FUTURE CITIES FORUMTM

Image: View looking west over housing and business parks in east Oxford and Headington fringes - courtesy Advanced Research Clusters Future Cities Forum is delighted that David Butler, Head of Planning at Oxford City Council, will be speaking at our 'Science Cities' forum at the Cohen Quad, Exeter College, Oxford, this September. Oxford City Council has announced that the seven councils in the region will be re-organised into three unitary councils by 2028, with each council

Image: CGI from RKD of data centre campus development in Hertfordshire at South Mimms (courtesy Equinix) Leader of Hertsmere Borough Council, Cllr Jeremy Newmark, is joining Future Cities Forum's 'Data Centres - planning, district integration and sustainability' forum this month, to discuss the Council's approved £4bn project to build one of Europe's largest data centres within the London commuter belt. Hertsmere Borough Council has described its project as one which will lea

Image: 4000 Discovery Drive, Cambridge Biomedical Campus - courtesy Scott Brownrigg / Prologis GSK plc has announced plans to establish a major new global R&D centre in Cambridge, UK, as part of the company’s plan to accelerate its R&D pipeline. The new 300,000 square foot site, on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus in the heart of the UK’s life sciences “Golden Triangle,” will be home to GSK’s R&D operations in the UK and more than 1,000 GSK scientists. The Cambridge Biomedical

Image: Stodmarsh Natural Nature Reserve, courtesy of Atkins/Natural England A new grant fund aimed at helping unlock housing development across parts of Kent affected by Nutrient Neutrality restrictions is now open for applications. Kent County Council (KCC) is inviting applications to the Kent Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund, which has been established following a £9.8 million government grant to support projects that reduce nutrient pollution in the Stodmarsh catchment. KCC

Image: courtesy of LDA Design LDA Design has been talking about the recent planning permission given by Colchester City Council for a multi-million pound transformation of St Botolph’s Quarter in the centre of the city.. Colchester is Britain’s first city and the capital of Roman Britain and LDA Design says the plans for St Botolph’s Quarter celebrate this long history and support future growth: 'The plans include turning a car park into a lively new public plaza, St Botolph’

Image: Peterborough - courtesy Webb Aviation : Council leaders across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough are calling on the government's new Secretary of State to make an early decision on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) proposals for the area. Cambridge City Council says: 'Recently the government announced decisions on reorganisation proposals in 14 areas across the country. However, while the four options submitted by councils in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough were con

Image: CGI of regenerated Premier inn site by the River Wensum - courtesy of Sheppard Robson Working on behalf of Whitbread PLC, Sheppard Robson has been granted planning permission from Norwich City Council to regenerate the Premier Inn Norwich City Centre (Norwich Nelson) site, transforming a key gateway near the train station. Sheppard Robson says: 'The masterplan envisages revitalising this underused site into a mixed-use development that provides enhanced green public

Image: courtesy of HKS HKS has launched a new Regenerative Design team, deepening the firm’s commitment to a systems-thinking approach to design that aims to create net-positive impact for people, planet and ecosystems across projects and practices. “Regenerative design reflects a necessary shift in how we think about the built environment—moving beyond reducing harm to creating places that actively restore and strengthen ecological and community systems,” said Tony Montalto

Image: Holyhead Maritime Museum, courtesy of visitanglesey.co.uk Museums are among 31 organisations benefiting from new project funding from the Welsh Government, reports the Museums Association. The £5.28m package is designed to improve access to culture, protect collections and modernise facilities for communities. The funding, which also includes money for archives and libraries, has been given to a range of different organisations, from large local authority services to s

Image: Life and Mind Building, University of Oxford, courtesy NBBJ Future Cities Forum is releasing report highlights from the first half of this year, showcasing some of the discussions it has held and the contributors involved. Its event discussions have been on science hub development, university real estate investment, new towns and the Oxcam Arc, tall buildings, devolution and growth in Oxfordshire, the City of Culture 2029 and Cambridgeshire's emergence under the Greate