COMMENT Luminaries from the property industry gathered a few days ago to hear Liz Peace CBE give us a tour de force on the theme of “reputation and trust in the property industry” at the Chapman Barrigan Memorial Lecture. For anyone interested in moving our industry along, it would be worth getting hold of the text in full – I urge the organisers to make that possible.
Of course, there is much to be said on this subject and nobody better than Ms Peace to tackle it comprehensively. She covered the terrain admirably, not shrinking from traversing some of the bumpier ground. It was a brave address. The consensus seems to be that, although we are steadily improving, progress is slow, and we could do miles better.
One obvious thing would be to work together more coherently as an industry – as a former CEO of the BPF, Liz cited some 35 industry bodies that currently purport to speak on behalf of the property sector. She called for an umbrella body of all these to speak with one voice, a sentiment which found much favour with the audience. This may be the result of us being an established industry – EG is 165 years old for starters – bodies have grown organically and perhaps we are a bit too entrenched, a bit too far gone. But surely it is worth a go?
Another part of the forest (forgive the monstrous segway, and the outrageous plug, but work with me here) I am delighted to report I have a new gig. I have just taken on a non-executive role with Be.EV, a leading electric vehicle charging company, to advise them on working with all you guys (so do not be surprised to find me screaming down your e-mail any time soon!). The team at Be.EV is lovely. They are firmly and vocally focussed on their local communities and the UK’s EV charging infrastructure will double in scale this year, with £6bn of investment unveiled. What is not to like?
And it all must happen because – as I am sure you are acutely aware – all new cars will be electric by 2030.
But like many new sectors, the EV charging industry is suffering from growing pains. You’ll have seen some recent press. So, it is excellent news that an industry-wide body – ChargeUK – was launched last Friday as the voice of the EV charging industry, in order to tackle the challenges facing the industry collaboratively. ChargeUK brings together the 18 largest companies installing the charge points needed to enable the UK’s switch to electric vehicles and the realisation of net zero and will look to widen the membership as they develop. Between them, the members of ChargeUK will install tens of thousands of new chargers this year, with the aim of doubling the size of the network through 2023.
It is a lot to spend. So as the industry continues to radically ramp up the availability of charging and to accelerate investment and delivery, ChargeUK will work collaboratively with government and other stakeholders, including the property industry, “to break down barriers, and shape the policies and regulation needed to enable transition”.
Transport minister Jesse Norman, said: “Our commitment to decarbonising transport, backed by hundreds of millions in funding, has helped to unlock private sector investment, and the ambitious plans of ChargeUK’s members will support more people than ever to make the transition to EVs.”
There were two big take-aways from the ChargeUK announcement for the property sector: one quite lofty, the other closer to home and a bit more self serving.
The first is that this new industry is already working collaboratively across the entire EV charging sector for the good of the whole. We should look and learn. The EV charging peeps are looking to speak with one voice, and to avoid the fragmentation that is so wasteful of energy in our own industry (and – worse – which holds us back from developing and improving, as Liz says).
And second, you do not need to be told that there is a massive opportunity here for all of us. Do not underestimate the EV charging industry’s growing size and importance to the UK economy. The numbers are eye-watering. Members of ChargeUK are investing billions of pounds to get more charge points in the ground right across the country. They need sites and they need them fast. EV charging hubs are not only a revenue stream, they will add value to any scheme, and could help you create your new address. To put it bluntly, if you are not talking to a leading EV charging provider yet, then you should be. As they say in all the best Westerns “there’s gold in them thar hills”.
Jackie Sadek is Director of Urban Strategy. She is co-author, with Peter Bill, of “Broken Homes. Britain’s Housing Crisis: Faults, Factoids and Fixes”. Jackie is newly appointed as adviser to Be.EV.
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