Soft Cities is a small consultancy practice offering a variety of services to the design, development and construction industries. We provide holistic development management and urban project leadership services, as well as guidance and advice on how to establish productive relationships between consulting and development disciplines, and between the public and private sectors. We understand that client needs can be disparate and dynamic, and we are able to offer hands-on help throughout the entire project lifecycle, from establishing sustainable development and regeneration strategies to successfully delivering transformational projects on the ground.
Soft Cities was established by Colm Lacey who has over 25 years of experience in development, housing and regeneration. Colm has successfully led some of the most complex urban projects in the UK, working at both CEO and Board level. Alongside his work with Soft Cities, Colm is also Group Director of Capital Projects for one of the largest further education groups in the UK, and Chairs the Board of London CLT, an affordable housing organisation delivering high-quality, community-led homes on a variety of sites across the capital.
Previously, Colm was Founding Managing Director and CEO of a publicly-owned development company and architecture practice. From setting up the company in 2016 to his departure in 2022, Colm grew it to become a national leader in council-led development, completing c800 new homes and a range of new commercial spaces across 25 brownfield sites, and developing an annual turnover of over £100m. The programme was referred to in the Architects Journal as ‘a truly pioneering piece of pan-borough urban thinking’ and the completed projects attracted a raft of industry awards.
Prior to this, Colm held a variety of Director-level roles delivering public housing schemes, mixed-use regeneration programmes and major capital projects across London, including time at LB Newham as Director of Regeneration, Planning and Olympic Legacy, at LB Croydon as Director of Development and at the Homes and Communities Agency (now Homes England) and the Greater London Authority leading on strategic housing and regeneration projects throughout the city.
Colm holds masters degrees in Economics, Politics and Urban Design and is an Affiliate of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technology. He is an expert panel member on the Design South East group providing design review and analysis services across SE England and sits on the judging panels for numerous industry awards including AJ Architecture Awards, Construction News Awards and the Building Design Awards. He is a regular contributor to housing, architecture and construction related publications promoting equitable housing models, good design and responsible urbanism.