Last week I was lucky to attend the annual FOOTPRINT+ conference which took place just a stone's throw away from our London office. FOOTPRINT+ is a leading net zero and decarbonisation conference that brings together industry professionals across the property sector including developers, architects, designers and engineers.
Although the transition to net-zero remained the central focus of the conference, since FOOTPRINT+ 2024 the industry is operating in a different political and economic context. A new Labour government, a revised NPPF, and the launch of consultation on the new London Plan meant much of this year’s discussion focussed on how national and strategic policy is keeping pace with the race to net-zero by 2050 and how this plays out on the ground.
Several key themes emerged throughout the day; reflecting both progress on the drive towards net-zero and the pressing challenges that remain. This blog seeks to summarise the key messages from the industry and what this means for planning.
Net-Zero Policy: the industry in the driving seat?
One of my strongest takeaways from FOOTPRINT+ was the recognition that the industry views itself as being increasingly in the driver’s seat when it comes to setting ambitious net-zero targets which is in turn shaping and driving policy at the local level. One speaker from the City of London sustainability team noted that emerging exemplary retrofit schemes coming forward in the Square Mile, were helping to shape guidance on retrofit and circularity through innovative design solutions and embodied carbon saving.
As we have already observed, local authorities across London are beginning to introduce supportive and ambitious policies to encourage the re-use of existing buildings and materials to reduce emissions. Attendees at FOOTPRINT+ set out a view that there may be a need for firmer policy within the NPPF and new London Plan.
The revised 2024 NPPF includes stronger references to climate change adaptation and mitigation, as well as increased emphasis on design quality, brownfield development, and biodiversity net gain. But when it comes to net zero, many attendees felt it falls short of setting the kind of clear strategic direction that’s urgently sought.
The Towards a new London Plan consultation document published earlier this month reaffirms the Mayor’s commitment to delivering net zero in London by 2030 and a ambition for the next London Plan to go beyond national standards to speed up the transition; with a particular focus on streamlining implementation and avoiding unnecessary delay or cost.
Notwithstanding the momentum displayed by local policy and the industry there is also a growing tension arising from an increasingly fragmented approach to climate policy. FOOTPRINT+ underscored the urgent need for better alignment between national, regional, and local policy to knit together the current patchwork of local guidance and expectations.
Materials Reuse: the new norm
Circularity, particularly material reuse, was a major talking point. With a shift in focus from the impacts of operational carbon to embodied carbon there’s growing interest in how planning policy can encourage retention and reuse of existing structures and materials to improve circularity and ultimately reduce embodied carbon.
While London Plan policy, and many LPAs, now require submission of a Circular Economy Statement at the planning stage, FOOTPRINT+ highlighted several innovative tools and platforms facilitating this process—such as material donor and recipient exchanges, and AI-driven building audits.
Several local authorities are now developing validation checklists that require applicants to show how material reuse has been considered—a trend we expect to see spread beyond London. The NPPF is still relatively silent on the issue, but the industry clearly sees material reuse as central to net zero delivery.
The key message here was that material reuse needs to be considered in the early stages of the design process to have a clear understanding of a building’s makeup; and also allow collaboration with neighbouring design teams to avoid circular economy practices happening in silos. There is also a role for the GLA and Local Authorities to develop a framework to facilitate material exchanges across the capital.
The Future of Heat Networks
Decarbonising heat was a hot topic at this year’s conference. While these systems offer significant potential, particularly in densely developed areas like London, there are still planning-related uncertainties around how they will be delivered and funded, safeguarding for future connection, and how they could be retrofitted into existing settlements.
Some attendees noted that policy updates to reflect the role of decentralised energy and local grid coordination may be needed.
The City of London: A Retrofit Powerhouse
The City of London, a front-runner in decarbonisation and retrofit first policy, featured prominently in discussions. Its extensive stock of post-war concrete office buildings presents a prime opportunity for retrofit. As commercial lease lengths shrink and occupier needs shift toward flexibility and ESG credentials, the City’s approach to adaptive reuse and refurbishment was seen as becoming more relevant. The City has embraced this challenge, encouraging developers to prioritise retrofit over rebuild, while balancing this with heritage and other sustainability and technical objectives.
Key messages for Planning
Throughout the day it was interesting to hear about the novel approaches and technologies which the industry is adopting to help the development industry in its drive towards net zero. However, there was recurring message that net-zero policy continues to lack definition and a joined up approach at a national, strategic and local level which may be frustrating some of these efforts.
From our project work across London and research into the policy context we have seen some emerging examples of clear policies emerging, for example through the London Plan, and that we look forward to reviewing how the new Labour Government may influence the direction of travel over the coming years.