Thursday 11th September 2025
Hotel Voco, Manchester
DIB UK Planning, Property & Regeneration Conference 2025
DIB will host its latest annual property, planning, and infrastructure conference in September 2025.
Focussing on the priority issues in the industry, including the levelling-up agenda, net zero, planning laws, housing development, high streets, infrastructure, and partnerships, the event has a range of eminent speakers from the private and public sectors.
Tickets
If you are interested in attending the Talking ‘Bout Regeneration conference 2025 contact [email protected] for further information, fill in the form below or call 0844 755 0127.
Agenda
A start to the day with networking, a bit to eat and a drink.
An introduction to the conference with what to expect throughout the day.
Hear directly from public sector leaders from across the West Midlands on their vision for growth, investment, and regeneration.
Speakers
Joanne Roney; Managing Director, Birmingham City Council
Neil Rami; CEO, West Midlands Growth Company
Julie Nugent; Chief Executive, Coventry City Council
Hear directly from public sector leaders from across the North on their vision for growth, investment, and regeneration.
Speakers
Cllr James Lewis; Leader, Leeds City Council
Pam Smith; Chief Executive, Newcastle City Council
An opportunity to grab a refreshment and a little bit of networking too.
Hear directly from public sector leaders from across the North West on their vision for growth, investment, and regeneration.
Speakers
Cllr Liam Robinson; Leader, Liverpool City Council
Stephen Young; Incoming Chief Executive, Salford City Council
Cllr Bev Craig; Leader, Manchester City Council
Addressing the talent pipeline, upskilling and making construction a more attractive proposition for the next generation.
Speakers
Sophie Gilmore; Managing Director, HybridTec
Michele Steele; Chief Executive, Regeneration Brainery
Trevor Steven; Chief Executive, Mindflow
An opportunity to grab some food and an opportunity for networking.
A Strategic Pathway for Growth
The stretch from the Mersey to the Pennines – is already home to two investment zones, 5.4 million people, and creates an annual GVA of £150bn and £23.5bn in exports. This session will explore the transformative economic corridor reshaping industries, trade, and regional connectivity.
Speakers
Paul McNerney; Director, Laing O’Rourke
Robbie Blackhurst, Founder & Director, Procure Partnerships Framework
How do we reach the government target of delivering 1.5m new homes.
Speakers
Jo Henney, Chief Executive, Nugent
David Mawson, Chief Executive Officer, Placefirst
Stuart Rogers, Director of Project Management – North West, Muse
The role of transport and infrastructure in urban transformation and economic growth.
Speakers
from Heathrow Airport, Avanti, Network Rail
Speakers to be announced soon.
A brief summary from the key take aways from the event.
A chance to unwind post-conference and some more networking.
Join the official launch of the Manchester Invest Partnership for MIPIM 2026.
Greater Manchester will once again get ready to take its place on the international stage in Cannes. This is an opportunity to connect with fellow partners, hear more about Manchester’s growth opportunity, and help shape Manchester’s presence at MIPIM 2026.
Speakers:
Cllr Bev Craig, Leader, Manchester City Council
Caroline Simpson, Chief Executive, Grater Manchester Combined Authority
Venue: Campfield, Liverpool Rd, Manchester M3 4FP
All #TBR25 delegates are welcome to attend this event.
Speakers
Joanne Roney CBE | Managing Director, Birmingham City Council
Joanne Roney CBE is the Managing Director of Birmingham City Council since September 2024. Prior to this, she served as the Chief Executive of Manchester City Council.
Neil Rami | Chief Executive, West Midlands Growth Company
Neil Rami is the Chief Executive of the West Midlands Growth Company and one of the most recognised and well-regarded figures in UK Economic Development.
Neil led the trailblazing Business and Tourism Programme for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games; a unique partnership between DCMS, VisitBritain, the Department for Business and Trade and the West Midlands Combined Authority.
Previously, Neil held similar economic development and regeneration roles in Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne. He is a member of the UK Visitor Economy Advisory Council, the UK Real Estate and Infrastructure Advisory Board, Creative UK Board and the Foreign Direct Investment Leaders Network. Neil is a former Governor and Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Julie Nugent | Chief Executive, Coventry City Council
Dr. Julie Nugent started the role as Chief Executive of Coventry City Council in June 2023.
Over the last 20 years, she has shown a strong track record in attracting and delivering investment to support businesses, people, and communities. Julie has worked at a senior level across various organisations, at a national, regional, and local level – including senior roles in government, the voluntary and education sectors.
Most recently, Julie was Executive Director for Economy, Skills, and Communities at the West Midlands Combined Authority where she was responsible for delivery across economic development, employment and skills, health, and communities. Julie played a critical role in negotiating two devolution deals that resulted in more funding being released to the West Midlands region. This included leading the investment of over half a billion pounds into training and employment support programmes that have helped thousands of local people get the skills and support they needed to secure good jobs.
Julie has also led large-scale transformation programmes, overseeing the delivery of improved services to businesses and people.
