Neighbourhood health rebuild: Turning NHS policy into delivery
Chris Wheeler
National Head of Development – Regeneration
Unlocking projects through funding, partnerships and place-led investment: reflections from UKREiiF 2026
David Atkinson
Director – Development & Investment
David Atkinson, Director of Development and Investment at Willmott Dixon Developments, shares his reflections from UKREiiF 2026.
UKREiiF 2026 made one thing clear: ambition isn’t the issue in regeneration, development or investment. Across housing, coastal towns, student accommodation, public estates and town centres, the appetite to invest is strong. The real challenge is unlocking delivery at pace while balancing viability, long‑term value and community outcomes.
That theme ran through almost every conversation in our pavilion. Whether discussing PBSA (purpose-built student accommodation), coastal regeneration, public estate investment or neighbourhood healthcare, partners were focused on the structures, funding models and partnerships needed to move complex opportunities from concept to delivery.
Funding and partnerships are evolving
Public sector budgets remain under pressure, borrowing constraints continue to shape decisions and many organisations are being asked to deliver more with limited capital. Meanwhile, the need for investment in regeneration, infrastructure, healthcare estates, housing and education continues to grow.
As a result, interest in alternative funding structures, public‑private partnerships and delivery models is rising. Our PBSA session highlighted this clearly: with universities facing accommodation demand and capital constraints, discussions centred on how DBFO (Design, Build, Finance, Operate), and development‑funded models can unlock schemes that might otherwise stall.
Crucially, the conversation has moved beyond whether projects can be funded to how they can be structured to align investor, operator, institutional and delivery interests, creating repeatable models deployable at scale.
Similar themes emerged around the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild programme. Modernising healthcare estates remains a national priority, but achieving this at scale requires innovative approaches to funding, partnership and delivery. Long‑term collaboration, clear pipelines and repeatable models will be critical.
Regeneration must be place‑led
Another consistent theme was the growing importance of place‑led regeneration. Successful regeneration increasingly requires understanding how housing, employment, infrastructure, healthcare, public realm, culture and community assets work together to support thriving places — particularly as devolution accelerates and regional leaders shape local growth priorities.
Our coastal regeneration masterclass reinforced this. Discussions highlighted the need to move beyond single‑asset interventions towards connected strategies that reflect the unique strengths and identity of individual places. Whether coastal communities, town centres or regional growth corridors, the same message applies: regeneration cannot rely on a one‑size‑fits‑all approach.
The same thinking shaped discussions on defence estates, where investment is increasingly viewed as a catalyst for economic growth, skills and placemaking. Attracting and retaining talent depends on creating places where people want to live and work, requiring a more holistic approach.
Our innovation workshop on data‑led placemaking reinforced this further. Better insight into community behaviour, visitor patterns and local need is helping partners make more informed decisions, strengthen viability and reduce delivery risk. Data is becoming a critical tool in shaping successful regeneration strategies.
A timely launch for Willmott Dixon Developments
Against this backdrop, the launch of Willmott Dixon Developments felt timely. Conversations throughout UKREiiF showed how customer requirements are evolving. Organisations increasingly need partners who can bring together development expertise, investment thinking, funding solutions and delivery capability to unlock complex opportunities.
The launch event, opened by Stewart Brundell, COO of Willmott Dixon’s construction business, marked an important milestone and reflects our ambition to support customers much earlier in the development lifecycle.
Our role is to help structure opportunities, navigate viability challenges, coordinate stakeholders and create the conditions for long‑term investment. Often that means connecting funding, development and delivery into a single integrated strategy.
UKREiiF 2026 highlighted a sector becoming more sophisticated in how it structures funding, investment and partnerships. The opportunity now is to turn that strategic alignment into viable, place‑appropriate projects that attract investment, accelerate delivery and create lasting community value.
More insights
New national development and investment business builds on nearly a decade of work helping councils, universities and government partners unlock complex sites.
Willmott Dixon has launched Willmott Dixon Developments, a dedicated national business focused on regeneration, residential, student accommodation and public-private partnership (PPP) schemes.
The new business was unveiled at UKREiiF, the UK’s leading real estate forum, at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, in front of investors, developers, local authority leaders and public sector partners.
Willmott Dixon Developments brings together the group’s existing development, investment and regeneration capability – built up over nearly ten years – under a single national platform. It is led by David Atkinson, Director of Development and Investment, and Chris Wheeler, National Head of Land and Development, supported by regional development teams across England and Wales.
The business has set out an ambition to scale activity across four areas where it has an established track record:
· Regeneration and development management: working with councils to shape sites, masterplans, procurement routes and delivery strategies.
· Residential and direct investment: deploying Willmott Dixon capital selectively to unlock viable projects and align partner interests.
· Student accommodation (PBSA): partnering with universities to shape, fund and deliver purpose-built student accommodation.
· PPP and strategic partnerships: longer-term public-private models for complex programmes and social infrastructure.
