"MIPIM set the foundation for the year ahead. It must be about growth and partnerships"

As MIPIM 2025 ended last week we spoke to Phil Mayall, our Managing Director, about the value of attending the global property conference, the key themes which emerged, and how we can work with our public and private sector partners to unlock the growth potential of our regional economies.

Each year the world’s real estate sector descends on Cannes, in the South of France. It’s a unique gathering, with cities and regions from across the UK sending strong delegations to meet with potential investors and delivery partners.

This year was no exception. Spearheaded by the Department for Business and Trade, Greater Manchester, the West Midlands, Newcastle and London – amongst others – were well positioned to engage with investors, and position new opportunities.

In a sign of MIPIM’s importance to regional growth plans, Sir Sadiq Khan – Mayor of London – attended for the first time.

Away from our day-to-day responsibilities, MIPIM is a chance for senior leaders to share ideas, collaborate, reflect on best practice, and identify future opportunities. This year, the discussion was framed by growth – and how we achieve it.

The UK Government has made growth its domestic priority, alongside the delivery of new homes. Regeneration remains one of the primary levers we can pull to create jobs, capture economic value, and support communities – but it’s not something either the public or private sector can do alone.

The attendance of Homes England and Eamonn Boylan – Interim Chief Executive – was further evidence of the public sector’s commitment to work in partnership with the private sector to deliver.

ECF, our partnership with Legal & General and Homes England, is a model of public-private partnership.

We recently completed the first phase at Manor Road Quarter in Canning Town. Working with the London Borough of Newham, the Greater London Authority, and Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing, Manor Road Quarter will deliver 804 homes – 50% being affordable.

In the first phase alone, we have created 437 new jobs. Many were secured by residents of Newham. We have created 38 apprenticeships, alongside our delivery partners Morgan Sindall Construction, and 2,935 students have benefitted from work experience placements and our engagement with schools.

It’s an example of the tangible benefits our partnership approach can deliver for communities. Elsewhere, Habiko – our partnership with PIC and Homes England – has been established to deliver 3,000 sustainable and affordable homes.

Both are unique partnership propositions and can unlock opportunities which are too complex or difficult for the wider market.

At its heart, MIPIM is all about partnerships. It’s a forum which brings together councils, combined authorities, government, and the private sector.

Working collaboratively with local and combined authorities across the country, Muse can help unlock and deliver long-term and complex regeneration. This year, MIPIM presented an opportunity to look strategically at future opportunities and approaches which could be successful.

For example, alongside our partners at Salford Council, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Homes England, and Peel Land we launched the Salford Strategic Regeneration Forum (SRF) at MIPIM. It a new and unique vehicle for the public and private sector to collaborate, looking at place-based solutions and inclusive growth opportunities across Salford.

The same partnership approach is being cultivated across the country.

In the West Midlands, Arden Cross is one of the region’s biggest and most exciting growth opportunities. The £3.2bn regeneration, facilitated by the HS2 Interchange, could deliver thousands of new homes and tens of thousands of new jobs.

We are working in partnership with Arden Cross Ltd, Solihull MBC, Birmingham City Council, HS2, and the Department for Transport to deliver. We are also working closely with the University of Warwick to shape a HealthTech Campus, which will anchor an Arden Cross Innovation District.

By leveraging the competitive advantage of the West Midlands’ HealthTech and life science sectors we can improve health outcomes locally, regionally, and nationally – and, importantly, help grow the UK’s nascent HealthTech industry.

Arden Cross was one of the most significant opportunities presented by the UK delegation this year, and a powerful signal of the West Midlands’ growth potential.

With our public sector partners attending MIPIM from the North West, Yorkshire & the North East, Midlands, and the South – we supported regional agendas at every opportunity.

Whether at panel events, lunchtime networking, or informal conversation we talked up the benefits of investing in Salford, Oldham, Bradford, Solihull, or Stevenage.

The more investment we can drive to our regional economies the better it is for all of us. We don’t shy away from that task.

Growth is top of the agenda. If we are to achieve it, at the scale required, we need to work together. Quality regeneration, delivered by the public and private sector, must be the foundation.

MIPIM 2025 set the tone, and now we have work to do.