Ryan Harris, regional director for the Western division for The Hill Group joined us for the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast.

Ryan, who has been 17 years with the housebuilder, described his route through education, where he (briefly) joined the academic world, before opting for more practical hands-on roles at building sites.

He joined Lovell Partnerships and became an assistant site manager after undertaking a management training programme, then a site manager for Balfour Beatty before joining The Hill Group in 2008.

Ryan discussed the planning hurdles, the market and the remarkable growth being planned for The Hill Group.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Ben Denton is head of strategic growth for L&G with a focus on growing the affordable housing business - both in terms of scale and attracting investment.  

He was previously managing director of L&G's affordable housing division, following a long senior career in the housing sector.

L&G's Affordable Housing Fund, launched last year, has raised £510 million of funding and the business is on track to have delivered, or have in the pipeline, 10,000 homes by next year.

Through its growing number of affordable housing developments in and around the Golden Triangle, L&G, and other affordable housing providers, are key enablers of regional growth. 

He talked to us about the booming Oxford-Cambridge corridor and how that has to be balanced with the affordability crisis, such as in Oxfordshire where average house prices are around 10 times average earnings.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Dorchester Living chief executive Paul Silver, the driving force behind the remarkable transformation of Upper Heyford Airfield, joined us for the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast.

The former chartered accountant explains his route into the world of sustainable development and the remarkable transformation of the former Oxfordshire RAF base into Heyford Park, a scheme Paul has been closely involved with for more than 15 years.

Paul says he is now focused on the next stage of Heyford Park and a visionary masterplan with more than 9,000 homes planned is due to be submitted imminently.

Paul said: "I've always been drawn to the idea of creating lasting impact through the built environment and community building. 

"While working in finance, I found myself gravitating toward the housebuilding and regeneration projects, helping to deliver major schemes across the UK. 

"That experience gave me a deep understanding of what it takes to shape places, not just buildings, which ultimately led me to my work now at Dorchester Living."

Paul also talks briefly about the wider range of projects within the Dorchster Living portfolio, including Price Philip Park in Hampshire. 

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Turley director Taylor Cherrett joined the Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast to discuss one sector experiencing surging demand for space.

Taylor, a director in Turley's South East team, has previously outlined the demand for data centres, which he says is an industry unmatched in recent years for the amount of development space it needs.

So we asked him to update us on how the demand, much of it driven by AI, is being addressed, how it has reached the higher echelons of Government and how the future looks.

And we learned that, amid the burgeoning need for ever bigger centres in key locations such as the Thames Valley, the centres themselves will eventually become smaller.

Cabling infrastructure, which runs along motorway routes and the Grand Union Canal, means access to London, just as in the physical world, is key. 

Energy demand, Green Belt and how data centres are transforming the landscape all came into play.

 You can listen to the podcast here and all our previous podcasts here. 

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Mark Taylor, head of commercial agency for Savills in Cambridge, joined us for the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast.

Mark, who has worked in the commercial markets in Cambridge for decades, looked at the new demand for offices in the city, driven by both the much-talked about 'flight to quality' and the demand from the tech industry which is fast advancing with AI and quantum capabilities.

Mark, who worked nationally and regionally with Colliers until 2022, has been with Savills since then.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Dan Channer, group managing director of Haslams Estate Agents, joined us for a look through the Berkshire housing market in the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast.

Having trained in marketing Dan, who in his career has been a producer for LBC, a management consultant, and spent 10 years in the family business Finders Keepers estate agent in Oxfordshire until its sale to Countrywide, was contacted by Haslams’ then managing director Steve Woodford in December 2022 and became group managing director in February 2023.

Now part of the Foxtons brand, Haslams remains the leading name in residential agency across Reading and beyond, stretching as far as Wokingham and Crowthorne under its Michael Hardy brand which it acquired in 2021.

Dan looks at the impact of the June 11 Spending Review, house prices across Berkshire, how Build-to-Rent has affected the market, future plans for growth now part of Foxtons and much more.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Industry Leaders interviewed at UKREiiF 2025 

Our intrepid reporter Matthew Battle, Managing Director of UK Property Forums, attended this year's UKREiiF and interviewed a selection of key industry figures outside the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Pavillion for this exclusive podcast.

