Manchester at UKREiiF 2025 – Day One Roundup

Manchester made a confident and collaborative start to UKREiiF 2025, kicking off with a packed programme of events showcasing the region’s leadership on housing, sustainability, placemaking and inclusive growth. From early morning receptions to late evening networking, Greater Manchester’s public sector leaders and private partners were front and centre in the national conversation.

Here's all the action from Tuesday, 20 May:

Welcome Reception

The day began at The Canary with a warm welcome from Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, and Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester.

Cllr Bev Craig: “There is something really important in the Manchester-London partnership—we aren’t in competition but working together. The strengths of this relationship are really powerful for UK growth and drawing international companies.

The opportunity Manchester has is exponential… Everyone has a role in continuing the growth of the city region, focusing on the people and community that this built growth does. The next decade is going to be the most interesting, with all 10 boroughs having significant development plans for the future.”

Mayor Andy Burnham:

“Here we are in the glorious sunny North… we are the two strongest engines of growth in the UK, and we’re firing on all cylinders.

Since devolution, we have grown 3.1% year on year, with the next decade looking to be Manchester’s best. London has laid the foundation and provided support with transport and helped us shape the Bee Network system, which is proving to be the foundation for our growth.

We are at the start of a big transition for Greater Manchester… Build it from the bottom up.”

Tackling Big Questions: Housing, Circular Cities & Town Centres

At 09:30, Manchester’s senior leadership fanned out across the programme, taking part in major panel sessions addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing UK cities.

At the Pearl Suite, Tom Stannard, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council, joined the panel on It’s Time to Stop Talking About The Housing Challenge and talked about the housing offerings in the city centre and beyond into the boroughs. He said, ‘Over 100,000 call Manchester city centre home. The attractiveness of transport, liveability, and employment opportunities are essential to the conversation of successful housing.

The issue we have had is fixing the viability of affordable housing, we have a social responsibility in how we develop this, and the intertwining of private and public relationships.”

Simultaneously, David Lynch, Director of Strategic Development at Manchester City Council, contributed to Circular Resilience: Building Cities That Adapt and Endure on the Newsroom Stage, discussing “Wythenshawe is an example of circular resilience with the transformation of the civic centre into a cultural hub—improving people’s lives through a lower cost of living. 2,000 new homes which will be affordable and meet local needs. This is how regeneration should be.’’ He also referenced NOMA, Ancoats, and Cheetham Hill as key examples of how Manchester is embedding resilience and inclusive growth into neighbourhood transformation.

Over at the Wilmott Dixon Pavilion, Paul Richards, Deputy Chief Executive of Stockport Council, and Shelley Kipling, Chief Executive of Oldham Council, participated in a lively discussion on How to Rebuild a Town Centre sharing insights on insights into the balance between PPPs and capital investment for place regeneration.

At 10:00 on the Muse @ Fearns Stand, Paul Dennett, Mayor of Salford City Council, and Max Bentham, Development Director at Muse, led the session ECF: Breathing New Life Into Overlooked Communities. This session explored the importance of revitalising overlooked communities, focusing on the potential of regeneration projects to unlock long-term economic and social benefits.

Paul Dennett:

“Salford is a place that is coalescing the vision and mission for growth set across the Northwest. ECF lifts the bar across net zero carbon builds and secure affordable housing, and most importantly creates a place the city region can be proud of—putting people and partnerships at the heart of our development.’’

Max Bentham:

“Sustainability has been fundamental to the plan and starts to answer what the community wants from the area. At Salford Crescent, we’ve done the hardest parts first and delivered our first residential scheme, it’s a testament to our partnerships and aligns our shared goals, founded on social value and eco-consciousness.

We’re looking at how existing and new communities are connected, encouraging active travel, increasing footfall across the borough, and working with the University of Salford to improve the journey through the campus and surrounding areas.”

Focus on Devolution and Net Zero

Back in the Pearl Suite at 11:00, Cllr Bev Craig returned to the stage for The Politics of Devolution, Development and Directives, a wide-ranging session delving into the current landscape of local power and national policy.

Cllr Bev Craig: “I would welcome a more holistic discussion on how devolution and collaboration can bring the plans together.

If you want to grow the economy, you have to work together and not be limited to borough and political boundaries.

We’ve been keen to advocate the collaborative approach, as we have a vested interest in benefiting the wider area. If Manchester city gets something, how will it benefit Rochdale or Bolton? That goes into the decision-making process.”

In the early afternoon, the Industry in Focus Pavilion hosted Unlocking the Net Zero City, where Tom Stannard set out Manchester’s strategy for a just, green transition, built on cross-sector partnership and place-specific investment.

Tom Stannard: ‘I think the objective is to decarbonise to create that kind of truly zero city and is absolutely a kind of core objective of not just local plans in Greater Manchester but of the regional spatial plan.’’

