ULI UK Cities Summit: Spotlight on Growth - Infrastructure, Housing and the City

When

2025-10-09
2025-10-09T12:15:00 - 2025-10-09T18:00:00
Europe/London

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    Where

    Gensler, Birmingham Will open in a new window No.4 St Philip's Place Birmingham B3 2SL UNITED KINGDOM

    ULI UK Cities Summit 2025: A Spotlight on Growth

    Join the Urban Land Institute at Gensler’s Birmingham offices for a high-impact, half-day summit. Be in the room with solutions-focused forward thinkers and urban leaders, including developers, investors, public sector, and policymakers. The summit focuses on bringing a cross-section of the industry together to tackle — and answer —tough questions facing cities, growth, and our collective responsibility to build better places for people. 

    With the theme “A Spotlight on Growth: Infrastructure, Housing, and the City” our Summit dives into key topics facing urban investment and growth agendas. At a time when cities are facing unprecedented environmental and social pressures, how we grow well as cities is a big question that the whole industry need to deliver on.

    Expect bold insights, debate, and case studies from across the UK and beyond. 

    We look forward to seeing you in Birmingham for our Cities Summit. 

    Agenda

    10:30 - 12:00: Site tour of Digbeth, with Homes England and Birmingham City Council*
    The (optional) tour will offer an intimate look into the key sites coming forward as part of the area’s major regeneration mandate, ask questions as you explore the different sites on this walking tour. A great way to meet fellow event participants in an informal setting.

    12.15 – 13:00: Arrival and light lunch

    13:00 – 13:05: Welcome from Gensler
    Madeleine Hilton, Managing Director, Gensler

    13:05 – 13:30: Keynote: Is there a recipe for successful cities?
    Allison Crofton, Chief Property Officer, Homes England

    13:30 – 14:30: Exploring the Concept of ‘Good Growth’ (panel discussion)
    Moderator: Imogen Thompson, ULI UK
    Madeleine Hilton, Managing Director, Gensler
    Adam Willetts, Development Director, Urban Splash
    James Betjemann, Birmingham City Council

    14:30 – 15:00: Coffee break

    15:00-15:45: Transport as a Catalyst for Opportunity (case studies in conversation)
    Moderator: Will Polisano, Lipton Rogers
    Isabel Dedring, Managing Director, Transport, Arup
    Alison Crofton, Chief Property Officer, Homes England
    Tom Wilson, Head of Economic Development, East West Rail

    15:45 – 16:45: The Integration of Infrastructure in Placemaking (panel discussion)
    Moderator: Kathryn Firth, Arup
    Alec Scragg, Infrastructure Coordination Service, Greater London Authority
    Matthew Steenhoek, Executive Director Development, Europe, Lendlease
    Elise Baudon, Director, Prior + Partners

    16:45 – 16:50: Closing Remarks

    16:50 – 17:45: Networking Drinks Reception
    Reflect on discussions, build valuable connections and share insights in a relaxed setting.

     

    *Registration for the site tour is on a first-come-first-serve basis. 

    With thanks to our host and sponsor Gensler for their generous support.

    Gensler, Birmingham No.4 St Philip's Place UNITED KINGDOM

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    Speakers

    Alison Crofton

    Alison joined Homes England in 2020 and currently leads the Agency's Land and Development directorate which drives forward our ambition to deliver high quality homes in thriving places. This is achieved through the acquisition and unlocking of both public and private land where the market won’t, by removing constraints, securing planning permission and releasing market ready sites to get more homes built where they are needed. Alison, is a member of the Institute of Building and a Chartered Environmentalist with the Society for the Environment, bringing more than 20 years’ experience in delivering major housing and mixed-use developments. In addition to the Chief Property Officer role, Alison sits on the Board of Directors at both the English Cities Fund and New Homes Quality Board and is also an observing member of the Future Homes Hub Board.

