RAC - Who's who

After graduating from the University of the West of England this Summer (2023) with a BA in Architecture and Planning, Abbie has recently started as a Graduate Town Planner for Bailey Partnership, in their Plymouth office. During her first three months working for the multidisciplinary construction consultancy firm Abbie has contributed to multiple projects within the South West of the UK. Abbie has a keen interest in planning for health, resilience to climate change and sustainable placemaking.

Abbie is new to the RAC and is excited at the prospect of contributing to future events and inter-professional networking opportunities, whilst also inspiring and supporting future / Young Planners and raising the profile of planning.

Outside work, Abbie enjoys playing hockey for Caradon ladies first XI, spending time with family and friends, alongside watching Cornwall’s sunsets.

Adam joined the University of Birmingham in 2024 as an Assistant Professor of Urban Planning. Prior to this Adam taught for over a decade and a half in the RTPI Planning School at UWE Bristol, as well as at the university of Gloucestershire. Adam moved into academia from industry in 2007, having previously worked in Development Management for a number of Local Planning Authorities. Gloucester based, Adam now teaches and undertakes research focused upon placemaking, design, development management, enforcement, community participation, decision making/policy interpretation, urban rewilding and Biodiversity Net Gain, planning implementation, aspects of planning history, and research methods.

Adam is an Associate at JLL, located in the Bristol office and working on projects across the South West region. He started his career on the graduate scheme at Montagu Evans in London following undergraduate and postgraduate studies in Town Planning at the University of Newcastle. At Montagu Evans, Adam worked his year to RTPI accreditation, becoming ‘MRTPI’ in 2018. Following a short spell at another private consultancy, Adam moved into the public sector and spent two and a half years at the Royal Borough of Greenwich as a Planning Officer before relocating to Bristol in 2020. In his current role, Adam works on a mix of developments across the region with both public and private sector clients.

Adam is new to the RAC but is excited to get involved in both the committee itself and the various working groups.

Outside of planning, Adam is a keen racquet sports fan, and enjoys spending time in the great outdoors as well as in the cinema.

Alison is a chartered town planner and has been a member of the RTPI since 2004. She has over 20 years’ experience in the private sector, which started with a role at CSJ Planning in Bristol after graduating from the University of the West of England with a Masters in Town Planning.

In 2010, Alison joined Nash Partnership - a multi-disciplinary consultancy in Planning, Architecture, Heritage and Placemaking. Working from both the Bristol and Bath offices, Alison plays a key role in delivering planning advice to private and public sector clients, acting for land and property owners, commercial institutions, local authorities and individual homeowners. Her work involves steering a range of planning and related applications through the planning process.

Alison is looking forward to getting involved in the committee again, having previously had a turn volunteering on the RAC 12 years ago. Outside of work, Alison is kept busy with her young children, and having grown up in North Cornwall she enjoys any opportunity to head to the South West coast in the family campervan.

Anthony is a Principal Planning Consultant at AECOM (Bristol) specialising in planning policy, five-year housing land supply, housing delivery, housing and economic land availability assessments (HELAAs), site selection and site allocations in local and neighbourhood plans.  Anthony works almost exclusively for local planning authorities and qualifying bodies supporting local and neighbourhood plan-making and has significant plan-making experience across different areas and at different spatial scales.  Anthony previously worked as a Principal Planner at Swindon Borough Council and still lives in the area.  Outside of planning Anthony is a keen cyclist and enjoys cooking. 

Charlotte is a Senior Town Planner at Mott MacDonald located in their Bristol office. Charlotte works on a mix of projects, from large scale rail projects to smaller scale renewable energy, for both the public and private sector. Charlotte previously worked for AECOM in their London office where she specialised in planning policy, site selection and allocations in local plans, and various development management work. Charlotte is new to the RAC as well as being relatively new to Bristol (she moved at the end of 2022). Charlotte is looking forward to meeting other planners within the South-West area as well as getting involved in the committee. Outside of work, Charlotte spends most of her time running around after two young children, and occasionally enjoys running and yoga.  

Chris began his career in 2003 in the Development Management team at Sedgemoor District Council, based in Bridgwater.  Chris stayed at SDC for 12 years rising from Planning Officer through to Principal Planning Officer.  Chris’ later years at SDC were characterised by involvement in various large-scale renewable energy schemes including numerous solar and wind farms; as well as large urban extensions to Bridgwater. 

In 2015 Chris moved on to Bath & North East Somerset Council where he was both Principal Planning Officer and latterly DM Team Manager responsible for the oversight of many of Bath’s urban redevelopment sites as well as day-to-day team management.  Recently Chris has swapped Georgian Bath for Regency Cheltenham and is now Head of Development Management, Enforcement and Compliance at Cheltenham Borough Council.

