Regeneration moving from vision to delivery
2nd - 6th March 2026
Green light for Bradford City Village regeneration scheme
If there was a single theme running through this week’s stories, it was confidence in both projects and in place.
From Liverpool’s waterfront to Bradford’s former retail core, from Fareham’s logistics belt to Edinburgh’s BioQuarter, the message is clear: development is being reshaped through regeneration with intent
Liverpool dominated the week with two major moves. Planning approval for the 28-storey pathfinder at King Edward Triangle signals the first visible step in a long-term waterfront transformation. At the same time, the Pumpfields & Limekilns masterplan sets out a framework for more than 7,000 homes on the northern edge of the city centre.
What’s notable here is the sequencing. Legal groundwork, land assembly, planning frameworks, Mayoral Development Corporation powers, all being put into place. These moves demonstrate a structured approach to de-risk and accelerate delivery.
Bradford’s City Village approval fits the same pattern. A former commercial core becomes a residential-led neighbourhood, backed by public funding and combined authority support. Demolition of ageing retail centres will make way for townhouses first, not towers, signalling a deliberate, phased approach to density. This is regeneration moving from concept to execution.
Logistics demand remains structural
In Fareham, Royal London Asset Management Property and Graftongate’s £140m industrial scheme reinforces a trend we’ve seen repeatedly: institutional capital is still targeting high-quality logistics in core locations.
Flexible unit sizing, including the ability to accommodate a 550,000 sq ft single occupier, reflects occupier requirements for scale. BREEAM Outstanding targets underline that sustainability is quickly becoming a standard deliverable in the sector.
The South Coast remains supply-constrained. Delivery in 2028 may sound distant, but in development terms that pipeline is already being priced in.
Office markets: tight supply, selective confidence
The City of London’s skyline CGI was more than a promotional tool ahead of MIPIM, it is a data point on the City’s ongoing journey.
Half a million square metres of office space was approved in 2025. Thirty major schemes are under construction. New-build vacancy is at 0.1%. Those numbers matter in a market that is sometimes framed as ‘uncertain’. But what we are seeing is that prime, sustainable Grade A space continues to lease, and planners are responding accordingly.
The message from the Square Mile is clear: demand is real, but only for the right product.
Science-led healthcare infrastructure
NHS Lothian’s appointment of Kier for the new Eye Hospital at the Edinburgh BioQuarter highlights another structural shift: healthcare buildings are increasingly viewed and developed as science and technology assets.
Located alongside research facilities and specialist hospitals, the new ophthalmic centre will form part of an integrated clinical and research campus. This is healthcare infrastructure as innovation infrastructure: purpose-built, specialist, future-facing.
Science and healthcare estates are becoming a distinct development sector in their own right.
Building safety: culture still catching up
Finally, the industry’s renewed push on Building Safety Act compliance signals something more uncomfortable.
Three years after the Act came into force, guidance is still being issued to remind clients of their duties. The coalition behind BESA’s Clients’ Guide suggests frustration that procurement culture has not fully shifted. The warning is blunt: downstream controls cannot compensate for poor decisions at client level.
As some in the industry have already recognised, safety reform is no longer about legislation - it’s about behaviour. Others must catch up quickly.
The bigger picture
This week shows a sector that is active, but increasingly focused on smooth delivery of high-quality outputs to meet client demands.
* Regeneration schemes being structured for accelerated delivery.
* Logistics and prime office markets are backed by institutional capital where fundamentals are strong.
* Science and healthcare infrastructure continues to rise in strategic importance.
* Regulatory reform is forcing a long-overdue recalibration of risk and responsibility.
Confidence is present in the construction and property markets, but it is targeted, and conditional on meeting high quality standards. And that may be the most important signal of all.
