Today, 8 November, is the 72^nd World Town Planning Day, designed to celebrate how, done well, planning can improve lives and benefit communities.

In the UK, housebuilding is one of the hottest topics at both local and national government level. How many, what kind, where and for whom should new homes be built?

It’s vital to ensure a mechanism is in place to answer these questions. And that’s where planning – and town planners – come in.

Planning policy in Development Plans and the National Planning Policy Framework, and developer contributions – through the Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 106 agreements, ensure that new development helps provide a range of social enterprises from affordable housing to public open space, schools and healthcare provisions.

The Covid pandemic has caused many people to rethink how and where they want to live. And as the eyes of the world focus on Glasgow and COP26, sustainability has never been higher on the agenda. All this makes it an especially interesting time for graduate planners like us to begin our careers.

We both joined Savills in September 2020 and while the pandemic has brought many challenges, it has also provided opportunities.

Lockdown caused difficulties from a learning point of view – conducting site visits, networking and meeting clients are all much easier to do in person. But the acceleration of virtual planning has real positives including the ability to reach wider audiences, and we may well see more young people getting involved in local planning decisions as a result.

The pandemic has changed priorities. It’s now up to town planners to help shape environments that provide for these changes - planning for more public open spaces as well as private balconies and larger gardens, for example.

If we were giving advice to anyone looking into a career in planning it would be to go for it and that no two days are the same. Ultimately, at its best, town planning is about enabling the creation of sustainable places that people can live in and thrive.

Further information

Contact Errin Marshall

Contact Emily Holder