Established track record across England and Wales
Willmott Dixon Developments is already leading on a series of high-profile regeneration schemes to bring forward portfolios of sites rather than one-off projects. In Torbay, the team is acting as long-term regeneration partner across a multi-site town centre and waterfront portfolio. In Great Yarmouth, it is leading masterplanning and planning strategy to unlock North Quay, a key station quarter mixed-use redevelopment. And in November last year, alongside joint venture partner Milligan, the team was appointed by Dorset Council to a Regeneration Partnership shaping Weymouth’s future
An important step for the Group
Graham Dundas, Chief Executive Officer at Willmott Dixon, said: “Willmott Dixon Developments is an important next step for our group and creates a clear national platform for the development, investment and regeneration work we have been doing successfully for nearly a decade. Over that period our specialists have developed a track record for unlocking complex sites, turning early-stage ambition into viable, fundable and deliverable schemes.
“This launch establishes Willmott Dixon Developments as a dedicated national business with the people, capital, partnerships and network to help councils and other partners move faster from ambition to delivery. By combining genuine development and investment expertise with the construction insight that makes plans buildable, we are well placed to play a significant role in shaping the places this country needs.”
David Atkinson, Director of Development and Investment at Willmott Dixon Developments, said: “We exist to solve the problem we hear most often from council and university partners: how to move stalled or complex sites from ambition to delivery. Our role is to act as a single, accountable partner that can shape the scheme, structure the funding, share risk where appropriate, and bring the certainty that comes with knowing how a project will be built.
“That blend of development, investment and delivery insight is rare in the market, and it is why we are leading long-term, multi-site regeneration programmes in places like Torbay, Great Yarmouth and Dover. We are established players in this space, not market entrants. Launching Willmott Dixon Developments simply makes it easier for partners to see what we offer and how to work with us.”
The launch is supported by a brand promise – “Your ambition, delivered together” – designed to make the offer clearer to councils, universities, investors and other partners.
Torbay Council has set up a Regeneration Partnership that will see it work with Willmott Dixon and Milligan to accelerate ambitious plans to stimulate town centre growth across Torbay by regenerating several sites in Torquay and Paignton.
The partnership allows the council to draw on both company’s development management, funding and construction skills to take forward projects that have already been awarded Government funding. Willmott Dixon and Milligan were procured using Pagabo’s Developer Led Framework, with each company bringing significant track records of working with local authorities to deliver regeneration projects across the UK.
The partnership’s purpose is to reshape town centres, improve public realm, increase town centre living, repurpose excess retail and vacant shops and improve the connectivity between towns. These developments will bring confidence, create jobs and homes, and improve the council’s ability to sustain its services.
Cllr David Thomas, Leader of Torbay Council, said: “This is an exciting announcement that will see a step change in our ability to deliver these schemes. We are absolutely focused on accelerating the much-needed regeneration projects to ensure Torbay continues to thrive as a place to live, work and visit.
There are major schemes already under way which show there is huge confidence in Torbay and a bright future for our towns. But we know there are challenges and a lot of work still to do, so the Partnership gives a clear signal to everyone that Torbay has an exciting future.
We are looking forward to working closely with our partners at Willmott Dixon and Milligan to deliver the projects that we all want to see coming to life. Our partners understand our values and share our vision about what we want to achieve for our community by providing spaces for them to thrive.
They recognise the vision that Torbay has developed through the Torbay Story and understand the social value objectives of the Council.“
Jim Parker, chairman of the Torbay Place Leadership Board, a public and private sector partnership which has been instrumental in creating the Torbay Story programme to promote investment in Torbay, said: “The regeneration of the Bay has been a long time in the making but now we are at the crossroads to the dawning of a new future and more prosperous era for everybody.
“This partnership is absolutely key to that new journey and is a testament to the power of the Torbay Story – especially how it was used to promote the Bay at the UKREiiF investors event – and the unity and driving force of the Torbay Place Leadership Board. The moment has arrived – now is the time to grab it!”
Chris Wheeler, Regional Head of Land and Development at Willmott Dixon, said:
“Willmott Dixon, which recently was recognised by the King’s Awards for Enterprise in the category of Promoting Opportunity, already has a major presence in the region and is currently delivering the Harbour View Hotel in the heart of Torquay for Torbay Council and the four-star Corbyn Head Hotel on Torbay Road.
Willmott Dixon is proud to be part of this significant partnership with Milligan and Torbay Council, and we are looking forward to working together to create a catalyst for change across the Bay, continuing and building upon the Council’s inspired ‘Torbay Story’ corporate vision.
Through this collaboration, we aim to help generate further economic growth, create new job opportunities, and encourage more inward investment into Torbay, so this development will make a lasting contribution to the region’s future prosperity.
In addition to regeneration, it will also give us the opportunity to deliver important social value initiatives throughout the developments that bring tangible benefits to local people in Torbay. This also includes our focus on supporting the ‘local pound’ whenever possible.”
Stuart Harris, CEO for developer Milligan, said: “Our whole team is thrilled to be playing a leading role in Torbay’s regeneration story alongside Willmott Dixon. We frequently talk about how critical public and private sector collaboration is to regenerating town centres and big repurposing challenges.
“The partnership we’ve formed brings Torbay the best of the skillsets that are needed for a cohesive and effective regeneration strategy that can be delivered with pace. We’re confident that Milligan’s track record in repurposing excess retail space and curating and delivering complementary, mixed-use offers in an innovative and well-thought through way, will help bring the Torbay Story to life.”
The council’s appointment of appointed Willmott Dixon and Milligan as its Regeneration Partners will see them focus on the programmes in the Town Deal at Torquay (£21.9m) and Future High Streets at Paignton (£13.36m), which were awarded UK Government funding in 2020.