New Towns, New Leaders

When government launches major regeneration initiatives, attention often lands on the numbers. Headlines focus on funding - millions pledged, homes promised, jobs projected. And soon, all eyes will turn to the upcoming New Towns Deals: ambitious investment packages designed to create entirely new communities and reinvigorate existing ones.

Success depends on whether councils have the capacity and specialist expertise and leadership to turn vision into reality. In today’s environment, that capacity is in increasingly short supply. The New Towns Deals represent significant opportunity. They have the potential to reshape local economies, revitalise high streets, build thousands of new homes, and unlock development that has been stalled for years. The ambition is bold: focusing on reducing regional inequalities, driving growth, and improving outcomes for residents. Yet translating that ambition into delivery is anything but straightforward. These are complex, multi-year programmes that cut across housing, regeneration, property, infrastructure, and economic development. They demand strong programme management, clear strategic direction, and above all bold leadership. 

This is where many local authorities will feel the strain. Over the past decade, councils have absorbed wave after wave of funding reductions. Workforce numbers have shrunk. Senior leadership pipelines are thinner than ever. In particular, regeneration, corporate property, economic development, and capital delivery are service areas where recruitment and retention are notoriously difficult.  

That capacity gap matters.  

Without experienced leaders in place, the risks are clear: missed deadlines, under-spending of allocations, stalled delivery, or projects that fail to deliver the intended impact.  There is also the risk of struggling to attract funding in the first place, as government is less likely to allocate significant investment to areas without demonstrable capacity and capability to deliver.

The scale of these deals is such that councils cannot treat them as business as usual. This comes in addition to the local government reorganisation and devolution workstreams already demanding senior attention. They require a step-change in both pace and governance. Leaders must navigate competing priorities, balancing commercial negotiation with public accountability, securing buy-in from Whitehall while also managing expectations on the ground. The skills required are specialist and diverse. Councils will need people who can lead regeneration programmes that integrate housing, transport, and economic growth; oversee complex property portfolios and ensure assets are used strategically; drive capital projects from concept through to delivery on time and on budget; and engage local businesses and communities so that regeneration is not just physical, but also economic and social. They will also need leaders with strong political skills to navigate the impact of change on communities, work effectively with elected members, and operate confidently in the wider context of combined authorities, central government and the private sector. For those areas selected, assembling that team will be the single biggest determinant of whether the New Towns Deal succeeds. 

This is where newly appointed specialist teams, including interim leadership, can play a role. Experienced interim executives can provide capacity at short notice, inject fresh perspective, and bring lessons learned from other places. They can steady the ship during transition, but just as importantly, they can act as catalysts - setting up structures and governance that endure long after their assignment ends. In practice, interims are often the people who can hit the ground running on day one. They can unpick stalled negotiations, realign capital programmes, and build confidence with government and local partners alike. This is not to suggest that interims are a substitute for permanent leadership. The long-term sustainability of regeneration efforts depends on strong permanent teams. But at a moment when New Towns Deals will land simultaneously across the country, interims are likely to play a crucial role in ensuring delivery momentum is not lost. This is where the role of trusted recruitment partners becomes critical. The right partner can connect councils to specialist networks, anticipate skills gaps, and move quickly to secure the right blend of interim and permanent leadership. 

For local government leaders, the priority is preparation. Until the New Towns Deals are formally announced, detailed planning may be premature. But when they do arrive, the expectation for visible progress will come fast. Councils that delay in securing the right leadership risk falling behind at the very moment momentum they’re meant to accelerate.  

Resourcing for delivery will not sit with councils alone. In many places, delivery vehicles, such as development corporations, will take the lead, while in others councils will retain direct responsibility. These models can bring governance, specialist skills, and delivery capability together under one roof. But even they depend on securing and retaining trusted leaders, another reminder that people, not just structures, determine success. Councils will also need to assess how their own capacity aligns with or complements these vehicles and here, interims may play a vital role in setting up governance, establishing delivery teams, or strengthening in-house capacity at pace.

Now is the time to audit leadership capability in regeneration, property, and economic development. Understand the gaps. Consider where interim support could bridge them. Invest in the pipeline. Because today’s delivery teams are tomorrow’s legacy. 

The opportunity is real, but so is the risk. 

When the announcements land, one question will define what happens next: 

Do we have the leadership capacity to deliver? And if not, who are you partnering with to fix that?