Implementing the Environment Act 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.

Andy has been with APSE since 1999.  He is Head of APSE Solutions, the consultancy arm of APSE.  He is a Blue Ocean Strategy practitioner, specialising in finding better ways to deliver public services.  He has provided advice and support to many different local authorities, covering a wide range of service areas and is a long-term advocate of direct service provision. 

Andy was for 12 years a member of Bradford Council and has worked in youth work, residential social work, education welfare and for 12 years before joining APSE, was a senior manager with a voluntary sector organisation working in the field of homelessness and welfare rights. 

Andy holds an MSc in Social Policy and Planning from the LSE and a BA (Hons) in Social Administration

Aaron Smith is the Planning Manager at Master Land & Planning Ltd, based at Alderbury near Salisbury, Wiltshire. Master Land & Planning Ltd is a development and planning consultancy that offers bespoke and innovative services to support landowners, developers and communities to make effective land-use planning decisions. Aaron became a Chartered Member of the RTPI in July 2005, while starting his carer at West Wiltshire District Council, before a role in the Major Projects Team at Swindon Borough Council. Today, following over 15-years in a variety of private practice roles, Aaron leads the town planning functions of the consultancy that is developing specialisms in plan-making and technical evidence support, including acting as lead consultants for communities preparing neighbourhood plans.

Dr Claire Holman has worked on air quality management for over 40 years. For the past 25 years she has worked with developers, local authorities and residents’ group to understand the air quality impacts of new development in the planning system.   She has produced numerous air quality assessments and ES chapters and given expert evidence at planning appeals and local plan hearings. She has led a number of working groups producing planning guidance documents for the Institute of Air Quality Management (IAQM) and is currently the President of IAQM.

Gemma is an Associate with over 10 years’ experience in the Flood Risk and Drainage sector and a passion for making better, more resilient places, and has collaborated across disciplines with a wide variety of private and public sector clients.

Over the last 4 years Gemma has shifted her focus to the Nutrient Neutrality issue and has collaborated on industry leading wetland schemes to mitigate nutrient impacts, enabling development of new homes while improving biodiversity and delivering low-carbon solutions. As the nutrient neutrality challenge is a relatively new area in policy terms, she is excited to be part of the solution.

When she isn’t developing nature-based solutions, Gemma tends to her allotment and explores nearby landscapes with her Rhodesian Ridgeback, Rhodie. 

James Langley is a chartered environmental protection specialist with over twenty years experience as both a consultant and a regulator. James has experience in leading multi-disciplinary teams of professionals together with leading joint partnership projects. James is Experienced in in pollution control and regulation. James is currently a Group Leader for the Environmental Protection Function at Cornwall Council with the responsibility of delivery the air quality function for the authority.

Katharine is an Environmental Specialist at Thames Water, dedicated to ensuring a resilient water supply and environmental preservation. With expertise in integrated water management, and environmental appraisal she supports the Water Resources Management Plan, ensuring compliance with legislation and fostering sustainability. Previously, Katharine completed an MSc in Environmental Technology at Imperial College London, specialising in Integrated Water Management, undertaking consultation projects including the Investment Strategy with Anglian Water and Land Contamination Report with Hounslow Council. She worked as a regulatory chemist at a specialty chemical company, providing compliance guidance and stakeholder relations expertise. Her Environmental Science BSc from the University of East Anglia focused on river basin and water management, further developing her regulatory knowledge and stakeholder engagement skills.

Kären Renshaw is the Principal Ecologist at Bath & North East Somerset council. The Council declared an Ecological emergency in 2021 and Kären is leading work on nature recovery. This includes supporting Local Plan Policy and Development Management officers in the development of planning policy and implementing Biodiversity Net Gain. The LPA adopted a local BNG policy in January 2023 for both major and minor developments, ahead of mandatory requirements, and is considering a 20% BNG policy through its new local plan.

Michael has over 20 years’ experience of working within the waste and resource management industry. A large part of which has been spent within local government as part of the Waste Strategy team at Bath and North East Somerset Council. Working within the LA he was involved in operational reviews, establishing baseline positions and then in implementing changes to ‘ways of working’ to realise efficiencies. Michael also reviewed planning applications to ensure that they were in line with local requirements.

For the last six years he has been part of the waste and circular economy consultancy team at Stantec, working with developers and LAs to deliver compliant waste reports as part of planning submissions. These have covered both construction and operational phases, for urban and rural, residential and mixed-use developments. Increasingly he is looking at waste and resource efficiency in the context of the circular economy, the carbon agenda and sustainable development.

Richard is a Director in Freeths LLP’s Environmental Law team. Prior to joining Freeths, Richard was a solicitor at Natural England since 2010 and was the Head of Legal Services since 2017. Richard led on many of Natural England’s high-profile litigation and enforcement cases and provided advice to Natural England’s teams on the emergence of the Environment Act 2021 and Nature Recovery Green Paper. Richard is a highly distinguished environmental lawyer with experience working on a broad range of high-profile nationally significant infrastructure, planning, and species licencing cases. These include nuclear power stations, offshore windfarms, port developments, airports, road and rail developments and HS2. Since joining Freeths, Richard has also led on a wide variety of natural capital schemes, including in connection with Biodiversity Net Gain and nutrient neutrality.

Richard trained at Collyer Bristow LLP in London and holds an LLM in Environmental Law from UCL. Richard regularly lectures in environmental law, including at UCL, the University of Exeter and the University of Sheffield. 

I graduated in 2000 from Plymouth University with a BSc Environmental Science degree. I started working for a Cornish Local Authority within their Environmental Protection team helping them to write their contaminated land strategy. I carried on working for Cornish Local Authorities until Cornwall became a unitary Authority in 2009 when my role transferred to Cornwall Council. During this time, I have also investigated nuisance complaints, sampled private water supplies, inspected permitted processes and focused on air quality. In 2005 I was tasked with declaring the first air quality management area in Cornwall, currently there are nine AQMAs in Cornwall. The Council also has a clean air strategy which ensures that air quality is improved for everyone, not just focusing on the areas of exceedance. I manage a team of officers with direct responsibility for air quality, ensuring that the council is working with partners and residents to improve air quality. Air Quality impacts on health and it is essential that everyone understands the impact they have on air quality and what each person or business can do to reduce their impact.

Principal Ecologist for Devon County Council with a strategic overview of Biodiversity Net Gain for Local Planning Authorities in Devon.  I provide ecological and biodiversity net gain advice on a wide range of planning matters and related enquiries to partner organisations, developers, ecology consultancies and other interested parties, in accordance with appropriate professional standards and best practice.