Liverpool City Council appoints first female head of planning

Samantha Campbell has become the first female head of planning at Liverpool City Council.

She has worked at the council since Autumn 1999 and has risen through the ranks of the planning department to hold various posts including principal planning officer, deputy team leader of urban design and heritage team and city cntre Co-ordinator.

Her 19-year career at the council has led Ms Campbell to take a lead planning role in a number of major regeneration schemes from Kings Dock to Liverpool Football Club’s stadium expansion, to the development of the £2bn Knowledge Quarter and overseeing the growth of the Baltic Triangle.

The mother of two, who has a Masters in environmental planning from Liverpool John Moores University and Post Graduate Diploma in urban design at Salford University, has also played a key role in refreshing the strategy for Liverpool’s World Heritage site, liaising closely on projects such as Liverpool Waters and a new Cruise Terminal.

As head of planning her brief will be to also oversee the development of emerging growth zones in the city such as Ten Streets, the Fabric District, the new Beatles Quarter and the implementation of the Local Plan to build 35,000 new homes across the city over the next 15 years.

Talking of her appointment she said: “It’s a real honour to be the first female officer in this role. Hopefully the first of many more to come!.

“Liverpool is undergoing phenomenal change, and although this presents a great many challenges in terms of which areas need developing and how, it also provides huge opportunities to make the city a better place to live, work and visit.

“Liverpool’s World Heritage status is a fascinating issue to be involved and I’m lucky to be at the heart of many exciting projects that will shape the city for generations to come.”

Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, said: “I wish Samantha every success in her new role. She has a great track record working on some of the biggest schemes the city has seen and her expertise will be invaluable to the city council.”

Nick Kavanagh, director for regeneration at Liverpool City Council, said: “Samantha will make an excellent head of planning.

“Over the years she has developed a huge amount of experience across a vast range of complex planning schemes and high profile issues and has handled them all with great aplomb and professionalism.”