Handing over the of chain of office to the new RTPI Northern Ireland Executive Chair

In this latest blog from RTPI Northern Ireland, we hear from our outgoing and incoming Executive Committee chairs, Chris Bryson and Emma Aldridge.

Chris Bryson MRTPI – outgoing Executive Committee chair 2024

It’s hard to believe that my time as Chair of RTPI Northern Ireland has come to an end. I started my year with the aim to present a positive image of planning, so that we can take more pride in what we do and remind everyone of how good planning, can have a positive impact upon society.

It’s always good to start off the year with a social event and the annual dinner at the City Hall in March was well attended, it was particularly pleasing to see so many students there.

I attended the AGM and Annual Dinner of Construction Professionals Council of NI. I felt it important to engage with other industry professional bodies and the CPCNI brings together most professional representative bodies that work in the construction sector. In line with my theme, having a representative of the RTPI ‘at the table’ means that other professionals obtain a greater appreciation of what planning can and can’t do and how it can have a positive impact upon development. Working with our fellow professional representative bodies means a louder voice when issues arise that relate to planning.

Moving away from the theme of food(!), the RTPI Director and I met with the Minister for Infrastructure John O’Dowd in June, to highlight the importance of investment in planning and to extol the virtues of the positive impact that planning can have on society. It was clear that Minister O’Dowd appreciated the role planning plays and assured us it was high on his agenda. On the same day, we celebrated planning at the RTPI NI Planning Excellence Awards and new members welcome event at the award-winning Riddel Hall. I felt this event is one of the most important of the year as it gives us the opportunity to shout about the importance of planning and makes those coming into the profession feel welcomed and appreciated.

The annual Planning Conference is usually the highlight of the year and this year’s, was no exception. With a sold-out crowd and a keynote speech from Minister O’Dowd, it was centred on the theme of being Positive about Planning – which can stretch across several areas, including the public image of planning and professional well-being.

September also saw the inaugural meeting of the Planning Consultants Forum. This is something that I was particularly keen to get going, as it brings together consultants from across NI and provides them with a platform to discuss planning issues and will hopefully grow into an effective representative body that promotes positive planning.

Finally, I want to say a word of thanks to the RTPI local officers who work tirelessly to organise CPD events. I’d also like to thank the NI Executive Committee for their input and support during my year as Chair, it was greatly appreciated. Finally, a huge thanks to Gravis Planning for supporting me in this role during 2024.  I’m pleased to handover to Emma Aldridge, 2025 RTPI NI Chair.

Emma Aldridge MRTPI – incoming Executive Committee chair 2025

This year marks 10 years in my career as a planner, sadly I can no longer call myself a “young planner”, but it did make me think about how I started my planning career and where it has taken me. I began my career at Brent Council in London, thinking as a recent graduate from QUB that I was well informed and up to date with planning, before quickly being grounded when faced with a dormer window application. Progressing to Haringey Council developed my understanding of just how varied similar positions can be between two boroughs, before I moved on to ‘not just any job, but an M&S job’ as a town planner.

Working client-side in a city like London was fantastic, it broadened my outlook on planning, showing how little people knew about the discipline and what impressive scales of impact it can have. Keen to examine planning’s impact beyond retail, I moved into consultancy at Barton Willmore. This provided me with a range of experience in larger multidisciplinary projects across the UK. Volunteer days formed part of their ethos, and I was introduced to a programme educating and promoting planning to GSCE and A-level students, helping show them what planning is, how to engage with the system, and the rewards of choosing planning as a career! The first day was terrifying, trying to convince a classroom of students that ‘planning is cool’, but the more days I completed the more I was able to see the benefits of the scheme for both myself as a professional in the industry and for the students.

Like a lot of people, the pandemic gave me pause, which eventually felt like a cue to return home to Belfast. Since moving back in 2021, I have focussed on introducing a similar educational scheme here and so am delighted to have taken up the position as Chair of the RTPI NI Executive Committee, working with the help of the RTPI’s BALANCE programme towards a similar scheme being set up by the end of 2025. To make any such scheme successful is dependent on volunteers from both the private and public sector who are willing to give up their time and assist with workshops. If this sounds like something you might be interested in - whatever way, big or small - please contact [email protected]

Last year I got a taster of our local events, having the pleasure of handing out awards at the RTPI NI Planning Excellence Awards and New Members Welcome Event, and to QUB students with the Hugh McKay Prize. This year the RTPI NI dinner kicks off the start of our events on 6 March, with the new members welcome event and RTPI NI Excellence Awards on 9 June (Submit your entry by 13 March).

I would like to thank Juno Planning and Environmental Ltd for encouraging me to go for the role as RTPI NI Chair and Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council for their continued support in this role.