
ULI UK Award for Outstanding Contribution to Real Estate: Peter Freeman (Chair, Homes England)
Peter Freeman (66) read history at Balliol College, Oxford and then qualified as a solicitor. He and his brother, Michael, founded the Argent Group of property companies in 1981 and floated them in 1994. In 1996, in the first ever industry-wide awards, Argent was Developer of the Year and the Freeman Brothers shared the Property Personality of the Year Award.
Argent developed Brindleyplace, Birmingham’s major town centre 17-acre regeneration scheme. Argent is now completing the 8m sq. ft, £7bn, mixed-use, 67-acre scheme adjacent to King’s Cross and St. Pancras stations. Argent has begun work on a 7,000 home, 3m sq.ft. of commercial development at Brent Cross and is also rebuilding the Paradise Circus quarter of Birmingham.
Peter was chairman of the Investment Property Forum from 2007 to 2008. He was a non-executive director of Land Securities PLC from 2002 to 2004, a member of the Bank of England Property Forum and a member of the British Property Federation Policy Committee from 1995 to 2002.
Peter is on the Board of the United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Foundation established by the Government. He is a former Chairman of the leading public arts charity Artichoke. He was formerly on the Council of Marlborough College and Chairman of its Property Sub-Committee.
Peter has been actively involved in promoting new garden cities as the former Chairman of Mayfield Market Towns Ltd. and was shortlisted for the Wolfson Prize on delivering garden cities.
Peter chaired the Steering Group of the Housing Sprint Report: How to Solve the Housing Crisis in March 2020.
Peter was awarded a CBE for services to Housing and Communities in the New Year 2020 Honours List. He was appointed as Chair of Homes England in October 2020.