The Week That Was - 26 September 2025

Welcome to The Week That Was, a round-up of key events in the construction sector over the last seven days.

Green light for Gatwick's second runway

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has granted development consent on 21 September for Gatwick Airport to bring its northern runway into regular use.  The project, valued at £2.2bn, will realign the standby runway 12 meters north, enabling it to handle departing aircrafts only.  The project will also include improvements to existing infrastructure, such as to the terminal building and taxiways.  Some observers were concerned that the development project amounted to building a new runway, which would be a breach of national policy. However, Secretary Alexander disagreed and found the programme to be compliant with the Making Best Use policy, concluding that this project is reconfiguring existing infrastructure.  The project is forecast to increase Gatwick's annual passenger capacity to 75.6 million by 2038. 

The full article can be found here.

Mace to begin work on £200m Bankside office in 2026

 Mace will begin work in early 2026 on the Row One office complex, previously called Red Lion Court, in Southwark.  A new joint venture between Stanhope (minority investor) and Cheyne Capital has bought the Row One site from Landsec. Stanhope will manage delivery of the scheme with completion scheduled for 2028.  The site will deliver approximately 235,000sq ft of office space and 15,000sq ft of retail and food space.  Additionally, the site will have 724 bike spaces, 54 showers as well as a new public realm.  Other companies involved in the scheme include cost consultant Gardiner & Theobald, project manager CPC, M&E engineer Hilson Moran and sustainability engineer Arup.

The full article can be found here.

Meet the new Building Safety and Construction Ministers

The Government has carried out a minister reshuffle following Angela Rayner's resignation as Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister after it came to light that she had underpaid stamp duty on a property purchase.

The Government announced Samantha Dixon as the new Building Safety Minister. Dixon is the MP for Chester North and Neston and was first elected as an MP in 2022.  Her new role encompasses all areas of building safety, which includes handling the Grenfell Inquiry responses plus implementing building safety reforms and regulations. 

Chris McDonald has been appointed as the Construction Minister.  McDonald is the MP for Stockton North and is a Fellow at the Royal Academy of Engineering.  His responsibilities include overseeing the construction sector and developing policies and strategy across the Department for Business and Trade and the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero.

You can find out about other government appointments here.

Eden Project Visionary Sir Nicholas Grimshaw Dies at 85

Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, renowned British architect best known for designing the Eden Project in Cornwall, has died aged 85. Founder of the Grimshaw architectural firm in 1980, he was celebrated for innovative, sustainable designs like the Eden Project’s iconic biomes, inspired by soap bubbles and built in a former clay pit.

Grimshaw also designed the International Terminal at London’s Waterloo Station, which won the RIBA Building of the Year Award in 1994, and The Ship building in Plymouth. 

Knighted in 2002 for services to architecture, he served as president of the Royal Academy (2004–2011) and later established the Grimshaw Foundation to promote creativity and sustainability among youth. Known for his curiosity, collaborative leadership, and dedication to purposeful design, his work seamlessly blended architecture with landscape. 

Tributes praised his visionary contributions and enduring impact on the built environment. He is survived by his wife, Lady Lavinia, and daughters, Chloe and Isabel.

Find out more here and here [may require subscription].

Government Green-Lights Unprecedented Infrastructure Boom

The UK government has approved a record 21 major infrastructure projects in the first year of the current Parliament, surpassing previous records and marking significant progress towards its target of 150 decisions under the Plan for Change. Key projects include the Lower Thames Crossing, Mona and Rampion 2 Offshore Wind Farms, Simister Island road development, and Gatwick Airport’s runway expansion. These initiatives are expected to create tens of thousands of skilled jobs, particularly in clean energy and construction, and deliver benefits such as cleaner power, faster commutes, and enhanced trade routes. Legislative reforms in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, such as streamlining consent processes and reducing legal challenges, are accelerating approvals. The government remains committed to further reforms, including new towns and brownfield development, aiming to remove barriers to building 1.5 million homes and supporting continued economic growth and inward investment across the UK.

Find out more here and here.

LRPM Expands in London to Meet Rising High-Rise Management Demands

Block management specialist LRPM has launched a new office in Camden, London, aiming to capitalise on surging demand for expert management of high-rise residential blocks amid a tightening regulatory landscape post-Grenfell. The expansion includes four new hires, notably a dedicated property manager and a high-rise specialist, reflecting the firm’s commitment to navigating the complex requirements introduced by the Building Safety Act 2022 and related fire safety legislation. LRPM is targeting substantial growth, up to 400% over three years, by focusing on blocks with 100 to 300 units (a segment facing heightened compliance and management challenges) and seeks to address a market “perfect storm” of regulatory complexity, increased liability, and a shortage of qualified managers.

The full article can be found here.

With thanks to Harry Langford-Collins, Ella Green, Aleksander Polaszek and Brendan Marrinan

If you have any queries please do get in contact with a member of the team below, or your usual RPC contact.

Disclaimer: The information in this publication is for guidance purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.  We attempt to ensure that the content is current as at the date of publication, but we do not guarantee that it remains up to date.  You should seek legal or other professional advice before acting or relying on any of the content.