Jake is a Chartered Town Planner with over 10 years-experience working in the private sector. He graduated from the University of Manchester in 2013 and has worked in various private sector roles, including planning consultancy, multi-disciplinary practice and more recently the housebuilding sector. Jake joined the Regional Activities Committee in 2017 and has been involved in various Task Groups. He chaired the Education and Careers Task Group in 2018 with a focus on reaching out to schools to promote planning as a career and re-launching the annual school competition to give an insight into different aspects of the profession. Jake is currently Task Group Leader of the Awards, working alongside other committee members and judges to administer awards for planning excellence within the North West.

Chris has been a local authority planner for over 40 years before retiring from Salford City Council at the end of June 2020. He has worked in five local authorities, three of them in the North West of England. For over twenty years he headed up the planning service at Salford City Council, and for much of that time he chaired the Greater Manchester Planning Officers Group. In over four decades, Chris has seen Planning subject to reform after reform from central government, and notwithstanding his retirement will be interested to see where the latest changes take us.

Holly is a Senior Planning and Enabling Manager at Homes England, with a background in both the public and private sectors.  She has experience of working on a range of complex residential projects. 

Holly graduated with a Masters in Planning from the University of Manchester in 2016 and became a Chartered member of the RTPI in 2018. She has been involved in the Awards Task Group for the RTPI NW Regional Activities Committee for the last three years and looks forward to the opportunity to celebrate the best plans, people and projects again this year.

Joanne is the Deputy Head of Planning at Knowsley Council and is responsible for helping to bring forward the Local Plan for Knowsley. Joanne is an experienced policy planner with more than 20 years in the profession. After starting her career in the private sector at GVA Grimley, Joanne has worked within local government, contributing to planning policy for Stafford, Halton and Cheshire East and more recently representing the home building industry whilst working for Home Builders Federation. Joanne is strong supporter of the planning profession and has previously been the Honorary Sectary of the RTPI NW region and served as RTPI NW Chair and as a Trustee of the RTPI. Joanne is a member of the CPD Task Group and is keen to help to support our local members through professional development and other RTPI services and events.

Jade is a Principal Planning Officer at Salford City Council with over 20 years of experience in the planning sector.  Over the course of her career, she has led a wide range of planning submissions across the commercial, residential, renewable energy, and minerals and waste sectors, working in both public and private practice.  In addition to this work, Jade has served as a Community Planner, supporting a local community in addressing their specific needs, and has also volunteered with Planning Aid.  These diverse roles have equipped her with a comprehensive understanding of the planning system, including policy development and stakeholder engagement.  Jade is committed to placing placemaking at the heart of her professional practice, and she is currently a member of the Regional Activities Committee for the RTPI North West and actively participates on the LPA Engage and Awards task groups.

Lesley is Directorate Admissions Lead for Built Environment, Architecture and Acoustics at the University of Salford and Programme Leader for the MSc Town and Country Planning. She made the transition to teaching in November 2019, following a successful career in practice, with 25 years’ experience in planning, development and asset management for The Boots Company, De Montford University, Network Rail and The Arch Company. As a chartered town planner and surveyor, Lesley is interested in promoting multi- disciplinary working and collaboration in the built environment and introducing the next generation of future town planners to the profession.

Melanie is a Graduate Planner based in Manchester. Melanie graduated from her MSc in Urban Design and City Planning from the University College London in 2024 and joined LSH in 2025. Melanie works within the planning consultancy and town centre economic regeneration teams at LSH where she has been involved in a broad range of public and private sector projects. Melanie is currently a licentiate member of the RTPI and is progressing toward her APC, with the aim of achieving full chartered membership in 2027.

Mike completed his MSc in Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Birmingham and graduated in 2020. Mike is a Senior Planner at Lichfields and has been a Chartered Member of the RTPI since May 2025. He has a broad range of experience across residential, commercial, sport and education sectors and is particularly passionate about delivering long-term regeneration benefits to local communities. He has a particular interest in the integration of renewable energy, sustainable development, and innovative architectural design. Mike sits on the Regional Activities Committee for the RTPI North West and is part of the Awards Task Force. 

Outside of planning, Mike plays hockey for Brooklands Hockey Club and enjoys running and cycling. 

Natalie is a chartered associate town planner in Arup’s Manchester Office. She has about 13 years of planning experience in East Asia, specialized in urban regeneration (master planning), stakeholder engagement and social value advisory.  Natalie is passionate to spread influence on embedding social value in the planning and design process to promote an inclusive, equitable and just society. Recently relocated from Hong Kong, Natalie is enthusiastic about engaging with RTPI members, actively seeking collaborations, and sharing insights drawn from her international experience.

Nia is a Chartered Associate Partner at Fisher German, and is the team lead for the North West and Wales region. She graduated with a First Class Masters from University of Liverpool in 2018 and became a Chartered Member of the RTPI in 2020. Nia recently won RTPI North West Young Planner of the Year 2022.  She is passionate about the rural sector and planning for rural communities and agricultural needs which can often be overlooked. Nia likes to promote careers within the industry and mentors a number of Licentiates through the APC process.

Rob is a Lecturer in Urban Planning & Placemaking at the University of Manchester. His research considers how planning shapes urban design quality, as well as wider public policy approaches to placemaking. His work is informed by close engagement with planning practice, including through a previous collaborative PhD with a Scottish local authority, studying the local implementation of Scottish Government placemaking policy, at the University of Glasgow. He currently teaches modules including International Urban Design and Placemaking on the University of Manchester’s RTPI-accredited degree programmes.