Claire Dutch

Practice Group Head, UK, Real Estate
Ashurst

Claire has been described in the legal directories as a “leader in the field of planning”. She specialises on all aspects of contentious and non-contentious planning law. She helps clients on strategy and policy at the inception of a development scheme, planning applications, environmental impact assessment, planning agreements, the community infrastructure levy and appeals and judicial review.

Claire has advised the public and private sector on some of the country’s most notable and iconic development and infrastructure projects. She has featured in The Lawyer’s “Hot 100” and numerous polls of influential people in the planning industry. She is the Vice Chair of the British Property Federation’s planning committee and a member of the Oxford Joint Planning Law Conference Committee.

Simon Gallagher

Director of Planning
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Simon has been Director of Planning at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government since June 2016, responsible for advising ministers on planning policy and practice.

Simon has been a civil servant since 1993 in a range of economic and financial policy roles in a number of departments, most recently as Deputy Director for Welfare Spending and Reform at HM Treasury and as Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Berlin.

Rebecca Taylor

Managing Director Multi-Family
Long Harbour

Rebecca is the Managing Director of Long Harbour’s BtR / Multifamily business. Since joining Long Harbour in 2015, Rebecca has deployed over £750mn of equity and leads on the LHMF JV which is a £1.5bn partnership with PSP and Cadillac Fairview. Rebecca has over 15 years’ experience in development and investment having worked in projects in Australia, UK, Ireland and UAE. Prior to joining Long Harbour, Rebecca spent eight years at Laing O’Rourke working in their property and investment team. Here she worked on their offsite housing solution and a number of PFI/PPP deals. She is the Vice-Chair of the BPF BTR Committee, is on the steering group for the UKAA Best Practice Guide and a member of the ULI UK Residential Council.

Faraz Baber

Operations Director - Midlands & South East
RPS

Faraz Baber is the Operations Director for Planning at RPS Group covering London, South East, Midlands and the North of England. RPS was founded in 1970 and is a leading global professional services firm which employs c. 5,500 staff. Faraz is a dual qualified chartered town planner and chartered surveyor; he currently serves as a member of the British Property Federation’s Planning Committee and, as the former chair of the RICS Planning Policy Panel, he also advises RICS on current planning policy issues. His specific areas of planning reform interest and expertise include the evolution of Community Infrastructure Levy and more recently helping to provide technical input into the proposals for an Infrastructure Levy. Faraz provides both strategic and technical expertise to planning projects and over the duration of his career, he has successfully worked on a wide and varied caseload of large and complex schemes across England.

Deirdra Armsby

Director of Place Shaping & Town Planning
Westminster City Council

Director of Placeshaping and West End Partnership at Westminster City Council, providing strategic leadership on the form and function of the City as a City for All. Deirdra will embed Placeshaping principles throughout an eclectic range of projects including Church Street regeneration, West End Partnership programmes and leading on the emerging Oxford Street District Strategy, neighbourhood revitalisation and Strategic transport. Deirdra also sits on the Board of the Dolphin Foundation.

Previously, Deirdra was Director of Regeneration and Planning at Newham, and worked at Hackney & RBKC gaining experience in strategic and local mixed use development, Conservation, neighbourhood advocacy, transport, public health and strategy.