For this podcast, several interviews have been spliced together to give listeners an understanding of their impressions of UKREiiF and their views on the Oxford-Cambridge region as it starts to establish itself as one of the fastest growing regions in the UK. Against the backdrop of the massive investment from the Government into East-West Rail, the interviewees commented on their plans for the region.  

Interviewees:  Martin Reeves, Chief Executive, Oxfordshire County Council; Tom Bridgman, Deputy Chief Executive, Place at Oxford City Council; Mark Williams, Chairman, Hark Rivington; Emily Slupek, Director and Head of PM, Savills;  Alistair Lomax, Director, Arc Universities; Group and Robert Bailey, Head of Capital Markets, Bricklane and my colleague Hugh Blaza, Consultant, UKPF.    

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Regional evolution

 David Bainbridge, a director of planning in the Savills' South Central planning team, joined us for the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast. 

 He provides a snapshot into the various changes proposed for local government across the Golden Triangle.

 David can boast a rare mix of experience including more than 20 years in consultancy and seven in local government including spells at East Cambridgeshire District Council, Northampton Borough Council and Milton Keynes Council.

 A member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and a former chair of its East Midlands region, David has, not just the ideal experience to talk about local government reorganisation, but told us he relishes going through the complexities of the changes.

 We went into housing targets, planning reform and devolution and put to him some of the points made at OxPropSummit on March 26.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Oxfordshire – The Developers Forum.

Interview with Rachel Wood, managing director of Sladen Estates, and Charles Butters, who is strategic property advisor to Oxfordshire County Council and founder & director of Sulgrave Advisors. 

 Oxfordshire is going through a once in a lifetime series of growth changes. Driven by massive investment across the Golden Triangle (Oxford – Cambridge – London) in the Science sector, the county is experiencing high levels of planning applications and business growth which is changing its very nature.

 Rachel's Sladen Estates is the developer of Bicester Arc, a major commercial 'gateway' scheme. Oxford University graduate Charles, had worked for British Land but now, through Sulgrave Advisors, is providing expertise to Oxfordshire County Council. 

 This podcast probes their views on the key talking points around property development in Oxfordshire including planning, infrastructure, placemaking and investment strategies which have been incorporated into the recently launched, Oxfordshire Developers Forum which Charles references.      

Many of these challenges will be discussed at OxPropSummit at Trinity College Oxford on March 25 & 26 where both Rachel and Charles will be on our expert panels. 

 The Battle & Bunce podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across key property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and West London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums. 

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com

Hugo Haig is director of Lochailort Investments. 

Just as one of his most significant schemes is unveiled, he gave us a preview and offered thoughts on the way forward in the latest Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast.

 Old Town is the latest iteration of the redevelopment of the Kennet Centre in Newbury. Lochailort initially proposed Eagle Quarter which ran into opposition and was finally refused by West Berkshire Council on January 8 after five years.

 Now he has joined us to discuss Old Town, an entirely different approach to town centre regeneration.

 Rather than Eagle Quarter’s high rise mix of apartments with 27 units for independent retailers, Old Town is a low-rise mix of apartments, maisonettes and houses with just five new retail units.

 Mr Haig explains how courtyards and ironwork will be a key feature in a scheme of modern living in styles of a previous era, at the same times as recognising the iron works that once stood on the site.

 But he revealed that while Eagle Quarter is still up in the air, the scheme is still being pursued alongside Old Town.

 Lochailort built Reading’s first Build-to-Rent scheme, Thames Quarter, which has been a huge success and provided valuable experience of the BTR world.

 This podcast is an exclusive discussion with someone seeking to bring about major change in a traditional town.

The Battle & Bunce Talking Property podcast Interviews the people making the headlines across property markets of Reading, Oxford, Cambridge and west London, loosely labelled the 'The Golden Triangle'. Our coverage is soon to be joined by our new journal, Western Whistle, reporting on the Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, and Cheltenham property markets.

Additional notes and details can be found in the weekly journal The Forum published by UK Property Forums.

www.ukpropertyforums.com