDP’s offices worldwide. Prior to joining BDP David was principal of Urbanism Environment and Design, one of the UK’s longest standing urban design practices.

In 2023, he published a book called, High Street: How our town centres can bounce back from the retail crisis.

HEAR FROM DAVID:

Thriving Towns in a 3-City Region
21/05/2024 | 10:00 am – 10:45 am

As demand for new homes in cities begins to exceed supply, the spillover effect into neighbouring historic towns risks the erosion of strong and unique community identities.

Join David and a panel of experts to address the challenges around delivering housing and social infrastructure that, while enabling urban development, still retains and builds on those distinct identities. David will be joined by:

Emma Bennett, Chief Executive at Walsall County Council
Samantha Veal, Director at Igloo Regeneration
Stuart Penn, Regional Managing Director at Lovell Partnerships

DON’T MISS:

Town Centre Regeneration – Breakfast Networking Session
22/05/2024 | 8:00 am – 9:00 am

Affordable Housing: New & Future Delivery Models
22/05/2024 | 3:30 pm – 4:15 pm

View Full Event Programme

MEET THE WEST MIDLANDS

Stay ahead at UKREiiF: unlock exclusive insights, expert views, and exciting developments from the West Midlands.

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Major Town Centre Regeneration Schemes in the West Midlands

Walsall Town Centre Masterplan

Worth circa £500m, Walsall’s Town Centre Masterplan is set to transform the existing 116-hectare area into the United Kingdom’s healthiest town centre.

Creating 900 homes, 3,000 jobs and an exciting new Creative Quarter, the plan will position Walsall as the town of choice for visitors with a reimagined, bold new town centre offering.

Mell Square Solihull

Mell Square is a critical component in Solihull Council’s Town Centre Masterplan, with its planned wholesale transformation set to result in an improved retail offer, expanded nighttime economy and the creation of new, mixed residential neighbourhood.

Developed in collaboration with Muse, the regeneration of Mell Square will reinforce Solihull’s reputation as an attractive destination for shopping, business and leisure.

West Bromwich Town Centre

Sandwell Council’s West Bromwich Town Centre Masterplan has secured a £25m Town Deal to support its exciting regeneration strategy which is set to unlock economic growth and boost long-term prosperity for the town.

Taking advantage of the new metro providing rapid travel into Birmingham City Centre, plans for high-quality public realm, residential units & commercial facilities are underway, developing an active, vibrant and sustainable town centre.

Leamington’s Creative Quarter

Complex Development Projects (CDP) is working in partnership with Warwick District Council to deliver an ambitious 10-year Creative Quarter initiative to regenerate the Old Town of Leamington Spa, a beautiful, historic and affluent spa town in the middle of Warwickshire.

The Old Town of Leamington Spa is being regenerated as a new Creative Quarter, reimagining the oldest part of the town to provide a focal point for the town’s booming cultural sector. Schemes will offer exciting new and regenerated spaces for people to live, work, play and create, delivering the key elements of the urban lifestyle that are fundamental to further expanding one of the UK’s leading creative clusters.

Interested in Town Centre Regeneration?

Talk directly to representatives of our Local Authorities about town centre regeneration at our Breakfast Session at UKREiiF on Wednesday 22^nd May from 8:00 am – 9:30 am.

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KEY ANNOUNCEMENTS

12/22/2023
Designs revealed for £11m overhaul of Walsall town centre

Construction on Walsall Council’s 11.4m Connected Gateway project is set to start this spring, to boost footfall in the town.

Funded through the Future High Streets fund and investment from Walsall Council, the project is part of the borough’s 1.5bn programme of investment that will create more than 4,000 jobs and build over 1,000 new homes.

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