Local Strengths, National Conversation

The Manchester delegation continued to make an impact across the afternoon sessions. At the Muse Stand, "Oldham’s Industrial Legacy: A Foundation for the Future" brought together: Cllr Arooj Shah, Leader of Oldham Council, Shelley Kipling, Chief Executive, Oldham Council, James Thomson, Associate Director, Hawkins\Brown, Phil Mayall, Regional Director, Muse.

The panel discussed how heritage and modernity are converging in Oldham’s regeneration journey. Arooj Shah, Leader of Oldham Council, opened by emphasising the importance of legacy and identity in development: “No matter how shiny the new things we build are, our highest priority is its impact on our heritage and the lasting impression of Oldham. The connection people have to the heritage around Oldham is unprecedented and we listen to our residents in what they want.”

Shelley Kipling, Chief Executive of Oldham Council, highlighted Oldham’s ambitious housing plans, she said: “We have a responsibility to the community that everyone has a high quality of life. If someone in the community can say ‘this plan will benefit my life,’ then we’ve achieved our goal—whether that’s a job in the construction, helping to circulate more money around Oldham, or improving overall quality of life. It’s all about our current community.”

Phil Mayall, Managing Director of Muse, spoke on quality and cultural sensitivity in new development: “We’re predominantly a new build focus, but if we don’t provide high-quality, sustainable development, we won’t bring in the new standard of people. The mills mean a lot to Oldhamers - everyone has a connection to them. Anything we can do to reinforce this heritage and history is a win.”

Engaging Communities in Regeneration

At 13:30, Becca Heron, Strategic Director of Growth and Development at Manchester City Council, joined the session hosted by British Land and Commonplace, which focused on how to meaningfully engage local communities in brownfield regeneration projects while navigating an evolving planning system.

Heron highlighted Greater Manchester’s approach to inclusive growth:

“Greater Manchester has got places for everyone, with the government now wanting to replicate that across the country.”

On the importance of community engagement, she emphasised:

“There’s value in engaging communities, but the real engagement comes when it’s with the local communities. Building trust through early delivery to show people what they are getting—that’s important.”

When asked what success looks like for engaging local communities, she responded:

“Respecting the character of places and building on that—we’re getting better at that, but there’s still a bit to go.”

Investor and Developer Collaboration: Afternoon Tea

In the afternoon, a special Greater Manchester Investor and Developer Afternoon Tea took place at Stanley House, where a prominent group of public and private sector leaders gathered to discuss strategic investment opportunities across the region.

The session brought together key figures such as:

Aidan Thatcher, Director of Place, Wigan Council

Paul Richards, Deputy Chief Executive, Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council

Paul Whittingham, Assistant Director of Development and Regeneration, Bolton Council

Nick Mullins, Co-founder and Director, Axis-RE

Richard Roe, Corporate Director of Place, Trafford Council

Maria Cotton, Assistant Director for Estates, Investment and Placemaking, Oldham Council

Caroline Simpson, CEO, Greater Manchester Combined Authority

David Lynch, Director of Strategic Development, Manchester City Council

James Binks, Chief Executive, Rochdale Council

Nicola Elsworth, Strategic Growth Director, Tameside Council

Cllr Andrew McLaren, Deputy Leader, Tameside Council

This exclusive gathering focused on the future of investment in Greater Manchester, examining synergies between public policy and private sector investment to accelerate regeneration, support sustainable growth, and unlock new opportunities for collaboration.

Caroline Simpson said: “We’ve built strong, consistent leadership with public and private partnerships that are dedicated to growth… From Salford Quays to Victoria North, we’re doubling the scale of opportunity with a long-term plan that translates across all 10 boroughs.”

“We can only bring a successful pipeline out of the ground together and create the best version of regeneration… It’s about raising the hope and aspirations of the next generation and making sure we have effective public services that connect communities.”

Culture, Community and Capital

The late afternoon focused on how culture and capital go hand in hand. At the Rider Levett Bucknall Pavilion, Andy Burnham joined a panel on Bread and Circuses? The Future of Entertainment Venues as Community Gamechangers.

Shortly after, he spoke at the UK Government Knowledge Hub on "Translating Local Growth Ambitions Into Investment Opportunities", reinforcing Greater Manchester’s readiness to scale inclusive investment at pace, saying “It has been a successful decade for Greater Manchester—we’re taking all that learning into the next decade with a 10-year growth pipeline. No matter the challenges ahead, we will fight to preserve and build on what Greater Manchester has achieved as the fastest growing city-region in the country.”

Evening Engagements

The day concluded with two key networking opportunities, including the Manchester and Opportunity London Drinks Reception at The Canary.

Caroline Simpson, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council, welcomed guests and reflected on the principles driving Greater Manchester’s momentum:

“What goes into building real, lasting growth? It’s the relationships between the public and private sectors, strong political leadership, and a relentless focus on confidence, positivity and ambition in our city-region.”

The reception served as a celebration of collaboration and a reaffirmation of Greater Manchester’s position as a national leader in inclusive, place-based growth. Later that evening, Manchester Invest Partners enjoyed a private dinner at Lost and Found.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s roundup as Manchester continues to lead the national agenda on innovation, inclusion and investment at UKREiiF 2025.