1.5m New Homes

Toby Fox

Each month at 1.5M New Homes, journalist and consultant Toby Fox will be visiting a different council in England to ask what works and what doesn’t in getting new homes built. He'll also be asking what it takes to build a career in public sector housing delivery.

  1. Episode 1

    Ingredients for Success - Slough Borough Council

    Welcome to the 1.5M New Homes project sponsored by Red Loft Each month, journalist Toby Fox will be visiting different councils around the UK to ask what they think about the government's pledge to get 1.5 million new homes built. For November 2024 we are visiting Slough, and in this episode Toby is talking with Pat Hayes, Executive Director Regeneration, Housing and Environment about the ingredients for the successful delivery of new homes. Production Information Founding Sponsor - Red Loft Host - Toby Fox On-set production & video editing - Sam Underwood Podcast and audio production - Drew Toynbee Project Coordination - Sophie Barker

    25 min

  2. Episode 2

    What Needs to Change - Slough Borough Council

    Slough could be a big part of solving London's housing challenge, its housing delivery team believes. "Positionally and spatially it's absolutely marvellous; in population terms it's marvellous,” says Exec Director Pat Hayes. “And there's huge development opportunity: places with cleared brownfield sites, lots of space in the town centre, a massive opportunity in the industrial estate around Heathrow. So everything is going for Slough and the challenge is why it hasn't quite happened, and what we need to do to make it happen." Exactly. That's why we visited one of the borough's stalled town centre sites, to see what needs to change for Slough to deliver more homes. We cover CPOs, inexpert landlords, government trust in councils, a new use class for affordable homes, more flexible grant funding, a restrictive regulatory framework and much more. And if you'd like to share your own experiences of some of the issues raised, join our livestream on Friday 29th November 13:30-14:30 on Microsoft Teams. Find the sign up link on our socials: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Many thanks to our founding sponsors Red Loft.

    22 min

  3. Episode 3

    How to Build a Career - Slough Borough Council

    In this episode, Pat Hayes talks us through his unorthodox career path, the motivations and core skill set driving his progress, and the learning he has picked up on the way. He describes his mentors and influences, his understanding of what people want from Local Authorities, and the challenges of working under financial pressures. Identifying the abilities most useful in progressing a public sector housing career, Pat says: "It’s about dealing with people and negotiating and influencing, being able to formulate an idea and respond to changing circumstances, working creatively around rules and assumptions. You've got to have a creative mindset to think ‘how do we get the right outcome, rather than [just] following the process’." Don't forget to like and subscribe and follow our socials to stay up to date with the latest content: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Many thanks to our founding sponsors Red Loft Host - Toby Fox Audio Production - Drew Toynbee Video Production - Sam Underwood Production Support - Sophie Barker, Red Loft

    21 min

  4. Episode 4

    Starting a Career - with Neetal Rajput from Slough Borough Council

    In this episode we talk to Slough Borough Council head of development management and enforcement Neetal Rajput about her role in bringing a Homes England and Muse scheme forward, how she got started on a career in public sector housing delivery – and why it means so much to her to be delivering new homes in Slough. Her biggest asset? “Being able to throw myself in at the deep end. Taking hold of tricky, contentious cases. That’s where those skills develop, in terms of negotiation, problem solving, really understanding the developer’s viewpoint and what we can deliver.” Don't forget to like and subscribe and follow our socials to stay up to date with the latest content: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Podcast- https://15m-new-homes.captivate.fm/li... Many thanks to our founding sponsor Red Loft. Host - Toby Fox Video Production - Sam Underwood Audio Production - Drew Toynbee Production Support - Sophie Barker @ Red Loft

