The UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum
Days hours mins secs
When and where?
10:30am - 5:00pm
Tickets
We’re delighted to partner with the UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) in Leeds, a forum dedicated to unlocking investment and driving regeneration and development across the UK to accelerate economic growth.
This year's event promises to attract over 16,000 delegates, over 2,500 fringe event attendees, 1,250 speakers and 150 exhibitors from the built environment representing every core UK city and region.
Connected Places Catapult will have its own Pavilion - a dedicated platform for partners and stakeholders from UK cities, regions and freeports to network, collaborate and discuss pressing challenges and solutions in the built environment, transport, data and digital, and international partnerships.
Meet us in Pavilion Square to collaborate, discuss and extend your network.
To find out how to arrange a business meeting with us, join the discussion in the pavilion or collaborate on projects contact us at events@cp.catapult.org.uk
Last year we attracted over 1,100 visitors and 50 speakers. View 2025 pavilion's programme:
Creating innovative urban spaces with sustainable community investment.
Opening Address
Kick-start your visit to the Forum by learning how we help grow the UK economy by driving the commercialisation of emerging innovations and next technologies in transport and the built environment in our towns and cities.
- Erika Lewis, Chief Executive Officer, Connected Places Catapult
Real Estate and Infrastructure Innovation as a Route to Local Growth
Hear how to develop a comprehensive approach to creating high-quality, purposeful innovation spaces that drive economic growth, talent attraction, and sustainable development across different regional contexts.
- Chair: Erika Lewis, Chief Executive Officer, Connected Places Catapult
Strategic International Collaboration as a Driver for Local Growth
As UK places look to the exploitation of urban challenges as drivers for local growth and innovation, carefully crafted international partnerships have the potential to derive greater impact in response to common ambitions. The Innovation Twins programme participants, Birmingham and Swansea Bay, will share their insights from different points in their collaboration journey.
- Chair: Gareth Davies, Head of International Partnerships, Connected Places Catapult
- Raj Mack, Head of Digital City and Innovation, Birmingham City Council
Transforming Public Spaces: Driving Health, Investment & Sustainability in Real Estate
Join us for a panel discussion on how innovation in the public realm can drive economic growth, improve community health and well-being, and support sustainability in real estate development.
- Chair: Gavin Summerson, Head of Digital Construction and Infrastructure, Connected Places Catapult
- Daisy Narayanan MBE, Public Realm Director, The Crown Estate
- Matt Baker, Urban Regeneration Specialist, Rise Associates
Building Bridges - Digital Twins Driving Regional Economic Growth
This session will look at the growing use of digital twins in regeneration to drive economic growth in the West Midlands.
- Chair: Iain Mansell, Head of Regional Engagement, Connected Places Catapult
- Raj Mack, Head of Digital City and Innovation, Birmingham City Council
- Laura Collings, Head of Policy and Strategy, City of Wolverhampton Council
Innovation Districts: Catalysts for Economic Growth and Urban Transformation
This session will explore how Innovation Districts are reshaping urban economies and driving sustainable inclusive growth through strategic clustering of research institutions, enterprise, startups, and talent. Our expert panelists will examine successful Innovation District models, how to measure their impact on local economies, and the essential elements for driving the innovation economy.
- Chair: TBC
- Alisdair Gunn, Project Director, Glasgow City Innovation District (GCID)
- Emily Robson, Assistant Chief Executive, Knowledge Quarter Liverpool
- John Seger, Estates Director, Newcastle Helix
Driving regional growth through investment, data and new technologies.
Unlocking Opportunity - How Freeports are Driving Growth, Jobs and Prosperity
Hear how the UK Freeports are leading the charge on Place Based Growth, by attracting investment into parts of the country that have historically missed out. Freeports are becoming hotbeds of innovation and building new clusters in sectors of the future, creating thousands of long-term, high quality jobs for local people, join the conversation.
- Chair: Ibrahim Mohamed, Associate Director Freeports, Connected Places Catapult
- Philly Strahan, Freeport Innovation Network Manager, Connected Places Catapult
- Ben Russell, Deputy Head of Freeports and Investment Zones, Department for Business and Trade
- Chris Rowell, Head of Net Zero, Tees Valley Combined Authority
Investor Panel: Translating Public Sector Innovation into Private Sector Investment
The Net Zero Neighbourhood concept was developed and established by the Cities Commission for Climate Investment (3Ci). However, there's still a conflict between the demand for Net Zero funding into the public sector and private investors' risk appetite. This session explores how investors can mitigate these risks by developing a framework for investing in public sector Net Zero Neighbourhood initiatives.
- Chair: Catherine McGuinness CBE, Non-Executive Director, Connected Places Catapult
- James Close, Head of Climate Change, NatWest Group
- Kate Gilmartin, Non-Executive Director, Great British Energy
- Dom Boyle, Local Authority Advisory & Lending, National Wealth Fund
A Tale of Two Cities (Regions)
This session will explore the approaches taken by Belfast and Liverpool to drive growth through innovation and will also consider two city regions roles as major places within the Irish Sea Rim with its rich assets and talent pool.
- Chair: Erika Lewis, Chief Executive Officer, Connected Places Catapult
- Dr. Adrian Johnston, Innovation Commissioner, Innovation City Belfast
- Katherine Fairclough, Chief Executive Officer, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority
- Professor Phil Leigh, Senior Knowledge Exchange Manager, University of Cumbria
What's next for the future of planning?
Join us to hear from leading voices from organisations at the forefront of shaping the next chapter of digital planning in the UK. Our speakers will reflect on the successes and lessons learned from nearly a decade of digital transformation in the UK planning system, and look ahead to explore the emerging challenges and innovation opportunities in spatial planning.
- Chair: Alan Welby Managing Director, Build Environment and Local Growth, Connected Places Catapult
- Peter Kemp, Head of Change and Delivery, Greater London Authority
- Wei Yang, CEO, Digital Task Force for Planning
- Bridget Wilkins, Head of Adoption, Engagement and Innovation, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government
- Stefan Webb, Senior Partner - Place and Infrastructure, TPX Impact
Fringe event at the Connected Places Catapult Pavilion
Commercial Property Investor, Developer and Occupier Mixer
Meet place senior decision makers from investors, developers, occupiers and operators within commercial property. This is a closed event organised in our pavilion together with the UKREiiF team, express your interest to attend by contacting Kevin Smith at kevin.smith@ukreiif.com.
Bridging the bag between discovery and the market to spark innovation across the country.
The Art of the Possible: Unlocking the Potential of Community-Based Finance in the UK
Following the launch of our recent The Art of the Possible report, this session explores why community-based finance matters, what the research reveals, and what needs to happen next to unlock local investment and drive economic growth.
