Stephen Bell has settled in quickly to his new role as chief executive of planning and development consultancy Turley.
He may be making his first visit to the firm’s new London office for this interview – he even had to sign the visitors’ book at the front desk – but he seems right at home extolling the virtues of the bright, plant-filled space, which comes complete with a courtyard that, in the June heatwave, is like a slice of the Mediterranean just south of Kings’ Cross.
The relaxed and spacious environment, he says, typifies the post-pandemic workplace approach that Turley hopes to roll out across its portfolio.
Taking over from Dave Trimingham, who has moved to the role of executive chair, Bell is relaxed as he discusses his plans for the company, which celebrates its 40th anniversary later this year.
“Historically, we’re a planning consultant,” he says. “But over time, we’ve obviously grown in size. We have broadened what we do, with work around sustainability, strategic communication, public engagement and various other fields.
“So we’re far beyond just a planning consultancy. Now we’ve been doing some horizon scanning about where we might focus our attention next, which we will be crystallizing over the next 12 months.”
Prioritising ESG
One area of focus for Turley is ESG.
“We’ve been carbon neutral for some time now, but we’re looking to advance that,” Bell says. “We’re committing to science-based targets to create a pathway to net zero. We’re going to be pursuing a B Corp certification. We’ve been doing a lot around carbon literacy within the company, and we’re looking at the broader social and environmental impacts that we have as a business.
The benefits of this are two-fold, he adds. “It’s the right thing to do, but also a business opportunity. We’re advising a number of clients on their own corporate ESG strategies, very much beyond planning and even beyond the built environment.”
Similarly, equality, diversity and inclusion are high on the agenda. “We introduced a programme about 18 months ago recognising that we needed to accelerate our change in those areas,” Bell says. “We’ve been diversifying our strategic leadership team. We’ve introduced reverse mentoring. We have internal EDI groups represented on our leadership team. A raft of measures we’re trying to advance with greater pace.”
Some of the firm’s research on gender mainstreaming was cited in the House of Lords, and EDI was a key focus in how Turley led discussions at MIPIM.
“We won’t say we’ve all the solutions,” Bell says, “but we’re making progress.”
As well as being important elements of Turley’s “market offer”, EDI and sustainability are vital to making Turley “the best place possible” for its employees.
“Talent retention is absolutely critical for us,” Bell says – something aided by the fact that Turley remains employee-owned.
“We’re seeing more and more practices, including within our sector, going down that pathway,” Bell says.
“I think it provides continuity and a degree of certainty as to the future. It provides a bedrock for succession, such as the one we’ve been going through. And I think, fundamentally, it drives us to a culture based around our people.
“We are not beholden to shareholders. Our ownership is held in trust for the benefit of everyone in the company. That drives a behaviour and a culture around inclusivity, engagement and ownership. We see the advantages of that.”
Levelling up
Bell speaks with authority – and a faint hint of a Scottish accent, from his childhood growing up in Dalgety Bay in Fife – about a wide range of planning issues. Unsurprisingly, for a Preston North End fan who was formerly head of planning in the North for the Manchester-based firm, the levelling up agenda remains a matter of concern.
“If you asked many people in the North of England as to what difference they’re seeing, I think they might be struggling to identify it,” he says. “We do have the Levelling Up fund, which is supporting some regeneration projects across the North and Midlands, and that’s welcome.
“But there’s a lot of feedback to say that is only money that should have been made available in any event.
“So it’s closing the gap somewhat from the deficiencies that we have with local authority funding, but it’s obviously a competitive process and leads to a situation where cities or towns are competing against one another.”
He cites Midlands mayor Andy Street’s comments about a “begging bowl culture” developing.
“There’s a real limitation around that, and not particularly great press,” he adds. “The key thing, when you talk about levelling up and the Northern Powerhouse before that, is connectivity.
“I think there’s been continual frustration and disappointment about the commitment of government to genuine, long-term transformational transport infrastructure. That commitment is the only thing that’s really going to genuinely level up.”
Bell believes that “fiscal devolution” is also crucial to the ability of local authorities in the North and the Midlands to make their own decisions and produce development plans fit for the future.
“I have no doubt there is a very strong role for our towns and cities, that will just be of a different mix,” he says. “We have all the planning tools to support that, and a lot of knowledge and experience and skills out there. But it’s a bit of a moving feast. These projects take time and they take a lot of money. I don’t think there’s any lack of appetite in the market to invest, though.
“Local authorities are now investing in towns and city centres, and our experience is that there’s absolutely the appetite for the private sector to step in, in a public private partnership. Perhaps less fashionable towns are being recognised as having a great potential.”
Best laid plans
Bell is adamant that planning “has to be at the very centre of achieving our sustainability goals”, and has expertise in the area of energy infrastructure. He believes that considerable investment is required to ensure that the UK can become greener and more self-sufficient in its energy supply, with a “strong mix” of renewable sources.
“There’s no one direction we can travel which will solve all the problems,” he says. “Onshore wind has got a greater role to play in England than has been the case for years. The pace at which it can be deployed, and the cost of delivery now, can make a substantial difference.
“Beyond that, it’s not just about planning support, but the degree of investment that’s required, around carbon capture, hydrogen production and storage capacity – and, crucially, the grid. A huge amount of investment is required to enable these new and emerging technologies to actually make their mark.”
However, the biggest challenges standing in the way of much-needed development remain uncertainty over planning laws and lack of resources.
“There’s been a constant state of flux around planning reform for years,” Bell says. “That uncertainty means things aren’t happening. The fact that multiple local authorities are putting their plans on hold or not starting them at all means that land isn’t being allocated for development.
“Policies aren’t being put in place and that has a direct impact on supply of housing, of employment space, of technology and industry and infrastructure.”
Bell has “a great deal of sympathy” for local authorities. “How do you commit to a plan if you don’t know the system you’re going to be working under in six months’ time? We need that certainty sooner rather than later. It’s well overdue.”
In addition, local authorities are struggling with resources and skill sets. “Tackling those age-old issues is challenging,” Bell says.
“But the only way we’re going to make progress is to do so – because there are severe implications of not doing so. There are not enough homes being built.
“Until we get certainty and we’re able to advance positively, that will continue to be a detriment to our housing market and everything else.”
Political challenges
Solving these problems starts at the top, but there is widespread frustration over the government’s inability to chart a clear course for the planning system.
“We’re going back three years since the Planning White Paper was issued,” Bell says. “I think 40-odd thousand people responded to that and that’s effectively been shelved. Now we’ve got the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, but that’s encountered political challenges, to say the least.”
He highlights the consultation issued last December on the new National Planning Policy Framework, on which Turley and many of its clients made representations. For his part, he feels it was “very focused on housing”, to the extent that “we’re in danger that planning reform forgets about all the other aspects that are so critical to our economy”. But even then, proposed changes aimed at boosting housing delivery “were not a positive way forward”. Bell adds.
“Almost without exception, those in the building industry were very concerned about how, actually, it could lead to a reduction in housing delivery, rather than what the government is aiming to achieve.
“Through the reforms, when we see them, we need to see a much more positive, supportive context for housing delivery, because otherwise we risk exacerbating the crisis recovery.”
Bell is understandably concerned, though, about the timeframe for that to happen, with the next general election due, at the latest, at the start of 2025.
“Until the NPPF is resolved, stagnation remains,” he says. “And if that doesn’t come through in the latter half of this year, we’re getting into all sorts of political complications next year. Is planning going to be at the centre of that attention going forward? It needs to be.”
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