Town Deal Board Spotlight: Josh Downes

A few weeks ago we caught up with Josh Downes, Executive Director of Development at Langtree.

Josh is on the Town Deal board which oversees and supports the delivery of our projects. and he shared his journey as a board member. Sharing his journey as a board member, we got to hear about how they have been helping facilitate collaboration, improving the social value of the programme, and what parts of the programme he is most looking forward to seeing completed.

So Josh, how would you describe your role and your organisation’s role on the board so far?

I joined the board just over a year ago after Wesley Rourke, Executive Director Environment and Regeneration at Halton Borough Council, reached out to Langtree. He asked if we could bring some private sector regeneration development experience and network expertise to the Town Deal board. While I’m not directly involved in a specific project, I enjoy offering an independent perspective on the progress as well as helping to resolve any issues that arise.

What is it about Reconnecting Runcorn that made you want to get involved?

Reconnecting Runcorn is an ambitious project with strong social and community objectives. It’s exciting to be a part of something that will see people being drawn into Runcorn, rather than driving past into the big infrastructure of the Northwest.

Building on from that, how do you think the vision for Reconnecting Runcorn will improve and benefit the community?

Given the programmes multifaceted nature, not only will it provide new residential accommodation right on the high street, but it’s also enhancing the social aspect for the community. The goal is to make the atmosphere coming into Runcorn more exciting and inviting for people, providing more scope for people to live, work and enjoy the town. Overall, it’s concentrating a lot more positivity and community into the town, which is great for Runcorn.

Now that we are starting to see some of the projects that are part of the programme start construction, or even completing works, and open for the community to enjoy. Tell us about some of the work that has gone in after planning permissions have been granted to get projects starting on site.

Lots of work has been going on behind the scenes following projects securing planning permission to mitigate the ongoing viability challenges due to the recent price rises and continuous increase in the cost of living. They have been a real tough ask, which is why some of the progress has been quite slow. But now some of these challenges are starting to be mitigated, the projects are beginning to make progress again which is evident by so many of them starting on site this year.

It’s great to see the projects overcome these challenges with the support of the board. How do you think this has helped both the board and Reconnecting Runcorn as a whole further identify opportunities for the long-term strategic plan for Runcorn?

As time has gone on it is clear there is one centralised focus for the town, which is to have a strong residential offering to attract new people into Runcorn, along with giving them a strong cultural offering to keep them in the town. This centralised focus is providing a major opportunity to kick on and breathe some much-needed life back into the town, which is only going to be supported further by the expansion of the board to encompass the Long-Term Plans For Towns funding.

You’ve mentioned how Reconnecting Runcorn is so multifaceted what project are you most excited to see up and running?

I’m excited by the Brindley Green enhancement and its overall approach. I think it’s a real “sleeping giant” with the potential to attract more visitors into the town. So, I think by having a stronger presence on the high street is vital. Being so close to Hazlehurst Studios and the rest of the creative and digital skills centre will really open it up, creating a big pull for Runcorn’s social value and creative side of the work that is going on within the programme. When I joined the board, I saw Hazlehurst as it was just opening the expansion and the whole premise was just exceptional. Seeing it up and running with the collaboration between artists and creatives is just fantastic.

How important do you think the collaboration is to Reconnecting Runcorn with the emerging trends you have seen coming up in the industry at the moment?

There has been a strong industry focus on collaboration, designing new commercial spaces that promote flexibility. So, for Reconnecting Runcorn it’s really important to build connections and create links between the projects, finding opportunities for collaboration like we have with the creative and digital skills hub being on the high street. Developments with sustainability and social value at the core are still very much key to the industry but this comes hand in hand with collaboration.

Collaboration really is key, and I think we will only continue to see that develop stronger as time goes on within the programme. As we start to look forward to 2025 and continue the exciting progress from this year, what are your expectations for the coming year?

Firstly, I just want to acknowledge all the recent progress is thanks to the various project teams and their determination, especially given the current macro-economic climate which has presented them with some considerable challenges. This year the board and operational teams have done really well, with getting things on site and in the case of some projects even completing work this year, such as the Peace Garden. All of this momentum is only going to continue into next year, with many of the projects underway despite reaching a few stumbling blocks.

In the next year or so, I’d really like to see even more progression from one side of the high street to the other, so the people of Runcorn are inspired by seeing more of the projects being delivered so that our work with Long-Term Plans for Towns isn’t starting from scratch and people will be there ready to invest in it.

Ultimately the goal is for visitors to come out of the train station, along the bridge past the Peace Garden and down the canal, where they walk into the heart of the community, with the Brindley’s enhancement becoming a major pull for the town.

We would like to thank Josh Downes for this interview! If you would like to read more about some of the other Town Deal Board Members click here.