At this year's UKREiiF, Kanda-Concilio sat down with Tom Sleigh, recently reelected for a second year as Chair of the City of London Corporation's Planning and Transportation Committee, to take stock on a landmark year for planning in the Square Mile.
A year in post — and a record number of applications
Tom described stepping into the role with little prior planning experience. In the past twelve months, the City has recorded its best year for planning applications, with the first quarter of the current year already surpassing last year. As Tom put it, the team are all guns blazing.
The City Plan and what comes next
After a lengthy examination in public, the City Plan is in its final stages, with the inspector's report expected imminently and adoption targeted before the summer recess. The plan sets a minimum of 1.2 million square metres of new commercial floor space, though independent analysis suggests demand could push that figure closer to two million by 2040 — a gap that could require looking beyond the eastern cluster to areas like the Fleet Valley and the retrofitting of Grade B stock.
Relations with Historic England
Relations between the City and Historic England had become strained, with a notable rise in formal objections through 2024. Tom described a constructive reset, including the co-authorship of a new Celebrating Heritage Supplementary Planning Document — a tangible sign of a more collaborative approach ahead of major schemes expected in the next 12 to 18 months.
Culture, the Barbican and Destination City
With a background that includes chairing the Barbican Centre, Tom brought a considered view to the role of culture in the Square Mile. Rather than requiring cultural space in every new development, he advocated a site-by-site approach — making the case that funding and amplifying world-class existing institutions like the Barbican, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the London Museum can sometimes deliver greater impact than building new provision from scratch.
AI and planning reform
Tom also revealed he has built his own planning knowledge base — ingesting five years of public planning documents and connecting them to an AI tool to brief himself ahead of developer meetings. With a new deputy whose background spans fintech and innovation, the committee is well-placed to think carefully about AI's growing role in the system. In parallel, the Planning and Infrastructure Act will require the City's planning committee to reduce from over 30 members to a maximum of 13, a change expected to come into force by September.