Property People: RPS expands planning offer with senior appointment; Principle boosts property inspection team

Multidisciplinary consultancy RPS has continued the expansion of its planning offering in Birmingham with the appointment of a principal planner, Lucy Yates.

Yates has joined the team from Barton Willmore, where she was a senior planner.

Her new role will involve providing core planning advice, site promotion, environmental assessment statements and pre-application planning advice.

She has built up extensive experience within the planning sphere over the last ten years, and is well-versed in residential and mixed-use development in Birmingham City Centre.

Her experience includes six years at Worcestershire County Council, managing a varied planning application caseload for new schools, infrastructure, railway stations, mineral development and waste management facilities.

She has also held an in-house role with a private sector developer, advising on the delivery of dementia care homes, extra care housing, doctor’s surgeries and small to medium scale employment sites.

She said: “Joining a business like RPS is a fantastic opportunity, and I’m looking forward to getting involved in the major projects on which the business is advising.

“This is a great new challenge for me, and I hope my experience in both private and public sector organisations, knowledge of planning policy and relationships which I’ve built within the industry regionally will be useful to the fantastic team we have in place here.”

Operational director at RPS, Tim Partridge, said: “Lucy’s appointment will strengthen what is already a talented team of planners at RPS, and we’re sure she will become a real asset to the business.

“Her appointment will give us further knowledge and strength concerning the ongoing development of Birmingham city centre alongside our established presence in the greenfield residential sector.

“We are continuously talking to major developers and landowners regarding development opportunities in the region, and are looking forward to continuing to grow our portfolio of work in 2020.”

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An extra full-time property inspector has been recruited to join Principle Estate Management to help manage the company’s fast-growing portfolio.

Matt Hill’s new role was created after the number of developments the Birmingham-based company manages across the country reached more than 150 since its launch in Spring 2018.

Principle’s property inspection team is already using the Qube site inspection app to make thorough inspections of all properties, normally every six weeks for all apartment developments.

Hill has worked at two national managing agents and has spent the last two-and-a-half years as a property inspector.

Ian Smallman, a director at Principle, said: “We’re delighted to have appointed Matt to our growing team. He has just the right experience and an excellent attitude to detail.”

Principle Estate Management is based at Cornwall House in Lionel Street, Birmingham, and offers a national property management service.

The company was launched in 2018 by Brett Williams the former head of residential property management at CPBigwood in Birmingham, and a past-chairman of ARMA.