Spotlight on Walsall

Recently our Black Country Local Member Group hosted an insight event on Walsall Council's £1.5Bn regeneration and investment programme. We were delighted to be joined by:

• Simon Tranter - Director of Regeneration & Economy. Walsall Council
• Councillor Adrian Andrew - Associate Leader, Walsall Council
• Mark McFadden - Director of Planning & Development, CBRE

All shared their perspectives and insights on how the public and private sectors can combine to bring this vision to reality.

Walsall Regeneration

The programme of investment and regeneration aims to bolster Walsall as a destination of choice to live, work and spend time. These efforts have been focused on what residents want to see, with strategies developed to ensure funds are used effectively.

To achieve its objectives the council have focused on the following areas:

• Business Growth: Development which will support both large businesses and small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in Walsall.
• Employment and Living Space: Development of high-quality employment space and new homes.
• Brownfield Focus: Priority on developing brownfield land, particularly in the west of the borough.
• Public Transport: Investments in transport infrastructure, including new rail stations and improved public transport connections.
• Green Spaces: Investment in green spaces and canals to improve the quality of life and attract residents.

Panel Insights

The morning involved plenty of thoughtful discussion on how the following items are crucial in attracting investment into the area.

• Collaboration is key -  There are many aspects to bringing a site forward for development that require several specialisms to come together. The council’s new Strategic Regeneration Partner Framework 2024 has brought new multi-disciplinary teams (involving organisations such as CBRE, ADP Architecture and Turner & Townsend) to the table to leverage new ideas and expertise.
• Green space should be prioritised – A large portion of the Black Country’s green belt is in the Walsall borough, so the council takes green belt land very seriously. Investment has gone into improving the canals, and parks and increasing the number of green spaces.  A guest from Natural England provided insights on how housing developments should include shared common green spaces which are to be factored into areas earmarked for residential growth. This further increases the pride in where people live.
  
• Housing is not a one-model-fits-all: Walsall has a unique demographic offering with requirements changing as you move from one borough to another. A mix of housing is needed, and considerations need to be made around communities and diversity, ensuring there are housing options suitable for what people want (e.g. elderly living accommodation, particularly in the Pheasey area, would free up three- and four-bedroom homes for larger families). Walsall is also seeking to increase the number of aspirational homes so that people who live and do well in the borough choose to stay.
• Viability and Development: A large portion of property sales in the region are first-time buyers. Understanding the housing market is key; if rental prices are low then it isn’t an attractive investment opportunity, investors need to know that they will make money. Currently, the housing market across the wider borough is good with a mixture of housing tenure. However, new investment models will be required for prospective developers in the town centre with rental prices not being as lucrative as in larger cities. In addition, funding interventions from West Midlands Combined Authority will be fundamental. Therefore, long-term investment models may be a solution, exploring Co-Living or low-rise Build to Rent which yield a return on investment over time, rather than the immediacy of saleable assets.  Therefore, whilst there is an opportunity for investors, openness to different, innovative models of housing will be required to maximise potential and meet the new government’s targets.
  
• Networking and Showing Investment:  Connecting with developers and contractors to demonstrate the return on investment for the area is important. There is a need for deeper insights from developments to meet housing needs and options, not just statistics.
• Connectivity and infrastructure: Walsall is just 20 minutes by train to both Birmingham and Wolverhampton and has three Motorway junctions making the borough particularly accessible.
• Future of the high street: Given the changes to the local high street, Walsall is utilising opportunities to bring more people into the town centre. As a result of this, the future of the high street needs innovative solutions. A good example of this is the current conversion project of the old Marks & Spencer’s prominent town centre store into a new Adult Learning Centre for the town.

Attracting Investors and Developers

The future for Walsall heavily relies on innovative ideas, investment from developers and collaborative funding partnerships to bring forward the exciting pipeline. Local authorities can help to join the dots and connect developers with agents however, the council appreciates that developers will want to know that they will be able to sell or generate a return.  As a result, helping potential investors to understand the market is key to facilitating an investment decision.

The subsequent measures were identified to further realise potential:

• Funding and Partnerships: Accessing funds from various sources and forming public-private partnerships.
• Strategic Planning: Clear strategies around key themes like housing, business growth, and local growth.
• Public-Private Collaboration: Encouraging joint ventures and sharing risks with the private sector.
• Marketing and Communication: Improving how Walsall is perceived by potential investors and developers, highlighting opportunities and success stories.
• Infrastructure Investments: Significant investments in infrastructure to create a conducive environment for business and residential growth.

If you are interested in learning more about the opportunities to invest in Walsall please see the link below: Invest Walsall | Invest.

To find out more about local member networks and how to get involved, please visit our RICS in the West Midlands webpage.