From the 9 to 11 June 2025 it was an absolute privilege to host RTPI President Helen Fadipe on a tour of Somerset and Devon to hear more about planning on the ground meeting planners from both the public and private sector.  Helen was accompanied by RTPI South West Chair Dawn de Vries and RTPI Regional Manager Charlotte Daborn.

On 9 June, Helen met with Planners at Somerset Council at their Bridgwater offices for an informal meeting and lunch hosted by Somerset Council Chief Planning Officer Alison Blom-Cooper and  RTPI South West Chair Dawn de Vries & Service Manger at Somerset Council. 

Later that afternoon we travelled down to Taunton and had a walking tour of Coal Orchard and Firepool, reviewed the Waterway strategy and discussed town centre challenges.

The Coal yard development provides 40 apartments, commercial space and an enhanced public realm. The site has provided steps down to the River Tone near the pedestrian and cycle bridge linked to the Firepool site. This is one of a number of riverside sites identified as an opportunity for the Council resulting in the Taunton Waterways Strategy and Guidance building on the Taunton Garden Town Vision which places its waterways at the heart of the town and its regeneration, seeks to make the most of them and rediscover the historic connection between the town and surrounding landscape.

We were then taken in a walking tour of Northgate which was an underutilised public car park that was redeveloped by the Local Authority, now providing a multi screen cinema, bowling alley and 4 restaurants. The site leads to a regenerated public open space, play space and the docks which were subject to £5.2m of investment. From the Docks through the Town Centre to the train station the ‘celebration mile’ is a project to create a pedestrian priority way that will celebrate and emphasise the history of the town.

On the 10 June we spent the morning with Stantec at their offices in Taunton and was hosted by Sam Harper, Director of Planning.

During her visit Helen was introduced to the South West and Wales regional Planning team at Stantec where staff backgrounds, experience and routes into planning were discussed. Helen offered useful insights and advice for the developing, and more experienced, professionals in the team and talked with passion about how we can support future professionals in to Planning going forward.

A multi-disciplinary team then welcomed Helen, Dawn and Charlotte into a roundtable discussion chaired by Sam Harper, Director of Planning, where some of Stantec’s key projects including Gravity and Agratas, the Celebration Mile in Bridgwater and Baltic Wharf in Bristol were presented and the associated project challenges and benefits were discussed. Other topics for discussion included careers and pathways into Planning, Stantec’s STEM and Outreach activity in inspiring the next generation, climate resilience and PAS 2080, Nature Based Solutions and current challenges around plan making, all of which led to a lively and engaging 90minute debate. Helen was engaged throughout and was particularly impressed with the collaboration between the disciplines within Stantec to try to overcome some of our greatest challenges in delivery across the planning system and her insights were hugely valuable in continuing and progressing those discussions.

Sam said: “It was a pleasure to host Helen, Dawn and Charlotte in our Taunton office as part of the regional Presidential visit. Helen was really well engaged with the team and the topics we discussed, and we valued her thoughts and comments in respect of both some of the challenges we presented but also where we saw opportunities to enhance process and practice, and particularly across areas linked to her key themes for the year of collaboration, investment and inclusivity. We could certainly have spent many more hours discussing the topics in hand and were delighted to hear from Helen in Exeter the next day that she was impressed with our team, experience and passion for the profession”.

In the afternoon we travelled down to Exeter City Council.  Helen was welcomed by Cllr Phil Bialyk (Leader of the Council), Bindu Arjoon (Chief Executive), and Ian Collinson (Strategic Director for Place), and Roger Clotworthy (Head of City Development) and joined by a range of planning, housing, and regeneration officers for a lunchtime discussion and site visit.

The focus of the visit was Water Lane – a key brownfield regeneration area forming part of the city’s Liveable Exeter programme. Helen heard about the Council’s ambitions to deliver high-quality, high-density development in a heavily constrained area, and the strong emphasis on design and infrastructure needed to create a sustainable and vibrant neighbourhood. The team shared the importance of safeguarding quality through all development stages – from planning to delivery.

Despite the hilly walk and a packed itinerary, Helen remained gracious, thoughtful, and clearly impressed by the collaborative work being undertaken. Her energy was especially admirable, with Exeter just one stop on a demanding regional tour that continued to the North West.

"It was a pleasure to welcome Helen and showcase the work we’re doing in Exeter. We hope she took away a sense of our commitment to collaborative, place-led planning – and the strength of the team behind it. A presidential visit is a great opportunity to highlight local innovation and practice, and it’s also a valuable moment for self-reflection." Roger Clotworthy (Head of City Development) 

The day was completed with a dinner with some of the steering group members of Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Young Planners and course leaders from the University of Plymouth for a discussion about planning education and routes into planning.

On the 11 June Helen joined a meeting with Heads of Planning in the region to hear more about what is happening across the region, where the opportunities and challenges are. Helen also shared some of the initiative she is championing including her public campaign to raise the profile of planning. 

In the afternoon, Helen concluded her visit to the region by joining our South West Members Reception and Awards ceremony at Sandy Park Stadium in Exeter where we:

⭐Celebrated new Chartered Members reaching this milestone in their career

⭐Announced the winners of the RTPI South West Awards for Planning Excellence

⭐Recognised RTPI Volunteers

⭐Revealed the Unsung Planning Heroes of the Year