Regional Activities Committee

Victoria graduated from the University of Sheffield with a BA (Hons) in Urban Studies and Planning in 2006 and completed her masters between Sheffield Hallam University and Birmingham City University. She is a chartered planner with 14 years’ experience in the public and private sector having worked for various local authorities, private consultancies and housebuilders. She has worked as a Principal Planning Consultant with RCA Regeneration based in Worcestershire, working on a number of residential-led development schemes across the West Midlands region and for Keepmoat Homes. Victoria has a passion for dance, particularly salsa, and you can regularly find her out and about on weekends strutting her stuff on the dancefloor.

Maria is a chartered Town Planner with over 14 years’ experience in local government. Currently Head of Development Policy at Birmingham City Council, Maria was previously Planning Policy Team Leader at Worcester City Council, where she was responsible for leading all aspects of the City's planning policy work. Maria started her career at Wyre Forest District Council where she worked on a number of planning policy projects and Neighbourhood Plans. Maria was awarded the RTPI West Midlands Young Planner of the Year Award in 2013 and was shortlisted for the National Young Planner of the Year Award in 2014 and featured on The Planner’s Women of Influence list in 2019. Maria has been a Planning Aid Volunteer since 2005, she has been a member of the West Midlands Regional Activities Committee since 2013 and previous to that she was a member.  Maria was RTPI West Midlands Chair in 2018. In 2021, Maria was presented with the RTPI Outstanding Service Award recognising excellence in service to the industry, benefitting RTPI members at large.

Kelly is the Lead Planning Manager at South Staffordshire District Council having begun her career in planning with the authority in 2004.
Kelly worked initially in strategic planning and was Local Plans manager before taking up her current post which encompasses Development Management, Planning Enforcement, Strategic Planning and Housing Strategy. Bringing the teams together through a restructure, and with investment and buy in from members and the corporate leadership team, as a collaborative planning service has transformed the planning offer in South Staffordshire.
Kelly is passionate about planning and how it can shape communities, and embraces change and looking for new ways of working. The changes brought about by her positive approach led to the planning team winning the West Midlands Planning Authority of the Year in 2023. The Chair’s Award for the way in which the planning team has worked to develop and nurture staff talent is testament to her positive leadership and passion for the role.

Clare manages the planning policy team in Coventry, having joined the City Council at the start of 2021. Clare has extensive experience in planning policy both in consultancy and in managing policy teams at Lichfield and Cannock Chase Councils. Prior to this, Clare managed the Economic Development Service at North Warwickshire Borough Council, and spent over a decade working for Sandwell Council in the planning and regeneration services. She is especially passionate about community engagement, health and wellbeing and ensuring fairness and inclusion for all in the community.

A senior manager in Local Government, operating as Head of Planning at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council.

I have a background in the built environment and economic development. I am also an effective local government officer with substantive senior experience transcending both operationally and strategically.

I am lead officer advising Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council Planning Committee, which is inclusive of leading advice in a virtual committee. I have significant experience of being lead officer in presenting reports to other formal Council meetings, inclusive of:
- Cabinet
- Executive Committee
- Overview and Scrutiny
- Audit Committee
- Council sub committee


While operating at senior level in Local Government I have maintained my technical knowledge and have experience in being expert witness at Public Inquiries and hearings, this is inclusive of enforcement hearings. In addition I was lead officer for Lichfield District Council for during the examination 2018 of their Local Plan document.

In addition to my planning expertise I can demonstrate proven experience in the management and review of other service areas, along with a track record of delivery. I can demonstrate experience in effectively working with communities, project partners and other stakeholders. I enjoy working in a political environment and adding value in this context.

Mark is a chartered Town Planner with over twenty two years' experience working in the public sector and advising clients in the private sector primarily in respect of minerals and waste development together with energy generation. He is a Planning Director at the Birmingham Office of WYG and is responsible for providing planning advice on development projects including minerals and waste development, retail, housing, regeneration, planning applications, appeals and environmental impact assessments. Mark has been a member of the West Midlands Regional Activities Committee since 2002 and was Chair of RTPI West Midlands in 2011. Mark was the Honorary Treasurer of RTPI West Midlands, a role he undertook from 2014-2019. Mark was previously Chair of West Midlands Planning Aid and a member of the RTPI Young Planners Panel.

