In today’s podcast we return to the vitally important, hugely complicated and normally highly emotive subject of planning reform.

And help is (potentially) at hand in the form of the long awaited Planning and Infrastructure Bill which was published last week and heralded by government as providing “transformative reforms to get Britain building, tackle blockers and unleash billions in economic growth”.

So who better to bring back to the Infrastructure Podcast to explain and chew over this potential new dawn of planning than Robbie Owen, infrastructure planning guru and Partner at law firm Pinsent Masons.

The UK’s planning system has long been a battleground between the need for economic growth and the challenges of bureaucracy, local opposition, and environmental concerns. As the government pushes forward with ambitious targets—building 1.5 million homes, upgrading transport networks, and accelerating clean energy projects—the speed at which infrastructure is planned and delivered has never been more critical.

Yet, delays remain a persistent problem. As we know, major projects can take years to navigate the approvals process, with judicial reviews and lengthy consultations slowing progress.

The proposed legislation includes changes to infrastructure planning, environmental impact assessments, and compulsory purchase powers … and, as discussed on the podcast before Christmas, limits on the role of Judicial Reviews.

But will these changes truly unlock growth, or are deeper structural issues being overlooked? And how can the planning system ensure that infrastructure projects not only proceed faster but also deliver better outcomes for communities and the environment?

Resources

• The Planning and Infrastructure Bill
• The Banner Review
• National Infrastructure Planning Association
• National Infrastructure Commission
• Pinsent Masons
• About NISTA
• Podcast with Robbie Owen and the Hansard Society on Parliament's planning role.
• Episode 93 of The Infrastructure Podcast with Robbie Owen on the Banner Review

In today’s podcast we take a deep dive into embodied carbon and try to get a better understanding of why infrastructure professionals need to make its assessment more than just a nice add on but a fundamental part of the design process.

The construction and infrastructure sectors are undergoing a major transformation as the industry seeks to reduce its carbon footprint and meet global net-zero targets. While operational carbon—emissions from heating, cooling, and electricity use—has traditionally been the focus of sustainability efforts, embodied carbon - emissions that are locked in at the point of construction and cannot be reduced over time - is now taking centre stage.

To discuss this issue, my guest today is Adrian Campbell, founder of the Change Building consultancy and someone that I like to describe as an industry sustainability guru and my go-to expert when it comes to reducing carbon across the infrastructure lifecycle.

Full disclosure; I have known Adrian since we studied Civil Engineering together at the University of Southampton back in the 1980s. Well, he did the studying as I remember!

Adrian has made a return to the University of Southampton as a tutor and lecturer and as Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor in Sustainable Development and Climate Impact He has just produced a new guide to help students get to grips with assessing embodied carbon - a rapidly developing area of professional competence which should provide the skills and judgment to help improve designs and help move us towards the goal of net zero carbon.

For students entering the fields of architecture, engineering, and construction, embracing embodied carbon assessment is no longer optional—it is a vital skill for shaping a sustainable built environment.

As Adrian puts it, having an awareness of the reasons for its adoption (the ‘why’) and some experience of assessment (the ‘how’) is now expected as part of the role of the engineer.

However, this presents challenges: data inconsistencies, limited industry knowledge, and balancing carbon reductions with performance and cost make it a complex area to navigate. So let’s find out why students should engage with embodied carbon thinking early in their careers.

Resources

Adrian Campbell Linked in

Southampton University Embodied Carbon guide

Change Building website

University of Southampton website

Positive Collective

Royal Academy of Engineering

Institution of Structural Engineers - how to calculate embodied carbon

Today we head back to the vitally important issue of housing and attempt to understand the UK’s complex, and some might say, largely dysfunctional housing retrofit market.

It is a market that is rapidly evolving, driven by ambitious government policies, rising energy costs, and increasing public demand for sustainable, lower cost living. But with a housing stock that is among the oldest in Europe, the UK faces significant headwinds to meet this challenge.

But my guest today has embraced this challenge whole heartedly and two years ago quit a successful career with global consultancy McKinsey and Co to strike out on her own. Anna Moore formed Hestia, now rebranded as Domna, as a brand-new business to transform our approach to domestic retrofit and, at the same time, lever in large amounts of much needed private sector investment.

It's a tough market. Because, as Anna knows I am sure, while the government’s commitment to building 1.5 million new homes continues to grab the headlines as the key to driving up living standards and revitalising communities, the need to retrofit our huge existing stock has been left something of an overlooked, Cinderella sector.

Yes, recent initiatives, such as the Future Homes Standard and the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund – now renamed the Warm Homes Grant, have boosted the focus on retrofitting to enhance energy efficiency, lower emissions, and reduce fuel poverty. And the market is seeing growing interest in innovations like heat pumps, solar panels, insulation upgrades, and smart energy systems.

However, the sector faces hurdles, including supply chain constraints, skilled labour shortages, and the challenge of balancing affordability with high-quality retrofits.

That said Anna has just secured a £70M cash injection into the business which she hopes will open up a £500bn opportunity that will help the business to play a critical role in creating healthier, more efficient homes for residents.

So, let’s find out how.

Resources

About Domna Group

Insights from Donna Group on retrofitting

Domna post on £70 financing deal

Building Centre New Homes in New Ways Exhibition

Anna Moore Linked In