Estate Matters

Twenty years of patient placemaking on The Benyon Estate in Hackney has played a transformative role in the regeneration of De Beauvoir Town, turning it into one of East London’s most sought-after places to live and work.The Benyon Estate forms part of the Englefield Estate and has a portfolio of 234 residential and 170 commercial tenancies within a single square mile of London. Although this makes up only a small fraction of the wider De Beauvoir neighbourhood, the Estate has played a pivotal role in the rejuvenation of the high street on Southgate Road and the development of two new local state schools. It is also responsible for a significant restoration project, the De Beauvoir Block, a vibrant hub for creative businesses offering 75,000 square feet of coworking and office spaces.In the latest episode of the Estate Matters podcast, Estate Manager Edward Benyon said: "One of the things I've really enjoyed here is creating property that we're going to own for the long term and really understanding one very small square mile of the United Kingdom."Edward goes on to explain why the Estate lets directly rather than through agents, how it retained every commercial tenant at The De Beauvoir Block through a year of disruptive remedial works and why clear communication is the key to successful, long-term landlord/ tenant relationships.

Ellen Francis of the Quy Hall Estate in Cambridgeshire explains why she has put social media at the heart of how the Estate connects with its local community, in the latest episode of the Estate Matters podcast, recorded at Groundswell.Ellen and her husband Henry left careers in law and City finance to take on the diversified Estate between Cambridge and Newmarket, which they have now run for thirteen years. Alongside residential and commercial lets, tenanted and in-hand farmland and a Site of Special Scientific Interest, the couple are transitioning their arable land to regenerative farming.The Estate's Instagram account has become a way of opening Quy Hall up to the people around it. "It's a tool for opening up, a tool for being transparent, and a tool for connecting with the communities around us," Ellen says, describing its value as relational capital rather than sales.She also shares why she stopped keeping herself out of the frame, having realised that people connect with a person and a story far more than with an account "that looks like it could have come from any estate".The episode is a candid, practical listen for any estate wondering whether social media is worth its time, and Ellen's advice to those still hesitating is simple.

Gascoyne Estates' CEO Jorge Mendonça and architect Gavin Murray reveal how they and their teams turned a tired town square into a beautiful and vibrant space.Salisbury Square at the centre of Old Hatfield in Hertfordshire was, by common agreement, “unloved and unsuccessful.” It recently reopened (June 2026) after a major improvement scheme to widespread praise from people in the community and further afield.New homes, offices and shops, along with a beautiful public space at the heart of the development, were delivered. A consultation, via a charrette held at the very start of the process, ensured the local community was fully engaged.This episode also highlights the importance of taking the community with you when you embark on a major development project so that on completion you can hand it back to local people and businesses and watch it flourish and grow.

James Nason and his wife, Rowena Colthurst, own Pitchford Hall and Estate in Shropshire. At least, they do now.In 1992, Rowena’s mother was forced to sell the Grade I listed Elizabethan manor house. Although the family retained the surrounding land, James and Rowena made it their mission to buy back the Hall and reunite her family home with the wider estate.In 2016, the couple raised the funds to purchase the Hall, which had fallen into dereliction. Since then, they have been working hard to source the contents that were sold at auction and bring the property back to life.James describes Pitchford as a “tourism estate”, offering tours of the Hall, grounds, orangery and the world’s oldest treehouse. But it was their decision to become early adopters of solar energy that provided the consistent income needed to support additional borrowing.Recorded in the treehouse, this episode explores the trials and tribulations of running a heritage asset like Pitchford Hall.

Ben Bolgar is the Executive Director for Projects at The King’s Foundation.He first discussed architecture with the Prince of Wales, now King Charles III, at Kensington Palace in 1988 and there was a meeting of minds that has underpinned Ben’s work during his nearly 25 years at the Foundation.In that time Ben has led over 50 collaborative planning and design frameworks all over the world, championing the Enquiry by Design (EbD) process.Describing architecture as “the mother of the arts”, Ben explains why he chose placemaking as his career, and how he challenged what he was taught at university where he says modernism was “shoved down our throats”.The King's Foundation - Ben BolgarEnquiry by Design

Turning underutilised land into thriving leisure and hospitality destinations is what entrepreneur Joel Cadbury does best.In the latest episode of Estate Matters, the founder and chief executive of Longshot tells podcast host Anna Byles how he has spent 30 years spotting opportunities where others see challenges.Joel describes how, as chair of The Royal Parks Foundation, he transformed empty buildings into lettable properties generating millions of pounds a year and championed the creation of Winter Wonderland – an idea initially dismissed because "British people don't skate."Now he has turned his attention to Mad Swans, a new leisure and hospitality concept, developed on the sites of failing golf courses – including on the Mendips in Somerset. Working with leading architect Tom Mackenzie, the team has established what Sir Nick Faldo has called the first proper 12-hole course built in over a century, alongside padel and pickle courts, high-end accommodation and dining.Reducing the number of holes, means land has been made available at the 200-acre site to reflect Joel’s passion for sustainability and self-sufficiency, including a planned solar farm, growing horseradish and keeping bees.There were critics, Joel admits, but his philosophy remains simple: leave things better than you found them.

Gavin Lane is President of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA).Gavin, who farms 1,200 acres in Norfolk and runs a holiday lettings business with his wife, Jane, explains one of his ambitions during his two-year presidency is to try to present an accurate and positive view of what farmers and landowners provide for their communities and the nation more widely.He tells podcast host Anna Byles that the social value provided by farmers and landowners in many rural communities often goes unrecognised. But he says it is time to put the pride back into the industry. 

Lord Gascoigne is Chair of the House of Lords Built Environment Committee. In this episode, Lord Gascoigne discusses how he got into politics; worked with Boris Johnson on his election campaign for Mayor of London in 2008, through to Johnson later taking office as Prime Minister. He goes on to explain the key findings from the first part of the Committee's enquiry into New Towns, emphasising the importance of meaningful engagement and explaining that change won't happen overnight. Alongside KOR's Senior Public Affairs Consultant, Grace Gladding, the pair discuss the role landed estates can play in the delivery of high quality placemaking. 

Living life in the glare of publicity, with a hugely popular YouTube channel, would not be for every owner of a historic country Estate.But for James Lowsley-Williams and his wife Emma, documenting the running of the 500-year-old Chavenage Estate in the Cotswolds to thousands of viewers every week has proved to be a major success.In this episode of Estate Matters nothing is off-limits as James, a former professional cyclist, tells podcast host Anna Byles about inheriting the Estate, welcoming film crews for Poldark and Jilly Cooper’s Rivals, and managing family expectations in a multi-generational business.With a café, accommodation, weddings, filming, a 2,000-acre farm and tours of the house, James and Emma have turned an Elizabethan and Tudor Manor into a 21st century diversified business.There have been challenges and mistakes along the way, he admits, but authentic and open engagement with the local community have helped Chavenage thrive.

Rebekah Pierce is a farmer and solar grazier in New York state. In this episode she explains how she got into farming by ‘accident’, but is now paving the way with ‘Agri Energy’ through solar grazing.She candidly explains to podcast host, Anna Byles that energy and food production don’t have to be separate and it is projects like her own solar grazing that are bridging that gap. Listeners will also hear how this is benefiting soil, livestock, local communities and economies, even if the planning process can sometimes be tedious.Rebekah makes it clear that communication and involvement with local communities is crucial to pulling back the curtain on renewable energy in order to challenge misconceptions the public might have.