Claudia is a Professor of Environmental Governance and Planning at Birmingham City University and Programme Director for the MA Planning Built Environments. She serves as a reviewer for the UKRI, various journals and publishers. Claudia teaches undergraduate and postgraduate planning and research methods modules and supervises Master’s and PhD students in Planning. Her research relates to city-region planning, climate change and social-ecological sustainability transformation with over 20 inter-/transdisciplinary national and international collaborations. Claudia led and contributed to developing cross-disciplinary approaches and methods (STEAM INC project) and tools for participatory planning and collaborative decision-making. Outputs include Participology, a resource for inclusive and critical-creative planning and decision-making using a board game format. Claudia studied geography and environmental management in Scotland and for many years worked in academia and applied research organisations. She has lived and worked in Birmingham since 2011 and became a chartered member of the RTPI in 2019.

Sarah is a chartered Town Planner with over 7 years’ experience in the public and private sector across England and Wales and more recently the West Midlands region. Her roles have included working for Powys County Council’s Planning Policy team, a UK energy company developing a new generation of nuclear power stations and she is currently a Senior Planner in Arup’s Solihull office. Sarah’s work primarily focuses on major infrastructure projects and she is particularly passionate about effective stakeholder engagement and consultation. Sarah has recently joined the RTPI West Midlands Regional Activities Committee starting in 2020.

Stephanie is a chartered Town Planner with over 6 years' experience in private practice in the West Midlands. She is currently an Associate Director in Avison Young's Birmingham Office. She works on a wide range of project for clients in the public and private sectors and has significant experience in the preparation and management of major planning applications and the promotion of large strategic sites through emerging Local Plans and Neighbourhood Development Plans. Stephanie was Chair of the Young Planners West Midlands Committee in 2019 and has been a member of the Committee since 2012. She is also Chair of the RTPI West Midlands Annual Summer Ball Organizing Committee and has led the organization of the event since 2017. Stephanie was also awarded the RTPI West Midlands Young Planner of the Year Award in 2015.  Stephanie was RTPI West Midlands Chair in 2021.

Charles is a Geographer and trained Planner with research and teaching interests in strategic planning/regional governance, community involvement, housing supply/affordability and planning history. His ESRC-funded doctoral research focused on the Green Belt, England's housing crisis and the planning system and is published in a range of practitioner and academic outlets. Charles' research is now moving into post-Covid cities and the greening of urban centres. A particular passion of Charles' is strengthening the links between the academy and planning practice. Outside of work, Charles enjoys visiting the coast, swimming and his Christian faith.

Luke Hillson, a Recognised Practitioner in Urban Design, MRTPI and Design Council CABE Built Environment Expert, with a background in town planning and expertise in urban design and masterplanning. Luke has broad experience in urban design, masterplanning and strategic land promotion. Project work has ranged from involvement on large-scale estate masterplanning studies to feasibility studies for mixed-use development, residential developments, public realm schemes and strategic land promotion. Through his contribution to design work Luke places emphasis on place-making through the application of best practice in design for accessibility, safety, mixed-uses, adaptability and sustainability. Recent work includes residential developments, design of sporting venues and masterplanning of sustainable new settlements and urban extensions. Luke is experienced in townscape analysis, place-making and a technical expert in the modelling and visualisation of both 2D and 3D urban landscapes.  Luke was RTPI West Midlands Chair in 2020.

James is a Planning Policy Officer at Walsall Council and is currently also working to help deliver the Black Country Plan alongside Wolverhampton City, Sandwell and Dudley. He is a part-time degree apprenticeship student studying Urban and Regional Planning (MSc) at the University of Birmingham, after which he hopes to attain RTPI accreditation. James has a varied experience working for Local Planning Authorities in both metropolitan and borough councils. Previously he worked on the Central Lancashire Local Plan for Chorley, South Ribble and Preston City Councils and in Development Control at Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council in Greater Manchester.

