October 2026 saw the announcement of a new housing and regeneration model, with Liverpool chosen as the first pilot for the new framework designed to simplify and accelerate delivery. Arguably one of the first demonstrable new levers of power for regional leaders, the Place Delivery Agreement (PDA) is an early prototype of what decision making in a newly devolved England may look like. We drill into the detail and examine what the initiative sets out to achieve and its wider significance.
Establishment of unique Joint Delivery Unit
This will combine expertise from the Combined Authority, Homes England and the National Housing Bank, spanning planning, regeneration, infrastructure, affordable housing, economics and development finance, legal services, and market engagement. The unit will be led by co-directors from the Combined Authority and Homes England and provide a single route of decision making, delivery and investment capability, theoretically streamlining processes and minimising barriers to progress.
The PDA acts as the financial and operational vehicle to execute the priorities of the newly established Liverpool North Docks Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC) and is expected to deliver:
Circa 17,000 homes around Liverpool’s northern waterfront (and associated regeneration);
86 acres of mixed development around the Central Station Gateway area;
Wider regeneration and housing across all six Liverpool City Region (LCR) areas;
A Mayoral ambition to build circa 16,000 social, affordable and council homes by 2036;
Maximising LCR’s £700 million allocation under Social and Affordable Homes Programme; and
Build a portfolio of transactions capable of attracting National Housing Bank / private investment
Shift from funding deals to delivery deals
Previous devolution agreements have often transferred funding or particular powers, while delivery continued through multiple agencies and approval routes. The PDA attempts to align:
local political priorities;
strategic housing and spatial planning;
Homes England expertise and powers;
National Housing Bank finance;
local-authority pipelines;
infrastructure requirements; and
private investment.
The agreement therefore changes the machinery of delivery, although not the underlying statutory planning system. Planning decisions remain with the relevant local planning authorities and individual projects must still complete the normal statutory processes, although reforms in the revised National Planning Policy Framework may streamline decision making and minimise obstacles, objections and delays.
Governance changes
The agreement introduces:
a shared performance framework;
direct reporting to the Mayor;
oversight involving the Mayor and the chairs and chief executives of Homes England and the National Housing Bank;
quarterly senior sponsor meetings; and
annual review of an initial three-year agreement.
This is significant because it creates identifiable responsibility for resolving barriers, rather than leaving individual projects to move between separate public bodies.
The PDA connects housing policy directly to economic strategy
The PDA treats housing as economic infrastructure rather than a numerical target. It explicitly connects regeneration and housing with a variety of considerations / drivers such as:
Productivity;
labour-market growth;
attracting and retaining talent;
commercial development;
Connectivity;
Employment; and
the city region’s priority sectors.
It is anticipated that this and other initiatives in the LCR Growth Plan will add more than £10 billion in GVA and create thousands of jobs, a 23% increase based upon the available 2023 data.
What it means for developers and investors
The commercial opportunity is likely to be strongest around projects, with a clear strategic fit and precise identification of how coordinated public intervention could overcome potential barriers.
Other benefits may include:
a clearer pipeline of mayoral and public-sector priorities, resulting in great confidence in supply chains, procurement sovereignty and upskilling;
earlier discussions about land, infrastructure, remediation and finance;
increased importance of whether a project aligns with the city-region strategy;
greater opportunity for institutional investment in portfolios rather than individual isolated sites;
potential acceleration of stalled or marginal schemes; and
more structured public-private delivery partnerships.
Implications for Registered Providers, Local Authorities, Combined Authorities and Mayors
Registered Providers will theoretically have access to greater investment opportunities, be able to deliver with more speed and scale and get renewed progression of stalled projects;
Local Authorities will be able to call on national-level expertise and resources into regeneration projects, enhancing the ability to unlock difficult sites. Projects are likely to be judged on deliverability principles such as infrastructure requirements, funding readiness and projected economic impact;
Combined Authorities are the biggest institutional beneficiaries of PDAs, giving them much greater influence over investment, regeneration and placemaking priorities, sequencing and relationships vis-à-vis national agencies; and
Mayoral offices are a vital part of the jigsaw, pivotal in decision making and accountability. It is thought that if the Liverpool pilot is successful PDAs will be rolled out across other mayoral authorities, particularly across the north and midlands.
What it means for planning / legal / professional services
The opportunity is not simply a higher volume of planning applications, but assembling more complicated schemes involving multiple landowners, funding sources, public bodies and delivery partners likely to generate work across a host of professions including:
strategic planning, development consent, compulsory purchase & architecture;
development consultancy, valuation & legal work;
transport, utilities, flood risk, remediation, energy infrastructure;
construction and infrastructure contracts;
viability assessments, JV arrangements & project finance;
governance, monitoring & compliance;
disputes, restructuring and project rescue; and
insurance, assurance, accountancy & auditing services.
To deliver at scale and speed an experienced team of these varied specialisms is needed. The dedicated team at Weightmans has vast experience in regeneration of varied scale and complexity and housing specialism which is key for the navigation of this new landscape.
Devolution by default’ – scaling down of Whitehall power
July’s ‘Rewiring the State’ paper published by the Cabinet Office introduced the concept of devolution by default, whereby central government departments would have to make a special case to retain powers and processes, and the Liverpool PDA will be a key test case in terms of how this will work, a practical expression of the concept in action. The model will ultimately be judged on outcomes, but also in terms of the interplay between the Mayor’s Office, Combined Authority, Number 10 North, and Whitehall departments.
Board-level considerations across the sector
There are various questions senior leaders should be asking when considering if projects are compatible with PDAs, summarised below
Do proposals align with the Growth Plan, Housing Strategy, emerging Spatial Development Strategy and identified PDA priorities?
Are sites or programmes visible to the Joint Delivery Unit and capable of inclusion in the regional pipeline?
Is there demonstrable land control, planning strategy, infrastructure requirements, costs, phasing, returns and delivery capability?
Do elements require grant, debt, equity, guarantees or public land intervention?
Who has authority to negotiate with the Combined Authority, Homes England, National Housing Bank and constituent councils?
Is a JV, development agreement, strategic partnership or delivery vehicle needed?
What remains subject to local planning decisions, environmental assessment, consultation or compulsory-purchase processes?
Are transport, utilities, grid, schools, health provision and digital connectivity incorporated early enough?
Are proposed deliverables consistent with the city region’s social, affordable and council housing ambitions?
Does the organisation have enough development, procurement, legal, financial and programme-management resource?
Can contractors and suppliers support a larger, faster pipeline without unacceptable cost or quality risks?
What measurable outcomes, milestones and reporting information will the Joint Delivery Unit require?
Can the organisation demonstrate jobs, skills, social value, local procurement and tangible neighbourhood benefits?
Are public commitments sufficiently realistic, and is there a clear communication plan if delivery slips?
What it means for Andy Burnham’s administration
With so many simultaneous plates spinning so early into the new PM’s administration there is inherent risk in such a bold devolution strategy, and a potentially heavy political price to pay for failure set against a background of uncertain geopolitics and potential economic shocks. However, equally there is enormous political capital to be gained from successful delivery of PDAs.
Whilst the fate of Liverpool’s PDA remains to be seen, the LCR is undeniably buoyant, with GVA growth since 2017 at 11.8%, outperforming the national average of 8.3%. Furthermore, the LCR has attracted key industry events such as UKREiiF, which will move to the Mersey waterfront from 2028, bringing with it over 17,000 delegates, including over 4,000 investors and developers.
If the PDA is a success in the LCR, then this is likely to have wider positive implications for other regions across England.
