Regional Activities Policy Committee

Jan has significant experience of examining (former Examining Inspector PINS) and advising on a wide range of nationally significant infrastructure and major development projects across the full range of sectors including new settlements and urban extensions, energy, water and waste water, transport, business and commercial, ports and airports dealing with a wide range of issues from development consent orders, strategic plans, EIA, biodiversity, design, Water Framework Regulations, Habitats Regulations Assessment, community engagement and compulsory purchase. Jan has been recognised as one of ‘the most influential women in UK planning’. She is Board Chair of the National Infrastructure Planning Association.

Jan is a Fellow of the Royal Town Planning Institute (FRTPI) and currently sits as Vice Chair of the RTPI English Policy Committee and is North East Regional Representative on General Assembly. She also continues to be engaged with Planning Aid.

Emma is a Chartered Senior Planner at Lichfields, having joined in 2019 following the completion of her studies at St Andrews University and the University of Glasgow where she obtained a Master’s degree in City Planning and Real Estate Development. Emma’s primary focus is in the residential sector, but her experience covers a wide variety of projects including leisure, regeneration, and commercial. Emma is currently the Chair of the RTPI North East Young Planner’s Committee and a member of the RTPI NE Regional Activities and Policies Committee

David Stovell is the principal of David Stovell and Millwater, an independent planning consultancy covering a wide range of planning matters, with particular regard to planning applications and appeals. David was previously been Chair of RTPI North East, he was for many years the Chair of the NE's Continuing Professional Development Steering Group, which is responsible for formulating and running the regions highly successful CPD Conference Programme. He graduated from the University of Aston in Birmingham and has held positions in the public and private sectors, working on development plans, compulsory purchase orders, implementation and retail planning.

Colin Haylock is a Newcastle based architect-planner with over 40 years’ experience. He now provides consultancy services primarily in heritage and other sensitive environments. He led a multi-disciplinary Environmental Design Team for Newcastle City Council for over ten years with work ranging from Grainger Town to Newcastle Great Park and the East Quayside redevelopment. He was RTPI President in 2012 and since 2000 has been heavily involved in national work on planning and design through CABE and the Design Council. He is a Visiting Professor and Lecturer at UCL, a Member of Historic England’s Expert Advisory group, a High Streets Task Force Expert, a Member of the Design Review Panels for the North East and Yorkshire and of the Fabric Committee for Durham Cathedral. He has had recent past roles with Newcastle University, the London Mayor’s Design Advisory Group and the Planning Committee for the Old Oak and Park Royal Mayoral Development Corporation.

I am a chartered town planner with experience of policy making and a commitment to promoting a critical understanding of development processes in the UK. However, my research interests lie primarily in the spaces that lie beyond the scope of statutory planning processes and I am particularly interested in alternative or marginal ways of perceiving and responding to urban problems. 

I have an ongoing interest in complexity theory, and actor-network theory in particular, and am interested in the role of objects in governing behaviour and in the potential of non-human actors to re-orientate established forms of government. I have a related interest in the politics of technology and in the relationship between research and societal change. 

Emily has been a member of the North East Young Planners Committee since December 2018, and is the former Committee Chair for 2022. Emily joined Lichfields in September 2018 and now works as a Senior Planner in their Newcastle office.  During her time at Lichfields, Emily has been involved in a variety of projects throughout the North East, including commercial, infrastructure, retail and leisure schemes. Emily is also a Chartered member of the RTPI.”

Ifeanyi joined the Planning Inspectorate in 2019 as an Appeals Planning Officer and is currently on secondment to the Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities as a Senior Planning Technical Officer. Prior to this, he worked with the Marine Management Organisation and Defra. His experience includes Marine Planning and Marine Licensing, Environmental Project Management, Planning Appeals, Habitats Regulation and Environmental Impact Assessment.  Prior to his time in UK he also worked in Nigeria and experience includes Urban Design, Development Control and Higher Education (teaching Town Planning Courses).

Lucy is a Planner at Lichfields UK, having joined in 2023. She graduated from Newcastle University with a MSc in Urban Planning (Conservation Pathway) in 2023 and from Durham University with a Geography (BA) degree in 2022. Lucy has a range of experience with a particular focus, and interest in, the built historic environment and retail and town centre schemes. Lucy is a member of the RTPI North East Young Planners Committee. She is currently working towards achieving MRTPI accreditation.

Alastair joined the Defra Marine Planning and Licensing team in October 2019 as a Senior Policy Adviser. He advocates for ambitious marine planning and licensing policy and inputs into cross-government commissions on planning reforms, working with ministers and a variety of stakeholders. He previously worked at Natural England (NE) in the marine planning team where he was responsible for responding as a statutory consultee to Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects alongside development management, development plan and marine licencing casework along the coast. He also worked for the NE terrestrial planning team and for the planning team at the Environment Agency.

Alastair is a Chartered Member of the RTPI and is currently Junior Vice Chair of the RTPI North East. Alastair previously served as Vice Chair of the Young Planners' Steering Group and on the Regional Activities and Policy Committee. He was North East Young Planner of the Year 2022.

Henry Cumbers is a policy planner currently working in the Newcastle office at Historic England. He has recently started a 12-month secondment working on national planning strategy responding to and helping influence planning and heritage reform, but prior to this worked extensively on supporting the integration of the historic environment within local plans across the north. Previous experience has included working for local authorities including Sunderland, Craven and Lancaster primarily in strategic planning but also development management and regeneration. Henry graduated from Newcastle University in 2005 in Town & Country Planning and received a postgraduate diploma in 2007.

I currently work as a Graduate Transport Planner for Mott MacDonald, of which I have been working for since 2022. I completed my Masters of Planning degree at Newcastle university in 2022, having completed a year in industry at Capita in the development management team at North Tyneside Council, to gain my Certificate of Planning Practice. I have a wide depth of knowledge within planning applications, after my year in industry and since joining the transport planning industry have been a part of some notable projects across the country, taking a specialised interest in active travel schemes, having worked on some in Leeds and Newcastle.

I have been a student member of the RTPI since 2018 and a Licentiate since 2022, joining the North East Planners Committee in May 2023. I aim to complete and gain my MRTPI accreditation and take a larger role in the north eastern RTPI group.

Abjol is a Consultant Planner at Hedley Planning Services. He is working towards becoming a chartered member of the RTPI, having gained experience working in the public sector as a Planner. Abjol holds a BA in Urban Planning and an MA in Environmental Planning Research, specialising in digital consultation tools. He has a competent approach to managing difficult planning solutions,  and continues his keen involvement in Digital Planning.

Daniel is currently a Master of Planning student at Newcastle University, undertaking his Certificate in Planning Practice year out placement in the spatial planning and environment team at Gateshead Council. His experience so far has helped him develop a solid understanding of the planning system and provided him with insight into the development of local planning policy and how it is utilised to shape the built environment. Daniel has been a student member of the RTPI since 2020 when he first started his degree and hope to continue his membership and involvement at a postgraduate level.

Matthew is Head of Planning at Hamilton Willis Land & Development, an independent development land consultancy specialising in strategic development land.  He is a Chartered Town Planner having obtained his Master’s Degree in Spatial Planning and Development from Cardiff University in 2018.  Matthew predominately focuses on the residential sector with experience across the full breadth of project scales including the promotion of new settlements.  However, Matthew’s experience extends to commercial, renewable energy and environmental based projects as well.  Matthew has a keen interest in Planning Policy and CPD and is contributing to the RTPI’s role in both as part of his role on the RTPI NE Regional Activities Policy Committee.