    20 min

  5. Episode 5

    November 2024 Webinar - Slough Borough Council

    In this episode you can find the audio from our webinar, hosted by Toby Fox where we discussed our findings in visiting Slough, and other topical matters, with a panel of experts: Pat Hayes, Executive Director Housing , Property & Planning, Slough Council Julia Krause, Assistant Director South East, Homes England Suzanne Smith, Partner, Housing and Regeneration Team, Capsticks Neil Jervis, Partner, Red Loft Don't forget to like and subscribe and follow our socials to stay up to date with the latest content: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Podcast- https://15m-new-homes.captivate.fm/li... Many thanks to our speakers and audience of the webinar, and as always, thanks to our founding sponsor Red Loft. Host - Toby Fox Video Production - Sam Underwood Audio Production - Drew Toynbee Production Support - Sophie Barker @ Red Loft Podcast Hosting - Captivate.fm

    1h 3m

  6. Episode 6

    Setting the Scene - Ealing Council

    Responding to reports of recent comments by Deputy Mayor of London Jules Pipe (https://tinyurl.com/37ymmm38) on the impossibility of delivering 1.5m new homes, or London’s contribution of 80,000 a year, Ealing Council Strategic Director of Economy and Sustainability Peter George has requested clarification. Assuming the reliability of the reports, he said: “For the politician responsible for leading on the London Plan, if that person doesn't believe the 80,000 target is deliverable, to some that may call into question the integrity of the London Plan before the process has really got underway.” Peter was interviewed by 1.5M New Homes: The Local Government Challenge, to set the scene for a series of visits to housing development sites in Ealing, to understand the ingredients for successful delivery and what needs to change to build even more homes in the borough. Stay tuned for the next episode, examining the success of the 3,500-home Acton Gardens scheme with Countryside and L&Q, and the council’s role in delivering that. Thanks to Red Loft and Bugler Developments for sponsoring this episode. Host - Toby Fox Video Production - Sam Underwood Audio Production - Drew Toynbee Production Support - Sophie Barker @ Red Loft

    17 min

  7. Episode 7

    Ingredients for Success - Ealing Council

    Ealing Council laid the “golden brick” on its 1,000th genuinely affordable new home, we visited one of the council’s big housing projects, Acton Gardens, with regeneration manager Sarah Phillpot, to understand the ingredients for the success of this 3,500-home, 20-year, £1 billion-plus scheme. Don't miss the next video in the series, looking at what needs to change to build even more homes in Ealing: subscribe and follow our socials to stay up to date: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Podcast- https://15m-new-homes.captivate.fm Many thanks to our founding sponsor Red Loft and this episode’s co-sponsor Bugler Developments. And thanks to Ealing Council for taking part.Transcript

    19 min

  8. Episode 8

    What Needs to Change - Ealing Council

    Following the collapse of contractor Real LSE last year, Ealing Council has been considering its options for the regeneration of the High Lane estate in Hanwell. We met principal project manager Sam O’Neill onsite and caught up with assistant director for housing regeneration Emma Osmundsen afterwards, to understand how turbulent market conditions have disrupted a scheme that could provide over 500 new homes - and how that has created a chance to “build better”. Don't miss the next video in the series, focusing on the local politics of delivering new homes in Ealing: subscribe and follow our socials to stay up to date: Instagram- @1.5mnewhomes Facebook- @1.5mnewhomes LinkedIn- @1-5m-new-homes TikTok- @1.5mnewhomes Many thanks to our founding sponsor Red Loft and this episode’s co-sponsor Bugler Developments. And thanks to Ealing Council for taking part. Host - Toby Fox Video Production - Sam Underwood Audio Production - Drew Toynbee Production Coordinator - Sophie Barker @ Red Loft Many thanks to Captivate.fm for hosting the podcast

    20 min
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Trailer

About

Each month at 1.5M New Homes, journalist and consultant Toby Fox will be visiting a different council in England to ask what works and what doesn’t in getting new homes built. He'll also be asking what it takes to build a career in public sector housing delivery.

Information

  • Creator
    Toby Fox
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    110
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Toby Fox
  • Show Website
    1.5m New Homes