The repurposing of place will be the central theme when the Derby Property Summit returns next month.
Featuring a top line-up of respected keynote speakers, the event will take place in Derby city centre on Wednesday 13 July.
Now held as a hybrid event – with delegates present in person and online – it is set to attract business leaders, key decision-makers and investors from across the region and beyond.
Organised by Marketing Derby, the Derby Property Summit will once again be hosted by BBC and LBC business journalist Declan Curry.
This year’s event will explore the role that inward investment, green growth and foreign direct investment can play in repurposing Derby and the towns of Derbyshire in the post-COVID recovery.
It will take place at the QUAD cinema, with the forthcoming Urban Forest installation, in the Market Place, providing the backdrop – epitomising the ‘repurposing of place’ theme.
As a result of the global pandemic, the world has changed – as has customer expectations of place. Blue and green spaces have become more valued – and this year’s Derby Property Summit will explore how Derby and Derbyshire is reacting to this change.
It will showcase £2 billion of current and upcoming development and regeneration opportunities in both the city and county – and will look at how many of these schemes have been designed to support a more sustainable future.
This year there will be an enviable line-up of keynote speakers, who will share international, national and local perspectives.
The line-up includes Courtney Fingar, editor-in-chief of Global Data’s Investment Monitor, Paul Simpson, Chief Executive of Derby City Council and Chris Henning, executive director of place at Derbyshire County Council.
There will also be talking head contributions from economist Jim O’Neill, Baron O’Neill of Gatley, and businessman Sir Tim Smit, the man behind Cornwall’s Eden Project, who is backing plans by Down to Earth for a nature-based regeneration of Derby.
John Forkin, Managing Director of Marketing Derby, said: “We feel that this year will be our most important summit as we look to repurpose our cities and towns. While the challenge is shared, the solutions must be bespoke to each place. We are hoping the line-up of speakers will provide insights and learning that will help shape our plans going forward.”
As well as the speakers, the summit will feature a number of films and presentations, which will show why Derby and Derbyshire is a great place to live, work, invest and play. The summit will also demonstrate the confidence that is being shown by investors in the city and county, creating genuine economic momentum.
Such confidence is not misplaced according to the latest Irwin Mitchell UK Powerhouse report, which said that Derby’s economy will be the fastest growing in the East Midlands by the end of 2023.
Key schemes driving this growth are listed in the Derby Investment Prospectus and the recently created Derbyshire Investment Prospectus, both of which will be showcased at the Derby Property Summit.
