Senior Public Affairs Officer Lazaros Tsenekidis reflects on RTPI's presence at UKREiiF this year and what it means for the profession.
This year’s UKREiiF confirmed what many of us in the profession have long known: planning is not just a backdrop to growth and investment – it's the engine driving it.
The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) took a central role at the 2025 UKREiiF conference, joining forces with the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) to co-deliver events at the Built Environment Lounge. From early morning roundtables to evening networking receptions, planners were at the heart of key conversations about housing, infrastructure, sustainability and delivery.
On Tuesday 20 May, we hosted a drinks reception with Tom Hayes, Member of Parliament for Bournemouth, who recognised the essential role planners play in creating sustainable, climate resilient communities that support economic growth and energy security.
RTPI Chief Executive Dr Victoria Hills and RTPI President Helen Fadipe MBE with Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook, who attended a private roundtable in the Built Environment Lounge at UKREiiF
One of the most anticipated moments of the week was the “Future Placemaking – Delivering 1.5 million homes” private roundtable, opened by Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook MP. With a sharp focus on aligning housing delivery with planning reform, the event brought together senior voices from across the built environment to explore how we turn ambition into place-led action.
On Wednesday evening, we also had the pleasure of welcoming Chris Curtis, Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes North, who gave his personal reflections on growing up in Milton Keynes, one of the UK’s original New Towns, and how the Government’s ambition for new towns can create thriving new communities.
Across UKREiiF, RTPI delegates took part in key panels and private roundtables, contributing to discussion topics from new towns to economic development to nature, housing and skills development. Of course, we used every possible opportunity to bang the drum for better resourced planning departments across the country highlighting our 3-point plan.
With the Planning and Infrastructure Bill being a hot topic of conversation, we continued to advocate for new clauses that enhance the reforms set out in the Bill, including:
- The establishment of a statutory Chief Planning Officer in every Local Planning Authority as an essential step in delivering the Government’s planning reform.
- A statutory purpose of planning which sets out the role planning plays in managing the use and development of land in the long-term public interest.
- The online availability of planning committee meetings, to increase public engagement through accessibility.
- To implement provisions for a National Spatial Framework as an overarching strategy to coordinate and align the multitude of national plans across sectors.
We also took the opportunity to highlight the Planning Skills Fund, led by the British Chambers of Commerce, which the RTPI is proud to be delivering – ensuring that investment in the system includes investment in the people who make it work.
Throughout the week, the Built Environment Lounge became a vibrant hub for discussion, networking and reflection – with strong engagement from our members. It was a clear demonstration of the value in collaborating with our colleagues at RICS, RIBA, and ICE, and a successful example of what can be achieved when the built environment comes together with a shared purpose.
If UKREiiF showed us anything, it’s this: planning is no longer the side conversation – it's the starting point.
Senior Leaders from RTPI, ICE, RIBA and RICS hosted MPs in the dedicated Built Environment Lounge