Craig is currently Service Director for Planning at Newcastle Under Lyme Borough Council in north Staffordshire, a position he took up in May 2023.  Prior to that he worked at Stafford Borough Council in an interim Head of Development role and before that at Lichfield District Council in various positions ending up as Head of Economic Growth and Development at the time of leaving in November 2021 after nearly 17 years at the Authority.  Whilst engaged by Lichfield District Council, Craig led a public-private Planning Sub-Group on behalf of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership established to ensure planning was integral to delivering sustainable economic growth. Craig was RTPI WM chair in 2017.

Ben joined National Highways in 2020 as a Spatial Planner for the Birmingham Motorway Box and Coventry & Warwickshire Patch, and was promoted to the position of Spatial Planning Manager in December 2021, overseeing the western side of the Midlands region.

Ben graduated from the University of Sheffield with a Masters in Urban Studies and Town and Regional Planning in 2008, and became a Chartered member of the Royal Town Planning Institute in 2013. Ben has 15 years’ experience in the private / public sector. He started his career working at JMP Consultants Limited  In 2011 he joined Coventry City Council as a Transport Planning Officer and joined Warwickshire County Council in 2014 as a Senior Development Management Engineer. Ben has experience in both highways development management and land-use and transport policy development regularly represented the represented his organisations at planning committee, examination in public and public inquiries.

Ben is an active member of the RTPI, having the regional chair for Young Planners West Midlands in 2012, the West Midlands Regional Chair in 2016 and a member of the Education and Life Long Learning Committee between 2017 and 2019.

Philippa has worked in local government for over 30 years and has extensive experience in the planning and regeneration sectors. Following a number of years working for Sandwell Council in the areas of planning policy and regeneration, Philippa moved to Worcester City Council to manage the economic development and planning functions. She worked for a short time at Wychavon and Malvern Hills Councils concentrating on the production of the South Worcestershire Development Plan before returning to the Black Country to take on the role of project manager for the Black Country Plan.

I'm a passionate young planner trying to 'make a difference' in the public sector. My career has mainly focused on securing infrastructure through planning obligations, aiming to maximise the public health and environmental benefits and limit the damage. Too often I feel complicit in perpetuating the climate, biodiversity and social crises the planning system has entrenched. I hope that the RTPI can be a stronger part of the solution and I will do my best to help members engage effectively on these topics.

Asima is a Planning Technician at Coventry City Council and is currently working towards her RTPI accredited Town Planning Degree at Birmingham City University. She currently works in Development Management and determines a variety of different types of planning applications, she has also previously worked in the planning department at Dudley MBC. After completing her BSc, she will progress on to her MSc in Town Planning. She is very driven and passionate about her career and the work she does. Asima is a scholarship winner and a STEM Ambassador for the Millennium Point Trust in Birmingham which has given her the opportunity to inspire, encourage and connect with the younger generation and help them make career choices that make a positive contribution to their growth and the world we live in.

Career in Local Government - Cardiff City Council / Leicester and Leicestershire Sub-Regional Study/
Lincoln City Council/ Newcastle under Lyme Borough Council (STAFFS)

Interests – City Regions, Neighbourhood Plans, Conservation Coal Mining and Regeneration , Environment and Tourism.

Voluntary Work - Staffordshire Environmental Trust - Landfill Tax Grant Appraisals /Project Management of Churchyard Regeneration .
Newcastle Countryside Project - Environment work with Schools Civic Trust – Planning Aid for civic societies.

Education - Leicester Technical College teaching planning law to Surveyors - RICS Planning and Development examination of student applicants

Current Interests - Member of North Staffordshire Pensioners Convention ( BUS GRANT MONITORING) Assisting group in first Urban Neighbourhood Forum and Plan in NORTH Staffs.

Publications -  From Mow Cop to Englesea Brook -a Primative Methodist Heritage Trail
James Brindley Canal Engineer – 300th Anniversary.