Planning policy and decisions impact every part of our daily lives, but outside of a small clutch of professionals, most Londoners know very little about how the process works. One of the reasons is that quite simply, it is often presented as a dull and tedious subject. The Planning School series was established by The London Society to bring the subject to life and provide some clarity about how it works.
Planning’s Greatest Hits & Misses brings together a stellar line up of experts and leaders with contrasting views on often contentious planning topics such as tall buildings, housing and masterplanning to help audiences consider whether each of the themes is a hit or miss in London-wide terms. The series is not to be missed and will help Londoners better understand the complex politics and processes which have led to the shape and appearance of London’s most significant urban developments of recent years.
Held at either the offices of Argent LLP in Kings Cross or at the Studio of KPF in Covent Garden, attendees will have a not-to-be-missed experience of being in the home of two of London’s most influential place shapers.
Block book for all four talks with the series discount – four talks for the price of three.
Non Society members will get a year’s individual membership of The London Society as part of the package.
15 February 2023 – Planning and the city skyline
The City Skyline: ‘a random agglomeration of mere appearances’? The Gherkin was a critical turning point in the rapid emergence of a wholly new London skyline. How did it happen and what did it unleash? Is our new skyline deliberate or accidental? Do we like it?
Confirmed Speakers
Barbara Weiss, Barbara Weiss Architects;
Colin Wilson, LB Southwark,
Venue : Argent LLP, Kings Cross
22 February 2023 – Masterplanning for the new London
A modern district emerges from the redundant land left over by railways. Has the heroic scale of the redevelopment of Kings Cross delivered something that is recognisably of London?
Confirmed Speakers
Robert Evans, Argent LLP;
Deyan Sudjic OBE, broadcaster & writer,
Venue : Argent LLP, Kings Cross
01 March 2023 – Planning and saving the soul of the city
Covent Garden: a triumph for conservation or nothing more than a sanitised urban theme park? The saving of Covent Garden from the jaws of a motorway interchange was a triumph for bottom up community activism and led to a profound shift in the balance between development and conservation. Did we save the soul of the place or have we created a theme park?
Confirmed Speakers
Brian Girard, KPF;
Owen Hatherley, journalist & writer,
Venue : Kohn Pedersen Fox, Covent Garden
08 March 2023 – Rehousing Londoners
Brutalism was the seen as the answer to the post- war housing crisis. Building at scale and speed and in concrete. Communities were fostered but the buildings failed. In the new London vernacular have we found acceptable typologies and resilient design the second time round?
Confirmed Speakers
Geraldine Dening, Architects for Social Housing;
David Birkbeck, Design for Homes,
Venue : Argent LLP, Kings Cross
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