Working collaboratively to deliver Hertfordshire’s growth
September’s HIDB meeting brought a wide range of public and private sector representatives together again at Hatfield House to discuss how the county can maintain and improve momentum on growth. Across housing policy, local government reorganisation, construction and social value, the focus was on the practical value of working together.
Emma Tasker opened the session by welcoming new members as the forum continues to grow. Delegates heard about the member site visit at Croudace’s Warwick Place in Cheshunt as well as the volunteering day with Emmaus Hertfordshire at their headquarters in St Albans. These activities highlighted opportunities for members to build relationships beyond the meetings themselves.
Andrew Lewin, MP for Welwyn Hatfield, then shared his perspective from Westminster on housing delivery and the Government’s growth agenda. He highlighted opportunities to build more homes around railway stations and town centres, alongside opportunities presented by the latest revisions in the recent NPPF such as the embracing of urban densification and the Government’s planned increased investment in social housing. His message reinforced the need for public and private sector collaboration to realise Hertfordshire’s potential for growth.
Local government reorganisation and devolution were the focus of the next keynote, led by HIDB Chair and Stevenage Borough Council Leader Cllr Richard Henry, alongside the Council’s Chief Executive Tom Pike and Hertfordshire County Council’s Mark Doran. Despite uncertainty around future structures, the echoing call was for work on growth and Local Plans to continue. The forthcoming Spatial Development Strategy will provide a framework spanning 20–25 years, aligning homes, jobs, transport and infrastructure. Speakers emphasised the importance of developing this alongside the Local Growth Plan and Local Transport Plan, in partnership with businesses and other local organisations.
Attention then turned to the challenges of translating planning permission into construction. Chaired by Meeting Place’s Andreas Payne, the panel brought together Darren Burrell of Hertfordshire Building Control, Caroline Cartwright of Hertfordshire Futures and Neil Locke of Morgan Sindall. Discussion explored delays in discharging conditions, the importance of resolving design details early, and the need for clearer development pipelines to support investment in skills and supply chains. Early collaboration emerged as a key solution to reducing the skill gap, including closer coordination between employers and training providers.
The final session considered how development investment can deliver lasting community benefits. Mark Shearer of Action Funder and Siân Rebourg of Hill Group demonstrated how targeted funding can connect developers with local charities and community organisations, while tracking the difference that support makes. Hill’s work through Action Funder has supported 37 projects with more than £72,000 awarded, reaching an estimated 5,199 people.
As key within all HIDB meetings, networking in between sessions provided an opportunity for members of both private and public sector to continue these conversations, exchange perspectives and strengthen relationships.