A year on from the government’s pledge to build 1.5 million homes in 5 years, CBRE provide an update on the “Grey Belt” policy, 12 months after its conception. What is the Grey Belt? How has it changed planning? And are more homes actually being built?

This month we are joined by CBRE’s Birmingham planning team, including our very own committee member Luke Cottrell, as well as Louisa Ward, Archie Kimberly, and Holly Evans; to explore how the government’s flagship policy has influenced the planning landscape one year on, alongside partaking in a interactive quiz!

This event is sponsored by CBRE who have kindly provided the breakfast and refreshments.

Date: Thursday 12^th February 2026

Location: Meeting Room 1, 1st Floor, 3 Chamberlain Square, Paradise, Birmingham, B3 3AX

Time: 8:30 am – 10:30am (Please note that we are normally finished by 10 am)

Speaker bios:

Louisa Ward

Louisa is an Associate Director based in the Birmingham Planning and Development Team. She has been a Chartered Town Planner since February 2021 and has worked on a range of instructions in the public and private sector. Louisa chaired the RTPI Young Planners West Midlands Committee between 2021-2022 and co-lead the National Young Planners Conference that year.

Luke Cottrell

Luke is a Senior Planner in CBRE’s Birmingham Planning and Development team. He is a Charted Town Planner and Associate Member of the RICS, working on range of residential and commercial planning applications across the U.K for private developers and public sector institutions. Luke has worked on a number of sites within the Green Belt and has developed a speciality in challenging brownfield sites to achieve viable development through successful negotiation of S106 agreements. Luke is also a committee member of G4C.

Archie Kimberly

Archie is a Planner based in the Birmingham Planning and Development Team. He is an associate member of the RTPI and is currently working towards full chartership. Archie works on various projects, however is currently focused on infrastructure planning, working on various rail related schemes around the UK.

Holly Evans

Holly is a Graduate Planner based in the Birmingham Planning and Development Team. Following graduating form the University of Birmingham in 2024 she is due to Charter as Town Planner this year, and has supported her colleagues on an array of projects across different sectors and disciplines. Holly currently sits on the RTPI Young Planners West Midlands Committee.