    Madeleine Hilton

    Madeleine is the Managing Director of Gensler’s Birmingham office as well as a global leader in the Industrial & Logistics practice. With over 20 years of experience working in Birmingham, Madeleine is a seasoned architect with a breadth of expertise that spans the education, industrial and logistics, critical facilities, transportation, residential, and commercial sectors. Her strong leadership skills, coupled with her experience in stakeholder management, allows Madeleine to deliver robust briefs and creative concept solutions. With a focus on interpreting the needs and priorities of her clients, she is commercially aware and provides innovative, long-lasting solutions that align with bespoke client requirements. Madeleine is a trusted advisor and leader on projects across the firm’s growing portfolio, working on projects of all scales and across all stages. She also guides clients in the delivery of factory digital twins and strives to create sustainable solutions in the physical environment while supporting client needs in virtual environments. With a passion for education and empowering the next generation of architects and designers, Madeleine has held External Examiner roles at Birmingham City University and London Southbank. She is currently an External Examiner at the University of Wolverhampton.

    Adam Willets

    Adam joined Urban Splash in 2007 and is currently delivering a number of high-profile mixed-use developments across the county, including the new 43 acre urban waterside neighbourhood at Port Loop in Birmingham. An Architect by training he is actively involved in all aspects of the development process from acquisition through to completion with significant experience in the sympathetic restoration of historic buildings, most notably the redevelopment of key buildings at the Grade I listed Royal William Yard, Plymouth, which has been recognized both nationally and internationally for the design and regeneration of heritage assets. Adam has also worked for Argent as a Project Director working on the Paradise Commercial Regeneration Scheme in the Heart of Birmingham. He read architecture at the University of Plymouth and left in 2004 gaining a first-class honours degree before returning to Cardiff University to complete Master’s Degree in Architecture.

    Isabel Dedring

    Isabel Dedring is Arup’s Global Transport Leader and is a member of Arup’s global Board. Her particular areas of expertise are in urban transport policy and project creation, in particular around decarbonisation and progressive transport policies such as road pricing and active travel, working with cities and Governments around the world. Prior to joining Arup in 2016, Isabel was Senior Environment Advisory to the Mayor and then Deputy Mayor for Transport at London’s City Hall from 2008-2016. She was responsible amongst other things for driving phases of the Low Emission Zone & congestion charge, bus fleet decarbonisation, zero-emission black cabs, a 40% reduction in Tube delays, a new network of segregated cycle lanes, London’s first long-term Infrastructure Plan, and targeted transport improvements to help catalyse housing growth areas. Isabel previously ran the Policy Unit at Transport for London and has a background in management consulting. She is a longstanding London resident, qualified US lawyer and a Fellow of the UK Institute of Civil Engineers.

    Tom Wilson

    East West Rail

    Tom is a transport and urban planning specialist with over ten years of experience in the planning, consenting and delivery of major transport infrastructure to unlock homes and jobs at scale. Tom is the newly appointed Head of Economic Development at East West Rail, working to maximise the economic growth benefits from the railway across the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor. Prior to this, Tom held roles at High Speed Two, MHCLG, DfT, Arup and TfL, and served on the Office of Rail and Road expert panel for Roads between 2022 and 2024. Tom champions diverse and inclusive teams, and is a passionate cyclist, completing London to Paris and London to Amsterdam in recent years.

    Elise Baudon

    Prior + Partners

    As Director of Masterplanning at Prior + Partners, Elise has led major city-shaping regeneration projects across the UK, including the masterplan for Birmingham Sports Quarter, Bristol Temple Quarter, and the Campus Reimagined Framework for Leeds University. Internationally, her portfolio includes projects such as the transformation of a mono-functional business park into a 10,000-home mixed-use neighbourhood for Google in California. Central to her work is addressing the pressing challenges cities face today: responding to the climate emergency, integrating critical infrastructure, enhancing quality of urban life through sensitive placemaking, and safeguarding heritage within rapidly changing environments.

    James Betjemann

    Birmingham City Council

    Working in Local Government for 29 years, James has extensive experience of managing and delivering major regeneration projects and programmes in Birmingham and the Black Country. For the past 10 years he has been leading the development and delivery of the Enterprise Zone programme which has supported some of the biggest regeneration schemes in the City, including the Paradise Development, Centenary Square and the Westside Metro extension, the transformation of Digbeth High Street and the new BBC's new regional production centre.

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