Former city property figure Philip Singleton returns to region

PHILIP Singleton, the former number two in Birmingham City Council’s regeneration team, is to return to the region as a property consultant after taking voluntary redundancy from Newham Borough Council.

Mr Singleton had worked with his former Birmingham boss Clive Dutton on Newham’s legacy project for the 2012 Olympics site, but leaves as government cuts start to bite in the Labour-controlled borough.

He is to set up as a private consultant in Birmingham early next month, offering his services to private sector developers and property professionals keen to access his experience of eight years in local authorities, as well as his background as a chartered architect.

Speaking exclusively to TheBusinessDesk.com, Mr Singleton said the Olympic project had been ‘fascinating work’, but he had hankered to renew his 20-year association with the West Midlands.

He said: “There are lots of architects in Birmingham and beyond who are somewhat underemployed, but I have a wealth of experience on the inside and the outside of local authorities, from Conservative-led Birmingham to Newham, which is run by an elected mayor. I think I am well positioned to be an enabler between the public and private sector.”

Mr Singleton said he had no specific projects lined up, but would be building his business from early February, based in the city centre.

He said cutbacks in local authorities – Birmingham City Council is laying off 79 people when it merges it planning and regeneration directorates – was an opportunity for those offering expert property services.

“Skills and experience will be increasingly restricted in local authorities,” he said, “meaning developers need agents with the expertise and experience to guide them through the planning process.”

He said he envisaged his typical clients would be bringing forward smaller projects, although there was “still a place” for the kind of iconic projects with which he was associated during his time in Birmingham, working alongside Mr Dutton.

He said: “I’m coming back to the city at a time when things are warming up at the front end of development. I feel very optimistic for the place.

“High Speed 2 is going to be exceptionally significant for the city, and the Big City Plan is maturing and keeps evolving into a more and more deliverable vision.

“The opportunities I see are working very much with the private sector, but also with the public sector on certain projects, to progress urban regeneration and development opportunities.

“I want to put 14 years of private practice as an architect and seven years at a senior level in local authorities in London and Birmingham to best use. I want to be hands-on with making sure the revised planning system can work for developers, architects and indeed local government to achieve change.

“Local authorities often create unintended hurdles to development activities and I really want to apply my experience in navigating people, who are otherwise mystified to successful delivery.

“Developers and architects often have really interesting and innovative ideas especially during a recession. I want to help them succeed. So much of the future is going to be on the shoulders of the private sector.”

Clive Dutton, who remains at Newham as executive director for regeneration, said: “The enormous regeneration agenda in Newham goes on unabated and we have a relentless ambition to expand the east of London. We thank Philip for the work he has done and wish him well for the future.”