Connected Places Catapult at UKREiiF 2025

The Connected Places Catapult pavilion at UKREiiF 2025 brought together key thinkers from across industry, local authorities, government and more to explore how we can unlock more sustainable and investable places.

0:04 – 0:27

It’s been incredible to be able to connect the world of built environment and local growth. We’ve got a pavilion which is amazing. We’ve had some incredible talks here, panels on three CI. So how can we get investment into local authority projects and digital twins. So how can we use data to make sure that everything’s working a lot better across innovative economies?

0:27 – 0:47

The program has meant a load of people come to the pavilion and discuss a lot of the work that we’re working on. That’s a validation firstly of what we’re doing. I think the exciting thing for me is also we’re learning other things that we want to be working on. We’re testing our thinking. My favourite session has to be our panel on the Public Realm, which is a fantastic session.

0:47 – 1:11

It’s a really exciting culmination of the work that we’ve been doing on Public Realm Innovation Initiative. We’re really excited to have 47 applicants to our expression of Interest, which really shows the appetite from industry to get involved in this space. We’ve also had Historic England come. I’m really proud that they have chosen our pavilion as a place where they’re going to launch their prospectus. We’re here to tell developers that heritage is an opportunity and not a barrier.

1:11 – 1:37

A huge opportunity, really. Value creating places are represented in force here at UK Reef. We’ve had loads of conversations with combined authorities, with local authorities about how innovation can unlock growth in their area. Our message to local authorities at UK Reef is that we want to be a partner of choice. We want to work with them to help develop their economic plans, their place making plans.

1:37 – 1:41

We want to help them understand innovation and help them unlock the powers of built environments.

Spotlight on the West Midlands

Join us for this insightful spotlight panel session focussing on trailblazing in the West Midlands as we unearth the benefits of partnering with a place, and illustrate how collaborative coalitions of public and private sector partners can drive high impact at a regional, national and international level.