Cllr James Lewis | Leader, Leeds City Council
Cllr James Lewis has been Leader of Leeds City Council since February 2021, having previously been Deputy Leader of the Council since May 2015. In May 2021, the newly elected Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin, also appointed Cllr Lewis as the Deputy Mayor of West Yorkshire.
Cllr Lewis has responsibility in Leeds for devolution and local freedoms as well as leading the Council’s budget and strategic planning matched to the needs of the citizens and communities in its area and ensuring the delivery of strategic priorities.
Cllr Lewis was first elected as a Labour Councillor to represent the Barwick and Kippax ward, now the Kippax and Methley ward, in 2003. He has held numerous positions during his time as a Councillor, including being the Chair of Metro (West Yorkshire’s Integrated Transport Authority) between 2011 and 2015.
Pam Smith | Chief Executive, Newcastle City Council
Working collaboratively across Newcastle and the region, Pam is leading on a £6.7m city centre redevelopment and delivering a new approach to neighbourhood regeneration; building resilient communities across the city.
Pam is also leading the city through the new Green Industrial Age as it becomes a global exemplar for clean energy and sustainable growth.
Pam is focused on tackling inequalities and ensuring Newcastle is the best place for residents to grow up, grow older and live their best life.
Cllr Liam Robinson | Leader, Liverpool City Council
Cllr Liam Robinson is Leader of Liverpool City Council and has been a Councillor since 2008, representing the Kensington & Fairfield ward. He became Leader in May 2023, having previously held the position of Cabinet Member for Finance, responsible for setting the Council’s budget.
Prior to that, Cllr Robinson was Chair of Merseytravel, and subsequently Portfolio Holder for Transport for the Liverpool City Region. During his time at Merseytravel and the Combined Authority, making public transport more affordable, particularly for young people, was a key focus.
Stephen Young | Incoming Chief Executive, Salford City Council
Stephen is the current Chief Executive of Salford City Council having previously held the same role at Halton Borough Council During Stephen’s period as a CEO at Halton he has delivered on large scale programmes focusing on organisational transformation and change as well as operating across the Liverpool City Region.
Prior to joining Halton Stephen worked as the Executive Director of Growth, Environment, Transport and Community Services at Lancashire County Council developing a multi-billion pound economic development pipeline for the county including innovative projects.
Prior to joining Lancashire, Stephen held various senior roles across Greater Manchester councils over a thirty year career.
Stephen also sits on various outside boards and committees covering a range of different topics ranging from business growth to the education sector.
Cllr Bev Craig | Leader, Manchester City Council
Bev Craig became Leader of Manchester City Council in December 2021. First elected in 2011 as a Burnage Councillor, she held a range of responsibilities on Manchester City Council, including serving for 4 years as Executive Member for Adult Social Care, Health and Wellbeing, then as Deputy Leader overseeing resources, capital programmes, social value and digital.
Born and raised council estate just outside of Belfast, she was the first in her family to go to university, moving to Manchester in 2003 to study and making it her home. After graduating from the University of Manchester she began her career in local government, before working in higher education and then a national trade union leading on social care. Alongside working full time, Bev completed postgraduate degrees at Warwick Business School and the University of Manchester.
As Executive Member for Adults, Health and Wellbeing she led the city of Manchester's COVID health and community response, manging the crisis and focusing on a more equal recovery, and has championed the City’s work to become a Living Wage City.
As Leader her focus is on Manchester’s ambitious COVID recovery, the importance of building a more inclusive and sustainable economy, children and young people, equalities, housing and zero carbon. She is also Greater Manchester Combined Authority portfolio lead for Economy, Business & Inclusive Growth.
Sophie Gilmore | Managing Director, HybridTec
A multi-award winning business leader and a champion of women in STEM, Sophie has evolved her portfolio of expertise, going on to expand her knowledge of coaching, employee development, education leadership, and teaching during her time as managing director. After joining in 2021 as managing director, HybridTec has seen a substantial period of growth. Indeed, this period of growth also brought about expansion in the UK, making HybridTec a nationwide training provider in Manchester, London, Cumbria, Lancashire, North Tyne and Tees Valley. A big advocate for female leadership and equality in the workplace, Sophie and HybridTec are highly regarded as one of the leading training providers in the UK, training the next wave of gas, electrical and plumbing apprentices. She is industrious and forward-thinking, solely dedicated to the continued growth of HybridTec.
Michele Steel | Chief Executive, Regeneration Brainery
Regeneration Brainery is a social mobility programme for brilliant young minds, designed to get young people from diverse, under-represented backgrounds inspired about a career in property and regeneration so that the places we create are more reflective of the society we live in.
The award-winning inspirational careers programme has worked with over 6,000 young people across the UK to date, giving them unique insights into the industry through free weeklong workshops, work placements, internships, mentoring opportunities and networking events.
