Planning Law and Practice Update HYBRID Seminar

Since graduating from UWE with an MA in Town and Country Planning Alexis started out in development management. After being made an offer he couldn’t refuse, Alexis transferred into transport planning where he now has over 10 years’ experience as a chartered Town Planner. Alexis has a wide range of experience from leading on the Western Gateway Sub-National Transport Body’s Rail Strategy, preparing major transport bids, writing supplementary planning documents, to delivering small scale projects on the ground. Not content with just the two degrees Alexis completed an MSc in Transport Planning and Engineering at the University of Southampton to broaden his knowledge and expertise in transport planning. Looking for new challenges Alexis moved back into development management and is BCP’s Transport Development Manager.

Elisabeth is a Legal Director in the Planning Team at Ashfords specialising in planning, compulsory purchase, infrastructure and environmental work. Elisabeth advises developers, county and district councils, housing associations, and more on a variety of matters including Section 106 Agreements, highway and drainage agreements and certificates of lawful use.

Gareth is a Partner on the Planning Team at Ashfords. He has advised on planning at a senior level both in house and in private practice for over 20 years. Gareth acts for clients seeking permission for housing, industrial or renewable developments and also has a contentious practice involving enforcement and judicial review.

Helen deals with a variety of casework, including S78 planning appeals, Compulsory Purchase Orders, Tree Preservation Orders, Rights of Way, Common Land and Coastal Access.  She has also held some more unusual public inquiries under Section 31 of the Harbours Act 1964 for objections to harbour dues, and under S6 of the Transport Charges &C. (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1954 for an order to revise toll charges. Helen set up and Co-Chaired the Planning Inspectorate’s Women’s Network for several years.  She holds a first class degree in Environmental Science and is particularly interested in environmental and sustainability issues.  Outside of work she volunteers at a community garden and construction has started on her own sustainable house where, hopefully,  both the space heating demand and total energy consumption will be roughly half  the targets set in Policy SEC1 of the Cornwall Climate Emergency DPD.

Biog to follow

I have been working in Local Government (Development Control/Development Management mainly) for nearly 34 years. I started my career in Eastleigh Borough Council in July 1990, then moved on to West Berkshire District, before moving to Cornwall in February 1999. I have been living and working in Cornwall for over 25 years now, starting in North Cornwall District, then moving to Restormel Borough and finally working as part of the wider unitary authority Cornwall Council, which formed in 2009. With post graduate qualifications in planning and urban design, and as a Full Chartered Member of the RTPI since 1998, my role has changed over time. The emphasis in the last 20 or so years has been handling major development projects, in a range of scenarios, generally based in mid and eastern areas of the County.

Tom has been an Inspector for the last nine years and works primarily on appeals and local plans. Beforehand, from 2007, he led on various aspects of planning policy and legislative reform at DLUHC. He is a strong believer in the positive role that planners and Inspectors play, and is particularly interested professionally in the interaction of planning and academic, viability and finance.