Unlocking infrastructure investment through planning policy

The next London Plan will shape how London will develop over the next 23 years (2027-2050). Its early consultation document, ‘Towards a new London Plan’, outlines the ambitions of the Next London Plan and the policy ideas proposed to achieve them.

Our research experts have examined these proposals in more detail, exploring their potential impact on housing delivery, high street, industrial land supply, workspaces, and London’s environmental future.

A STRATEGIC MOMENT FOR INSTITUTIONAL AND PRIVATE CAPITAL
The new London Plan sets out a bold vision not just for housing, but for transforming London’s infrastructure to support sustainable economic growth, resilience and connectivity. For investors with long-term horizons, such as pension funds, insurers, and private equity, this represents alignment between policy ambition and investable real-world assets.

Globally, infrastructure investment is shifting towards urban resilience, green transition, and digital connectivity. London’s new plan echoes these priorities, presenting a pipeline of projects ripe for capital deployment in transport, energy, digital infrastructure, and logistics.

INFRASTRUCTURE FOCUS EMBEDDED IN THE PLAN
Transport Infrastructure
The Plan highlights major unfunded or underdeveloped projects like the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) extension, the West London Orbital and Bakerloo Line expansion. These are pivotal to unlocking dense, mixed-use development and offer complimentary usages in the longer term. Pension funds and infrastructure Private Equity have historically favoured long term, regulated assets like these; similar to investments made in Crossrail, HS1, or the Thames Tideway Tunnel.

Digital Infrastructure
With growing demand for data capacity and connectivity, the plan supports investment in fibre networks, 5G, and data centres, particularly in new innovation and creative clusters.

Energy and Climate Infrastructure
The push for low carbon cities brings opportunities to fund district heat networks, energy efficiency upgrades, and carbon capture solutions which are critical areas of focus for ESG-aligned investors.

Waste and Circular Economy Hubs
Investors can back scalable, tech enabled waste and recycling infrastructure to meet rising urban sustainability standards.

WHERE REAL ESTATE MEETS INFRASTRUCTURE
The Plan also signals major potential for commercial real estate investment, especially in:

• Transport-linked regeneration zones, such as Opportunity Areas and key station districts (e.g. Euston, Old Oak, Stratford), where office, lab space and mixed-use developments are planned.
• Industrial-to-logistics conversions, particularly in London's "grey belt", enabling last mile distribution and warehousing in prime urban proximity.
• Repurposing ageing commercial stock for energy efficient use or creating new and vibrant workspaces, retail and broader community activation. There is the potential for the recycling of these assets to occur as regulation continues to evolve and investors target new opportunities.

THE INVESTOR CASE
Infrastructure is no longer a niche allocation, It’s now a core strategy for long-term capital. This shift is creating new openings for institutional capital to engage in sectors that are essential to long-term urban function.

The consultation document for the next London Plan reflects this wider lens. While it is not a delivery programme, it points to where investment will be required to support growth across the capital. This includes areas such as transport extensions, heat networks, housing, digital infrastructure and logistics.

With the Mansion House Accord encouraging UK pension funds to allocate more to domestic infrastructure, the types of assets emerging from the Plan align with this direction of travel. For investors focused on long-term, place-based infrastructure.