Michele has been Chief Executive of Regeneration Brainery since 2024, having spent almost 25 years in the property industry as a Planning Advisor, firstly at Deloitte Real Estate where she was also Head of Real Estate NW; and latterly at Vita Group/Select Property Group. She is passionate about social mobility and making the property industry more diverse – from the ground up.
Paul McNerney | UK Building Director, Laing O’Rourke
Paul McNerney is the UK Building Director for Laing O'Rourke. Paul McNerney has worked at Laing O’Rourke for more than 20 years, including roles in Australia and Africa, before holding directorships in the contractor’s Select Plant Hire, Explore Manufacturing and Crown House Technologies divisions.
Robbie Blackhurst | Founder & Director, Black Capital Group
Robbie Blackhurst is an inspiring entrepreneur, business leader, and author, with a proven track record in building and scaling successful businesses across the built environment sector.
The Founder and Director of Black Capital Group, the parent holding organisation for three complementary sister companies – Compliance Chain, Procure Partnerships Framework, and Strategic Resourcing – Robbie’s journey to business success commenced in 2017, when he made the decision to leave his role in Principal Contracting to launch a built environment procurement framework.
Following its early success, Robbie soon expanded the framework on a national scale, and has recently diversified its offering to enable the delivery of projects in other key areas including Infrastructure and housing, while also supporting with the procurement and delivery of over 2,000 public sector projects.
Having successfully tippled the headcount of the group in the last 12 months while helping to drive £5 billion in construction projects over the last 5 years alone, Robbie is now focused on continuing to add value to the industry through the launch of cloud-based software platform – Compliance Chain.
An influential business leader who has successfully facilitated the procurement of construction projects that have shaped towns and cities across the UK, Robbie has pushed the boundaries of public sector project procurement. Over the past 6 years Robbie’s teams have driven £720m in social value benefit to local people and communities across England.
Committed to driving the social value and sustainability agenda while working hard to attract aspiring young talent into the sector, Robbie is Chair of the Construction Centre of Best Practice (CCBP) an influential and trusted figurehead within the built environment sector who regularly leads discussions on the latest industry news and developments.
Jo Henney | Chief Executive, Nugent
Since taking up the position in February 2023, Jo has set out a bold new vision to take Nugent on a journey that transcends traditional care models, focusing on a pathway approach to life-long commissioning.
Jo is a passionate and experienced leader, with an illustrious career that spans both public and private business sectors, including high-profile services for the Government to support the delivery of important public policies in the criminal justice and immigration sectors.
Her roles in the third sector and education include Chair of Trustees for Emmaus Merseyside, Board Member of Emmaus UK and Chair of Governors at Kirkby High School and Wirral Metropolitan College.
Jo’s thoughtful leadership has been widely recognised in the third sector, positioning her as a trusted authority and highly knowledgeable voice in the field.
Leading by example through hard work and dedication, Jo coaches teams to innovate and continuously improve, translating good ideas into tangible business practices to create lasting and effective change for the long term.
Trevor Steven | Chief Executive, Mindflow
Trevor Steven is a former professional footballer with a career spanning 17 years in the top-flight, playing for Burnley, Everton, Glasgow Rangers and Olympique de Marseille. During his illustrious career, Trevor won 36 England Caps and a member of the 1986 and 1990 World Cup squads.
Since retiring from the playing side of football in 1997, Trevor stayed within the sport, working in broadcast and media. Following a spell working in the Middle East, in 2020 Trevor joined Causeway Technologies, a leading provider of software and services for the construction and maintenance industry, as a Mental Health Ambassador to help project the spotlight onto mental health in the construction industry and campaign for positive change.
Today, Trevor is Chief Executive Officer of Mindflow, a charity founded by Causeway Technologies, committed to championing positive mental health in the construction industry by harnessing the power of football.
David Mawson | Chief Executive Officer, Placefirst
David joined Placefirst in 2020 as CEO. Since joining, the company has grown rapidly and is now well known for being a leading and award-winning BTR operator with over 2,000 rented homes and another 1,000 homes currently in development. David is an experienced Executive Director with a track record in delivering organic development and profitable growth. Previously Executive Director of Kier FM, Kier Housing Maintenance and Environmental Businesses. David was also Non-Executive Board Member of Community Gateway Housing Association.
Stuart Rogers | Director of Project Management – North West, Muse
Stuart is Director of Project Management of Muse’s Northwest team and has worked on some of the biggest programmes of place-changing regeneration in the region – Mayfield, Crescent Salford, ID Manchester and Airport City to name a few. At Muse, he led the borough-wide regeneration of St Helens, Oldham, and Prestwich Village, and holds responsibility for all North West developments and partnerships.
His passion for sustainable development is embedded to every project he is involved in, and he enjoys working with complex and unviable sites, where there is an opportunity to solve problems and there is an opportunity for long term partnerships.
Stuart also sits on the NW Board of the Charity LandAid, a charity focused on ending youth homelessness in the UK and has developed a not for profit website to help people understand and change their personal behaviours towards sustainability called Climate Conscience.
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