Outside of work, Chris is very occupied dealing with his two children and tries to look after his high-maintenance garden.  Chris also enjoys travel both with and without his children!

Cat is a lecturer at University of the West of England (UWE) in Bristol with over 20 years planning experience.  Cat has worked in the South West as a Chartered Town Planner for the past 15 within the academic, public, private and third sectors.  Cat’s current role at UWE involves teaching and research, working on their RTPI Accredited Masters and Undergraduate urban planning programmes.  Cat’s research centres around Sustainable Planning and Environments and focusses on planning practice including development management and neighbourhood planning, climate change, affordable housing and Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs).  Cat is passionate about training the planners of the future and championing sustainability through planning.  Before joining the RAC, Cat worked for the RTPI Networks and with Planning Aid as Neighbourhood Plans advisor.  Cat has continued to work on Neighbourhood Plans with IPE Ltd as a Neighbourhood Plan Advisor and Examiner.  Outside of work, Cat likes to take advantage of the South West music scene, attending as many gigs and festivals as possible.

Chadernnay is a Senior Minerals and Waste Planner at Gloucestershire County Council since June 2024. She started her career in Cape Town South Africa, after graduating from the University of Cape Town with a Masters degree in City and Regional Planning. She has a diverse set of experience ranging from private sector land use planning, to working with the public sector on housing schemes and research programmes related to developing a census tool for transitional settlement arrangements across the City of Cape Town, in addition to working on various informal settlement upgrading projects such as the provision of basic services and livelihood initiatives across South Africa on behalf of the NGO sector and civil society. Her passion for planning is rooted in the firm belief that development should benefit the local community, economy and should not harm the natural environment but rather enhance it. Chadernnay has over the years mentored young professional planners and trained them specifically in development management, harnessing a skill which can easily be translated into different contexts.

Chadernnay is excited to join the committee and looks forward to growing her network with fellow planning professionals. She looks forward to bringing new ideas, her leadership skills and to add value to the committee in terms of thinking through regulatory changes and working on best practice.

Chadernnay enjoys being a town planner, it is a profession which shapes the environment we all live in and helps focus on important issues such as sustainability, climate change and the importance of functionality in a lived environment. It also allows you to have insight into various other sectors such as architecture, landscaping, ecology and highways which all contribute to place making, city making and liveability.

Outside of planning, Chadernnay is a mom to three busy little boys, enjoys the outdoors, when time allows enjoys getting lost in a fiction book and cooking.

Bio to follow

To follow

Ian has been a chartered planner since 1995, with a background in local authorities in Wales, the East Midlands and the West Country.

After many years managing plan-making teams and heading up planning and economic development functions, Ian became a Planning Inspector before working in private practice. In recent years, Ian has provided support to Tewkesbury Borough Council as their interim Policy Manager, working across boundaries helping to prepare a new joint local plan.

He is currently employed as the planning specialist for the Mendip Hills National Landscape, alongside his own private consultancy work. Away from planning, Ian likes food, drink and cycling a lot, but not usually in that order.

Bio to follow

Rebecca is the City and Net Zero Planning Manager at Plymouth City Council with over 15 years local government experience including planning policy and plan making, engagement and consultation, and neighbourhood planning.  A chartered town planner, Rebecca leads a multidisciplinary team of staff responsible for implementing the Joint Local Plan in Plymouth, climate emergency strategy and policy, data, graphics and neighbourhood planning initiatives. Rebecca was a founding member of the Devon and Cornwall Young Planners group and was proud to represent young planners on the RAC.  Rebecca is passionate about promoting the role of planning and planners and is keen to inspire the next generation to choose planning as a career.  Outside of work, Rebecca enjoys spending time with her young family, dancing and performing in local theatre productions and exploring the south-west in her campervan.

Suzanne started out as a Planning Assistant at Woking Borough Council. She graduated from Newcastle University with a Masters in Town Planning in 2007, specialising in urban design and conservation. This interest led to 8 years working in the Development Management section of Bath and North East Somerset Council, where she held a dual planning and conservation role, before moving on to Tewkesbury Borough Council. After a spell working in Strategic Sites, Suzanne is now a Principal Planning Officer in the Development Management team at South Glos Council.  Suzanne also has a Post Graduate Diploma in Historic Environment Conservation from the Ironbridge Institute. Outside of planning, Suzanne enjoys travel and yoga.

Dr Stephen Essex is the Programme Leader of the MSc Planning and MSc Town Planning (Level 7 Chartered Town Planner Degree Apprenticeship) programmes at the University of Plymouth. His research interests lie in urban planning (especially post-war reconstruction and restructuring of coastal communities, waterfronts and resorts); the impact of mega-events (including the infrastructural implications of the Olympic Games); and the environmental impacts of tourism (including water resource use and sustainable tourism).

PPP: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/staff/stephen-essex

Bio to follow